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Loved Boothbay area about 20 years ago (Honeymooned there in Summer) and we are finally retiring but going up further North(Hodgdon area.) I'm guessing maybe a tad bit different type folks, but I still like my beers, BBQ and fishing. What we are considering has a rental property (tenants already) but never owned a rental property so we have no experience in that respect, so nervous. Also property is on river so I suspect people will be fishing standing in my yard (no, I won't mind.) Also, I'm retired from being a judicial officer but when lung Cancer got me bad- hell yeah, I went to Colorado for treatment and smoked enough legal grass to make Willie Nelson blush (so again, I'm okay with that too as I'm no hypocrite) I understand the law includes recreational in Maine? So, I (We) have many questions but hoping we fit in as we don't want anything but peace and quiet. About the only dead giveaway we are outsiders would be an Eagles and Phillies Flag. That was just where we were born and raised (I hardly grew up) and we've lived/worked in 11 different states over the years (mostly on Native Nations as non-Natives) but never a problem there. However, we have lived off reservations in some pretty awful areas with truly ignorant people (ex: WV) and hoping most folks are just generally friendly, fair and decent. Any advice is appreciated...
Loved Boothbay area about 20 years ago (Honeymooned there in Summer) and we are finally retiring but going up further North(Hodgdon area.) I'm guessing maybe a tad bit different type folks, but I still like my beers, BBQ and fishing.
It's a nice area. I have a friend who moved from Houston and now lives there. She had no problems settling in, and her business is highly successful because of community support. Its biggest fault is bottom-of-the-barrel health care. Beer, BBQ and fishing - you're going to the right area.
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Also property is on river so I suspect people will be fishing standing in my yard (no, I won't mind.)
Probably not, but if they do, it's easy to ask them to move on. Those who won't are the folks who really shouldn't be there.
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Also, I'm retired from being a judicial officer but when lung Cancer got me bad- hell yeah, I went to Colorado for treatment and smoked enough legal grass to make Willie Nelson blush (so again, I'm okay with that too as I'm no hypocrite) I understand the law includes recreational in Maine?
Yes. Maine is more inclined to tell you what you can do with your property than your body.
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So, I (We) have many questions but hoping we fit in as we don't want anything but peace and quiet. About the only dead giveaway we are outsiders would be an Eagles and Phillies Flag. That was just where we were born and raised (I hardly grew up) and we've lived/worked in 11 different states over the years (mostly on Native Nations as non-Natives) but never a problem there. However, we have lived off reservations in some pretty awful areas with truly ignorant people (ex: WV) and hoping most folks are just generally friendly, fair and decent. Any advice is appreciated...
It isn't hard to fit in. Mind your business, don't tell people they're doing it wrong (whatever "it" is) and how to do it the way it's done wherever you came from, don't try to change the area, be friendly - the same things you've probably done everywhere else.
Loved Boothbay area about 20 years ago (Honeymooned there in Summer) and we are finally retiring but going up further North(Hodgdon area.) I'm guessing maybe a tad bit different type folks ...
Welcome to Maine.
We moved to Maine after I retired. We have been here 17 years, and we love it.
However, we have lived off reservations in some pretty awful areas with truly ignorant people (ex: WV) and hoping most folks are just generally friendly, fair and decent. Any advice is appreciated...
As someone who has family in WV since 1900 I take offense to the above. May be it's you, not them? Please explain why at least. The media loves to paint West Virginians as ignorant Hillbillies, which is allowed but still racism in my book. And I wouldn't fly a Phillies fly in Maine either.
As someone who has family in WV since 1900 I take offense to the above. May be it's you, not them? Please explain why at least. The media loves to paint West Virginians as ignorant Hillbillies, which is allowed but still racism in my book. And I wouldn't fly a Phillies fly in Maine either.
People fly Yankees flags and all they get for it is some good-natured ribbing. I think Phillies would barely be noticed.
My wife and I have begun our 4th year in Mid-Coastal Maine (gosh, can it be that long ago?) and we're still in love with everything Maine. We looked at homes in BoothBay and the Harbor area. We were drawn to a few of them but we decided we didn't want a home with any stairs. Getting older with sore joints and having lived in a 3 story Victorian for 41 years helped with that decision.
What I'll suggest are two things: First, know that if you are near water or have a water view be prepared to pay for that.
More importantly!! Know that you may be required to buy flood insurance and it's TERRIBLY expensive. We know someone in Rockland who inherited an older home near the shore and could not keep it because the premiums were so hidiously expensive. This may NOT be the case everywhere but just be sure to ask up front before you fall in love with your new digs.
Welcome to Maine where life is what it's supposed to be! Also remember: A lobster A Day cooked any way!
More importantly!! Know that you may be required to buy flood insurance and it's TERRIBLY expensive. We know someone in Rockland who inherited an older home near the shore and could not keep it because the premiums were so hidiously expensive. This may NOT be the case everywhere but just be sure to ask up front before you fall in love with your new digs.
If you require a mortgage the mortgage lender requires you to have flood insurance. If you are cash buyer there is no such requirement. I paid increasingly high rates on my Graham Lake property and the day I paid it off I dropped the flood insurance. The odds of my property flooding were ridiculously low.
A property with high insurance rates might be difficult to sell to a buyer who seeks a loan. But there are cash buyers out there who needn’t worry about it.
If you require a mortgage the mortgage lender requires you to have flood insurance. If you are cash buyer there is no such requirement. I paid increasingly high rates on my Graham Lake property and the day I paid it off I dropped the flood insurance. The odds of my property flooding were ridiculously low.
A property with high insurance rates might be difficult to sell to a buyer who seeks a loan. But there are cash buyers out there who needn’t worry about it.
Is flood insurance required for a mortgage on property in Maine anywhere? I was unaware.
I receive the Made in Maine box every three months and included along with all the goodies is Down East Magazine. Mostly advertising but I don't mind. But I noticed there were a lot of retirement communities up and down the coast. Is Maine really a destination for retired people? Seems like (depending on where they live) it seems odd. Maine has cold and snowy winters and people who live in that climate want to move some place warmer. It must be since there are quite a few. We have quite a few years before we retire. The ads all looked nice. Different amenities etc.,
Is flood insurance required for a mortgage on property in Maine anywhere? I was unaware.
FEMA maintains flood maps for the entire country. If your property is in a flood zone according to FEMA, there is a process where you can have the map updated if you are able to prove it is not in the flood zone. You don't need flood insurance, but you won't be able to get a mortgage on a piece of property that is in a designated flood zone without having flood insurance. There are plenty of areas in Maine that are listed in a flood zone, that would take the 100 year flood to ever be impacted.
Here's a link to info on getting property removed from a flood map. It is an expensive process.
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