Maine

There are a gazillion banks around the planet, but when you buy real estate in Houlton Maine you have a good selection of local financial options!

Scope them out in this video to help show you what we have for financial players in the Aroostook County Seat or "Shiretown". Then buckle up and we'll spin you up and down Main Street to give you a feel of the local turf in Houlton.  Come up and see the peak fall foliage and scope out our area.  Fall potato harvest operations underway too! Remember, New Jersey has 1000 people per square mile. Alaska has 1 for that same square mile, and Aroostook County, which is the size of Connecticut and Rhode Island has 11 friendly folks each mile. Elbow room, bluer skies, brighter stars, unspoiled countryside.  No traffic, no crime, plenty of wildlife, lakes, mountains, fields and woods. Maine..the way life should be.

Houlton Maine REALTOR

Andrew Mooers

Our government wants to give the first time buyer up to $7500 cash for purchasing a home for the first time or if you haven't owned in the past three years. What does this mean? When it comes time to file your taxes you will have up to $7500 given to you. If you have $2000 owed to the IRS then it will mean you won't owe but will receive a check up to$5500 back.

Now don't think this is a total give away! There is no interest to be paid, but, in two years up to $500 will be deducted from your tax return for up to fifteen years. If you sell the home within that time frame then the remainder owed will be taken.

Just think. You can put the $7500 towards principle payments to your mortgage and get the 30 year mortgage cut back with significant savings to you in interest payments. What this does is build your equity quicker.

This is a great way to get into a home and be paid to do it. Why not look into this offer and take it. It is only available till July 2009. This means you have to close on a house before the offer is not available.

For sellers this is a great time to sell that home to the first time buyer and know you are helping someone meet their dream.

Like cutting out c oupons for shopping at the store, this is helping those be able to afford to buy. This money could be offered as a " gift" to help with closing costs. Then when you receive your rebate check, just pay that person for having helped you find that home.

For more information please contact me and we can talk. I am in the Sebago Lake Region in Maine but can help you find an agent to work with you from anywhere in the country. Let's talk.

Susan Paige
associate broker
ERA Today Realty
Naples, Me
207-693-6500 ext. 222
207-749-5459
susan.paige@era.com

We have just received notice of the release of the latest newsletter from the Lakes Environmental Association. This four-pager is dedicated to giving us all an end-of-the-season milfoil update. Here is what you'll find:

Counterattack at Salmon Lake: The news that Eurasian milfoil had gained a foothold in Salmon Lake (Belgrade Lakes area) was certainly discouraging, but the real issue now is the response. And on that subject there is some cautious optimism.

Don't be afraid to hope: As the battle begins in Salmon Lake and continues against in other waters, it's important to know there's hope.

What's the story on milfoil weevils? The Eurasian milfoil in Salmon Lake has sparked questions about the weevils sometimes used to fight them.

22 tons of milfoil: That's correct - you read it right. At Thompson Lake, 44,000 pounds were hand-pulled, brought up, bagged, trucked off and turned into compost.

Please use this link to catch up on all the latest news in the Fall Milfoil Update.

The LEA provides a great resource for those interested in the condition of area lakes and ponds. Get plugged in to all the voluteer efforts that are continually going on to help protect the health and safety of our lakes and ponds. Check out their general website at www.mainelakes.org

To find out more information about any lake or pond in Maine you can use our LakeSmart feature.

A broker price opinion of what a property is worth but the catch is, you don't get to see the inside and really scope the real estate out fully.  Scary situation when money being lended on a drive by opinion?

I think it is pretty loose to have a lending institution make a loan based on a drive by opinion. Maybe the bank has a full appraisal done by a licensed professional that is over six months old but that was thorough. And they want Joe or Josephine Broker to take a quick peek outside and report back if the place is empty, any junk cars in the yard or obvious safety or environmental concerns? But to add an update from a drive by broker that may never have been into the place and to come up with a value to take to the bank is a whole can of worms. What if the place has frozen up due to lack of heat last winter? What is water from the freeze up ran and ran before icing up and the excess water around the foundation caused it to heave and crack? You don't see that unless you have xray vision as you walk around the outside of the home. Sometimes a broker is told don't go near the owner, and a foreclosure is underway that is not friendly. Again, when asked what the place is worth, ball park, it is based on what you can see...and that is not much if just the front and sides of the place are visible and you are told don't get out of the car for further investigation.  I have had a home where the outside of the place needs paint or siding and lots of repair but due to the time of year, the current owner is not able to tackle the outside of the place due to winter, etc. But on the inside, what a different picture where the place has a new kitchen, bath, flooring and ceilings.  You can't judge a book from its cover thinking comes into play in this case. It can go the other way and the best way to know the fair market value is a licensed appraiser doing a full blown in debt study of the place, walking thru every room, seeing the attic and cellar. Many times a broker or appraiser have been in the place earlier and have a history with the real estate.  But if that was ten years ago, alot can happen that a tour of the inside now would change the memory recollection of what the condition  was a decade ago. The broker price opinion without full tour and inspection may be part of the problem with exotic lending and fly by night mortgage operations that were plentiful during the hay day of the latest real estate market escalation. Why does it happen? The cost of a full appraisal may be $300+. The drive by with a new agent anxious to get gas money is whatever they can whittle the compensation down to...how about $25? YIKES!

Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers - Maine Real Estate Broker & Office Owner

A Saginaw Michigan home is on the chopping block for under two dollars according to a recent Associate Press story running nationwide.

Read story here. Some times a town will not take a property for tax title due to delinquent taxes because of tainted soil or environmental issues.  I know of a piece of Maine land that had PCB contamination due to old electrical transformers stored on the property that had leached into the soil and could affect the ground water quality. Town attorneys sometimes advise muncipalities NOT to take title to the property and finish the tax acquiring process due to liability the new owner takes on. The super fund of the Department Of Environmental Protection kicks in to clean up many contaminated sites. But like kryptonite, sometimes you do not want to avoid foreclose and yanking back the title to a diseased property.  As a Maine REALTOR, I run into homes with asbestos siding that needs removal, especially in a case where the home is being torn down for the building lot around it. Getting a dumpster with a special liner and step by step removal in compliance with Maine regulations is the only way to go. Learn about information on asbestos removal in Maine. Before you buy or sell a home with asbestos or any other hazardous waste product in it, find out about removal ordinances that get stricter and change often.  Find out before you get into hot water.

Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers - Houlton Area Property And Community Information