Big Move ~ From Mississippi to Maine (Presque Isle, Houlton: real estate, rentals, hotels)

[timnwin]

Greetings Everyone.

My husband and I have talked about moving to Maine for a while now. Recently, we have decided it will happen for us. We have a goal of two years or so. I have done many searches on Maine and honestly, the Presque Isle area has drawn my attention.

I have found numerous real estate sites from Presque Isle online. The main thing that I am having a problem with ... finding home rentals AND employment lists for that area. My husband is a butcher for a grocery store in Mississippi, but he has worked various places besides the grocery store. I have been in the fast food business mainly, but have done house keeping for motels and hotels. Currently, I am a stay at home mom with the kiddos.

I know the climate change will take some getting use to, but that is one thing we are looking forward too. This past Christmas we were wearing shorts and the kids were running around barefoot....hard to get in the holiday spirit when you are sweating. hehe. We have lived in Virginia and Arizona, so we have dealt with extreme weather conditions....Blizzards and Snow in Virginia, Heat in Arizona, High Humidity and heat in Mississippi. We are looking to finally get away from the extreme heat and humidity.

We are interested in purchasing a home to live in, but if the same rules apply for Maine, as they do for Mississippi, we will need to get settled with an address and employment for atleast a year to purchase anything.


If anyone could point me in the direction of employment lists and possible home rentals for the Presque Isle area, I would be very grateful!


Have a Great Afternoon and Weekend!

[atardie]

Hi, I hope this will be helpful as I live in the area you are looking at. I would suggest Mapleton fore your home. The homes are resonably priced and taxes are alot lower than PI. Your kids will go to elementary school in Mapleton, then middle and high school in PI which is 5 miles away. There are a few grocery stores and a few butcher shops around town that would love to have an experienced meat cutter on staff. There are the usual fast food places in PI. And just so you know, blizzards in Va are in no way comparable to here. We get snow usually mid Nov and it will last until mid April. We get an average of 120 inches of snow throughout a season, with usually 3 to 4 feet on the ground all winter. Just a heads up. Home rentals can be arranged through various realtors in the area. If you want to look at homes in Mapleton, see realtor dot com and enter zip 04757. or PI 04769. Hope this helps.

[timnwin]

Thank You Atardie.

I was in no way comparing the snow fall in Virginia with that in Maine. I was stating that we have been around different types of weather is all. I can honestly say, I am tired of such high heat and humidity like we have in Southern Mississippi. Mapleton is an area that has stuck out to me as well. Currently, we are about 15 miles from the schools here *they are north of us* and 12 *plus* miles from grocery stores *they are south of us*. That is one thing we are use to doing....mass shopping any time we are out.
I have done image searches on the area around Presque Ise, and my children are excited about the snow. Here....its heat and humidity year round. My 7 yr old wants to ride a train to Maine in December so he can see snow on the trees....and possibly a moose **is what he told me**.
Where we are located in Mississippi, there's not a lot of things for the kids to do....whereas in Maine, more things pop up on search engines....hiking, camping, skiing, etc. This would be a move that we all would enjoy.
Sorry about rambling on.

Thanks again for replying and giving me a bit of information!

As always.....not a family who would change anyone or try to step on toes. We are only looking for a nice place to settle and enjoy seasons and life.

Have a Great Afternoon / Evening / Weekend!

[atardie]

MApleton and the Presque Isle people are good people. Always willing to help a neighbor and accept a new one. Mapleton Elementary is top notch and right in town so the littl ones don't ride the bus too long. PI high school and middle schools are the largest in the area and again are top notch. Mapleton has almost no shopping, a convience store and gas. PI will have eveything one would need!
Have a great weekend!

[mainebrokerman]

there are many grocery stores in the "county" and employment is all in the timing, however it doesnt hurt to contact, or send a resume to store owners in advance.
wal-mart is the only grocery store that the meat is case-ready (cut out of state, injected with a salt solution) most other grocery stores have meatcutters in them
presque isle has graves shopnsave (supplied by hannaford) one of the owners (brothers) is named greg)
thier is a star city iga (owner owns 3 stores in the county) (scott )

and my fav store in presque isle is a place called friends market (formerly bates)
they have the tastiest baked goodies, and the best meats in town. the owner also owns other stores

good luck!!

there was a store in sherman looking for a meatcutter a while back, the owners name is herb f.

[retiredtinbender]

I would suggest you take a couple trips up to see if you like it. I think that is a good way to see the place and get a feel for it. Barring that, there are also some good webcam sites if you can't make it up for the winter. They won't let you feel the car slip around under you fro taking a corner too fast but it lets you see the towns and roads under the snowcover. With me it lets the voyeur cin me come out.

Welcome to the Maine Turnpike Authority (http://www.maineturnpike.com/traffic_cams/traffic_cams.php - broken link)

Houlton Live

Presque Isle, Maine SkyCam

Good luck and happy hunting. Hope you find a place you can call home.

[timnwin]

Great! Thank you both for replying.

I have found the skycams and the kids love popping on to the sites to see how busy the streets are
at misc. times of the day. As far as we can see and view...it seems really beautiful in Maine.

I may do a search on those grocery stores for fax numbers and let my husband know. We know the move isn't immediate, but it is always great to get started on location and things of that nature.

Have a great weekend and Thanks Again!

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by timnwin

Great! Thank you both for replying.

I have found the skycams and the kids love popping on to the sites to see how busy the streets are
at misc. times of the day. As far as we can see and view...it seems really beautiful in Maine.

I may do a search on those grocery stores for fax numbers and let my husband know. We know the move isn't immediate, but it is always great to get started on location and things of that nature.

Have a great weekend and Thanks Again!

id snail mail a resume, in a manilla envelop (not fax)
on the envelop put confidential "store owner" faxed items are easily buried/lost/not seen by the right person(s)

good luck!!

also, if you dont get a response from a mailing, it's all in timing/need send another envelop in a couple months, the employment situation may have changed,
also write a cover letter explaining you are looking to move and start anew

[timnwin]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

id snail mail a resume, in a manilla envelop (not fax)
on the envelop put confidential "store owner" faxed items are easily buried/lost/not seen by the right person(s)

good luck!!

also, if you dont get a response from a mailing, it's all in timing/need send another envelop in a couple months, the employment situation may have changed,
also write a cover letter explaining you are looking to move and start anew

That makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the suggestion. I will pass this along to my husband. Personally, I would love to just up and go...but with kids....there has to be some sort of planning involved.

All info and help is appreciated. Until later....