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So here is the deal folks..My husband and I are a young married couple with no kids (I am 21, he is 27). We currently live in Omaha, NE which we really like except one big thing, we both love the outdoors! We are both almost done with our Scuba Diving Instructor certification which would qualify us to teach Scuba courses. My husband also loves boats and sailing. Unfortunately while Omaha is an awesome place to live it is extremely short on places for us to do what we love. We are both people who love the outdoors and my husband's passion is backcountry search and rescue. He has experience with high angle rescue and would love to find a community that he could volunteer with.
The job market is not of concern to us as my husband owns his own company and the market would be elsewhere in the country. I work for him and thus will not be needing to look for employment for myself. However, because his work means he has to travel a lot we do want easy interstate access and not too far from an airport (I believe this means we will have to be fairly close to Portland although I think it is not what we are looking for). Although I would like accurate information on taxes for individuals more important is tax information for companies! Also, we are not planning on having kids for some time, but as we all know, the unexpected can happen. Oh, and I am looking to finish my master's degree soon...
What we are looking for:
- a community that has easy access to wildlife and outdoor recreation and people who love both
- while we actually prefer small size, we prefer a small bustling town (maybe even a tad bit touristy). We absolutely do not want a dying town.
- we are politically conservative so a town that is not extremely vocal and in your face about politics would be nice
- a place that has homes for sale at or below the 200,000 mark
- not TOO harsh or long of winters (mind you I am from Nebraska)
- I don't really want to have to drive very far (at all) to get to the ocean
- a town that is animal friendly and maybe even has horses (we have one dog that lives outside all summer and in the garage in the winter and eventually would like to own a few horses)
- a slow pace of life
Now you ask, why have you not made the move already?
My concerns are:
- Are the taxes truly as high as everyone makes them out to be? My husband and I are extremely hard workers and make a fair amount above the mean average of maine.
- Am I going to have to deal with SAD while living there? I like sunshine! (Although I am a fan of winter days as well, snuggling by the fire and reading a book!)
- does it ever get warm enough to swim in the ocean? I don't want to have to dive in a thick wetsuit the entire year!
- how hard is it to get back to the midwest? (All of our family that isn't living overseas is living in the midwest)
Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this and respond to it! I appreciate all of the help that I can get! We would like to move before this winter so that leaves little time for figuring out where .
Deep in my heart, I think Maine might be "the way life should be."
I lived in the Omaha area for most of the 1970s, and my wife grew up in a small town on the Missouri River south of Omaha. We were just back there in December to visit family.
Regarding scuba diving -- yes, you will need to use a wetsuit or drysuit year-round for saltwater diving. I would even recommend them for lake diving. People do go swimming in the ocean, especially in southern Maine, but not for long periods of time.
I consider Maine winters on the coast to be milder than Nebraska winters. That north wind Nebraska gets in winter is just a killer. The summers in Maine will be nowhere near as hot and humid, though. Tornadoes are a distinct rarity! :-)
If you suffer from SAD in Omaha, you will in Maine. I can't say that I really noticed a significant difference in the amount of daylight, Omaha versus Maine.
I don't know what the tax situation in Nebraska is now, so can't comment on that.
Portland, Manchester NH, and Boston all have active busy airports. Boston's Logan is the busiest, of course, and has international flights as well as regular flights to all the usual cities. I can practically guarantee that any flight to Omaha will connect through Chicago O'Hare and require a plane change.
The best search and rescue teams operate in the North Woods, in particular in the Mount Katahdin region, but all your other qualifications indicate that southern Maine/Portland metro area should be your focus. That puts Boston and Manchester within 90 minutes to 2 hours drive time. There are tons of small towns in southern Maine that offer just about everything you're looking for. The only problem might be your under-$200,000 home price, but with the way home prices are going these days you might even meet that requirement.
Best advice -- come to Maine for a week or two after doing lots of research. Read the Portland Press Herald online, visit town websites and real estate sites, ask lots of questions here.
ETA: The single most common comment we get from visitors from Nebraska and the Midwest is how claustrophobic they feel. Maine has trees, lots and lots of trees, as well as hills, valleys, mountains, and other obstructions to the sight line. The Midwest has a "big sky" feel that is generally totally lacking in Maine unless you're on the ocean or in Aroostook County in far northern Maine.
ETA2: On thinking about this some more, you should also look at the Bangor area. The airport there offers most of the same connections as Portland, although you'll be two hours farther from Boston and Manchester. The ocean isn't as close, though, so you might have to decide which interests you more, the backcountry search and rescue or the sailing/scuba diving.
Lincoln has an active SAR team and they do high angle rescue. Our water is cold, but there is a need for divers in winter to retrieve snowmobiles and trucks that go through the ice. We even had a skidder go through the ice this past winter.
So here is the deal folks..My husband and I are a young married couple with no kids (I am 21, he is 27). We currently live in Omaha, NE which we really like except one big thing, we both love the outdoors! We are both almost done with our Scuba Diving Instructor certification which would qualify us to teach Scuba courses. My husband also loves boats and sailing. Unfortunately while Omaha is an awesome place to live it is extremely short on places for us to do what we love. We are both people who love the outdoors and my husband's passion is backcountry search and rescue. He has experience with high angle rescue and would love to find a community that he could volunteer with.
The job market is not of concern to us as my husband owns his own company and the market would be elsewhere in the country. I work for him and thus will not be needing to look for employment for myself. However, because his work means he has to travel a lot we do want easy interstate access and not too far from an airport (I believe this means we will have to be fairly close to Portland although I think it is not what we are looking for). Although I would like accurate information on taxes for individuals more important is tax information for companies! Also, we are not planning on having kids for some time, but as we all know, the unexpected can happen. Oh, and I am looking to finish my master's degree soon...
What we are looking for:
- a community that has easy access to wildlife and outdoor recreation and people who love both
- while we actually prefer small size, we prefer a small bustling town (maybe even a tad bit touristy). We absolutely do not want a dying town.
- we are politically conservative so a town that is not extremely vocal and in your face about politics would be nice
- a place that has homes for sale at or below the 200,000 mark
- not TOO harsh or long of winters (mind you I am from Nebraska)
- I don't really want to have to drive very far (at all) to get to the ocean
- a town that is animal friendly and maybe even has horses (we have one dog that lives outside all summer and in the garage in the winter and eventually would like to own a few horses)
- a slow pace of life
Now you ask, why have you not made the move already?
My concerns are:
- Are the taxes truly as high as everyone makes them out to be? My husband and I are extremely hard workers and make a fair amount above the mean average of maine.
- Am I going to have to deal with SAD while living there? I like sunshine! (Although I am a fan of winter days as well, snuggling by the fire and reading a book!)
- does it ever get warm enough to swim in the ocean? I don't want to have to dive in a thick wetsuit the entire year!
- how hard is it to get back to the midwest? (All of our family that isn't living overseas is living in the midwest)
Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this and respond to it! I appreciate all of the help that I can get! We would like to move before this winter so that leaves little time for figuring out where .
Deep in my heart, I think Maine might be "the way life should be."
You talk Scuba Diving and outdoors..
But I can't help but think of Colorado when reading your posts..
A few things to consider..
Maine coast is not mountainous... but rather hilly... The coast you could find some touristy towns that are small and quaint..
Maine mountainous regions are west and inland.. our range is an extension of NH's white mt national forest range..
I can't think of many towns offering what it is your looking for but some folks on the forum here know that area of the state much better than I..
For me Maine is a poor state.. there are just not many (if any) bustleing small towns with quiant centers with the mountains as the backdrop and close to the ocean..
to me most small towns will look a bit run down.. you might need to take a trip here and visit the state..
We dont get a whole lot of sun... Colorado with its 300 sun fild days has folks dreaming of rain.. Here its hit or miss.. I wont say it rains all the time but it certainly feels like those clear sunny days that draw people outside are few..
...
- Are the taxes truly as high as everyone makes them out to be? My husband and I are extremely hard workers and make a fair amount above the mean average of maine.
Each person's income and tax scenario is different from each other person's.
I am retired on a small pension. Looking around our income is about on par with many of my neighbors. We have not been paying income taxes in Maine because our AGI has not been high enough to do that.
Our property taxes are low. In fact much lower than any of the homes that we owned before moving to Maine.
Vehicle taxes were significantly higher for us in most areas where we lived before moving to Maine.
So I do not see the argument that Maine taxes are 'high'.
But again taxes are individual, so your results may vary.
Quote:
... - Am I going to have to deal with SAD while living there? I like sunshine! (Although I am a fan of winter days as well, snuggling by the fire and reading a book!) ... "
Generally we get one storm each week through the winter.
One day of snowing, followed by a week of clear sunny skies.
To me the days are much brighter in the 'dead of winter' than they are in summer. I take to wearing dark brazing googles when outdoors, due to the glare that I find coming up off the snow blanket.
We have lived in areas [PNW and Central Cali] where winter meant over-cast and socked in with fog. Maine does not get that. Sometimes there will be minor fog in the mornings, visibility down to maybe 100 yards. But we have never seen any thick fog in Maine. And we have not seen any extended over-cast either.
I do not think that SAD is honestly going to effect many people here [unless they simply refuse to go outside].
I agree with forest that individual taxes are varied . This only makes sense. If you choose to buy land in an area far from a city in an unorganized township and don't mind the commute, the lack of civilization, the lack of services and conveniences that living closer to a suburban area offers you can pay far lower taxes than you will living in Yarmouth, Cape Elizabeth, Cumberland, Freeport, Ogunquit, Camden, York, and a number of other more inhabited places. The choice is yours. That said since MOST people in Maine live in these higher population areas then it only follows that MOST MAINERS pay what they consider to be high taxes. You can choose NOT to pay high taxes but the trade offs may not be worth it to you. Others do well in a backwoods/country/farming envrionment and will actively seek that situation out. MOST will not. So yes we CAN generalize when we say taxes in Maine for the majority of Mainers are high. Especially in comparison to suburban communities in bordering states where income is considered as a factor.
Thanks so much everyone! I really appreciate all of the information. While we both love Colorado and have grown up going there and climbing the 14'ers the fact that the Ocean is still so far away is our issue.
It's great to know that taxes can be controlled based on where you live. At least I will be moving from a State that already has high taxes!
Are registering vehicles extrememly expensive? Because of my husbands business we have a total of 5 cars that will need to be registered. Most of them are work trucks and nothing fancy.
My assumption is that while the winters will be a lot like Omaha's that at least people in Maine go outside. All things outdoor related shut down in Omaha except the few families that occassionally go sledding. I love the outdoors and if the community is still thriving in the winter and people aren't holing up too much, I don't think SAD would be too much of an issue.
Is this assumption correct? How cold does it ACTUALLY get along Coastal Maine in the winters? Omaha can be downright frigid! We have days where kids can't even go to school it gets so cold.
Also, my husband and I are planning our trip to Maine this September. We will be there the last two weeks of the month. We are planning on flying in to NH and driving up to Maine (I found cheap flights from Southwest). We are planning on just taking things easy and spending time in some of the towns and deciding which ones are good for us. For accomadations we are thinking B&B's. Anyone have any suggestions?
All help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks to all you Mainer's who love your state! It's so refreshing to hear people that love where they live!
Thanks so much everyone! I really appreciate all of the information. While we both love Colorado and have grown up going there and climbing the 14'ers the fact that the Ocean is still so far away is our issue.
It's great to know that taxes can be controlled based on where you live. At least I will be moving from a State that already has high taxes!
Are registering vehicles extrememly expensive? Because of my husbands business we have a total of 5 cars that will need to be registered. Most of them are work trucks and nothing fancy.
My assumption is that while the winters will be a lot like Omaha's that at least people in Maine go outside. All things outdoor related shut down in Omaha except the few families that occassionally go sledding. I love the outdoors and if the community is still thriving in the winter and people aren't holing up too much, I don't think SAD would be too much of an issue.
Is this assumption correct? How cold does it ACTUALLY get along Coastal Maine in the winters? Omaha can be downright frigid! We have days where kids can't even go to school it gets so cold.
Also, my husband and I are planning our trip to Maine this September. We will be there the last two weeks of the month. We are planning on flying in to NH and driving up to Maine (I found cheap flights from Southwest). We are planning on just taking things easy and spending time in some of the towns and deciding which ones are good for us. For accomadations we are thinking B&B's. Anyone have any suggestions?
All help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks to all you Mainer's who love your state! It's so refreshing to hear people that love where they live!
It gets plenty cold here in the winter but probably no where near as cold as Nebraska. We usually get a few weeks of frigid weather in January or February where it will struggle to get into the single numbers and teens during that time. Occasionally we will get some 20 below zero days but not all that often. I'm not on the ocean but it's less than a mile from my house. I can smell the tides change with a south breeze. They don't call off school due to cold unless the furnace at the school breaks.
Mainers do like the outdoors even in winter. We ski, snowboard, crosscountry ski, snowmobile, icefish, sled, skate, snowshoe, hunt, etc. Snowmobiling is a big business in Maine. People from all over New England trailer their snow machines to Maine to ride the thousands of miles of groomed trails. Registrations are dependent on the year of the vehicle.There is an excise tax based on the suggested retail price of the vehicle when new and it drops yearly. It's an idiotic way to assess a tax and they are working to fix it in the legislature. My wife's 2008 Saab 9-3 cost us $800 to register when it was new. It's now around $600 which we still think of as robbery especially given the shape of Maine's roads. ROUGH is being nice.
If you're planning to come to Maine in September you'll be here after the height of tourist season. You won't have a big problem finding places to stay.There are lots of B&B's along the coast.
I have lived here 38 of my 42 years and think the taxes are far too high. I am also self-employed. Just remember it's not just taxes.
As a self-employed couple you will have to research more than just taxes. We have the 2nd highest health insurance in the country, the highest workmans comp, electricity is double what it is in other areas of the country, heating oil is going up just as fast as gasoline...
There is a reason why Maine is ranked in the top 5 WORST states for small business in just about any study you want find.
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