[MRVphotog]

Was considering going skiing today for my last day on the slopes but the day is kinda gloomy so I have been checking out properties in the area instead.
Selling the place in Maine and in Vermont and merging the family to one bigger place in Vermont is a couple of years away but I can't help checking things out.

I'm pretty much the lone wolf in here heralding the mantra that real estate in Vermont is very affordable if you stay away from the expensive areas like Stowe, Burlington suburbs, Manchester and most of the ski/tourist towns.

For our situation we don't need a big place as I plan to do an add-on. These listing include Northfield, 20 min from the MRV, 10 min from I89 for points south and 20 min to Montpelier. Waterbury is centrally located to Burlington, Montpelier, Stowe and the MRV.

My point is that if your thinking about moving to Vermont, affordable properties are plentiful IMHO. I know most think I'm looney. If your from out of state it's getting easier and easier to check out listings from your puter. Most real estate agencies have websites with alot of listings and alot of info. Here is just one sample for my area.
Sugarbush, real estate, Mad River Valley real estate, luxury and vacation homes offered by David M. Dion Real Estate in Vermont

[mustmove]

Vermont Scrap Wood: Housing Crisis (http://vtscrapwood.blogspot.com/2008/04/housing-crisis.html - broken link)
Yup. 1,878 properties for sale @ less than 225K. Higher taxes, heating, car maintenance(tie rods, snow tires), snow removal, good chance of a longer commute. Not to mention lower wages and crappy employment opportunities. The buy in here ain't so bad , it's getting along and getting ahead that are nearly impossible. C'mon everyone go ahead and give it a shot, I need to sell my house after all.

[tkln]

I also agree that great deals can be found if you look for them in the right place, but mustmove is also correct about the situation with some of those houses...unfortunately, the crisis isn't just in VT but throughout the country...try finding an affordable home anywhere NYC - houses in my area sell for at least $600K, and that's on a 40x100 lot and not necessarily in any better shape than some of the 100 year old homes in VT...

Ironically, even when I look through the real estate listings in Stowe, I've seen quite a few quality homes under $300K...the taxes of course are a different story in the resort areas, but that also seems like it's across the country, not just VT...

[GypsySoul22]

Yes, there are affordable places if you bring your out of state $. (especially if you are from NY/MA/and other prosperous Northeastern States.). Nice homes here if you can swing $200,000 (a drop in the bucket on Long Island).

Most here from there own 2 homes and do very nicely renting one...(not us, though..)

But, if you don't have that big chunk of cash, your own business, and have to get by on VT wages then you can find yourself in trouble.

Taxes go up, you need to eat into your savings for this and that...steady and fair paying work is hard to come by. The competition for anything paying over $10 an hour is rough.

I personally dislike catering to tourists/second home owners and can't wait till the day when I have NOTHING to do with service/hospitality.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by GypsySoul22

I personally dislike catering to tourists/second home owners and can't wait till the day when I have NOTHING to do with service/hospitality.

Why? There's nothing wrong with having a vacation home/second home.

Don't forget, these people pay to support the school system and don't put children into it. They pay their taxes put don't use a full year of services.

That will be me soon, as soon as we build our home.

[4DogsImDone]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

Why? There's nothing wrong with having a vacation home/second home.

Don't forget, these people pay to support the school system and don't put children into it. They pay their taxes put don't use a full year of services.

That will be me soon, as soon as we build our home.

Good point.

Communities enjoying all the benefits of receiving full tax revenue and having to return very little (if any of it, depending on the area) in services is better than having more full time residents moving in and overcrowding schools, complaining about the lack of paved roads, congesting things and trying to turn a nice town into what they left behind somewhere else.

[GypsySoul22]

Lilly,
I have nothing 'against' them.
I suppose you could say it's a bit of sour grapes. We can't afford one house, let alone 2. (prices have shot up thanks to the demand for 2nd homes). It's not something I made up...long time locals are always grumbling about it.

People who work here full time can't get ahead because wages are low.

It's not just a Vermont thing, though.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by GypsySoul22

Lilly,
I have nothing 'against' them.
I suppose you could say it's a bit of sour grapes. We can't afford one house, let alone 2. (prices have shot up thanks to the demand for 2nd homes). It's not something I made up...long time locals are always grumbling about it.

People who work here full time can't get ahead because wages are low.

It's not just a Vermont thing, though.

Well, it is not a Vermont thing. I grew up in the Hamptons, a summer resort. Some people said the same thing. I live in Florida, I hear the same thing.

All these places, especially Vermont, sell themselves as a tourist destination. You can't complain because people want to come to a nice place. That's why you are there too.

I know a lot of Vermonters-natives- that get out of there in the winter and come to their second homes in Florida. These are regular folks, not wealthy people. Like everyone else they saved and worked and when they got older they bought a second home.

Having a vacation home is not at all uncommon in any state. It's a good thing for the economy. In fact a lot of Vermonters have second homes in Vermont. How many people go to Parker Pond or Joe's Pond or their camps?

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

I know a lot of Vermonters-natives- that get out of there in the winter and come to their second homes in Florida. These are regular folks, not wealthy people. Like everyone else they saved and worked and when they got older they bought a second home.

I've seen this, too. I have several clients who are native Vermonters of several generations here. They are my clients May-October because they spend the November-April at their modest Florida homes.

I'm a native Floridian. Having grown up in tourism central (Miami Beach) it never occurred to me to complain about the tourists because they were as ubiquitous as the weather and were the major reason we had so many good restaurants and other services. Come to think of it, I did complain about the tropical weather and left the south 20 years ago, never to return.

[flu189]

The ultimate truth behind the ability for those who have been able to purchase their primary homes and be able to afford second vacation retreats does in fact lie in the fact of having had the opportunity to have had good enough incomes coupled with self discipline to save. Unfortunately today for a substantial amount of the population this formula will not yield the same results, meaning younger folks starting out and those middle age or older who for whatever reason either were not able to or did not pay themselves first by setting up a permanent savings regimen. Real estate, credit, fuel, food, and insurance costs have destroyed what once was a reliable source of discretionary income to be able to afford the extras which were realistic and obtainable for the average middle class family.