Maine Real Estate Info

In Maine, real estate licensees can hold 3 different types of licenses.  The entry level licensee will have a Sales Agent license which is temporary.  During this two year licensing period agents must practice full time and complete additional course requirements.  At the end of this two year temporary period Sales Agents must take and pass their Associate Broker license test.  An Associate Broker license is a 2 year renewable license.  Every Associate Broker in Maine must complete 21 hours of continuing education to be eligible to renew their license.  The third type of real estate is a Broker license.  Broker licensees are able to operate their own real estate company.  Many licensed Brokers aren’t company owners or operators but would be agents who have the highest level of real estate education available in Maine.

The internet has changed how buyers and sellers find Maine homes for sale and Maine real estate agents.  With recent changes to the Maine MLS interface all agents now have the ability to offer buyers and sellers a pubic access point to all properties for sale in Maine.  Over 80 percent of today’s real estate buyers use the internet to start their search for a home.  What kind of information will today’s buyers and sellers be searching for next?  I feel, it will certainly be demand for a more sophisticated approach to understanding particular segments of the market.  The understanding that comes from how many homes are for sale in a certain communities, how many have sold in the last 6 months, for what percentage of the sale price did they sell, how long did each property take to sale is the next level of real estate information that today’s consumer is going to demand from the internet, their agent and the market.  It’s not longer just about access to the MLS and what’s for sale.  This type of information can vary greatly from area to area and in different price ranges.  A service providing this information is now available at www.mainemarketsnapshot.com  This service provides free reports to both buyers and sellers.  Subscribes can choose to receive the report via email either every month or every 2 weeks.  It also very important to be sure you have a high level agent to help you interpret the results of these snapshots.  There’s not substitute for the professional advice and counsel a skilled agent provides.

Maine’s per capita personal income increased 5.1% last year, to $33,722, according to prelimiary data released last week by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Here’s a look at per capita personal income growth in the rest of New England, ranked by percent change.     2006 2007 Percent change Rank of percent change   Connecticut $50,762 $54,117 6.6% 4   Massachusetts $46,299 $49,082 6.0% 8   Rhode Island $37,523 $39,463 5.2% 23   Vermont $34,871 $36,670 5.2% 25   Maine $32,095 $33,722 5.1% 27   New Hampshire $39,753 $41,512 4.4% 39               New England $44,327 $46,948 5.9% 2 of 8 regions   United States $36,714 $38,611 5.2% N/A               Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

Maine waterfront vacation rental available through this new website at http://mainewaterfrontrental.com/

Search the online calendar then call or email to reserve your time in the water. Hurry…now is the time to start planning for your lakefront cottage vacation rental.

Unfortunately for sellers, the news isn’t great, and the numbers don’t lie. The good news is that the market is great for buyers! While inventory levels are very high, and interest rates remain low, with home prices having dipped slightly, more sellers are willing to make some concessions which make this the ideal time for buyers. It’s always a great market, it’s just a matter of who is benefiting the most, and today’s market is more beneficial to buyers than sellers typically. Read on…
Maine home sales fell 20% from February 2007 to February 2008, the Maine Association of Realtors said yesterday.

Realtors sold 555 existing, single-family homes last month, compared to 698 homes last February, according to a press release. The median sales price of Maine homes fell 2% during the same period, to $190,000.

Nationally, home sales fell 22.9% from February 2007 to February 2008, and the median sales price fell 8.7%, according to the trade group.

While the average median sales price (MSP) of a home in Maine has dipped only 2% since last year, residents of certain counties are experiencing much larger fluctuations in the value of their homes. Here’s a list of the three counties that have seen the greatest increase in home values and the three counties that have seen the greatest decrease in home values. All the data is available here.

County _MSP 06-07__ MSP 07-08_ % Change

Statewide $192,000 $188,000 -2.08%

Somerset $78,750 $96,500 22.54%

Oxford $146,000 $165,000 13.01%

Lincoln $212,625 $239,000 12.40%

Washington $120,000 $69,900 -41.75%

Sagadahoc $199,950 $167,500 -16.23%

Androscoggin $163,300 $155,000 -5.08%

Source: Maine Association of Realtors

To Search more than 24,000 Maine properties for sale, go to: Maine Real Estate Experts .com , Maine MLS .info or Meservier.com

Also…If you want to know what the real estate market is doing in your Maine neighborhood, visit: Maine Market Snapshot .com

Just listed this week is a 25 acre equestrian property named “Upper Pond Stables”, located at 147 Upper Pond Road Litchfield Maine. The asking price is $549,000.00 and a website for the offering is located at www.MaineHorseProperty.com. Please visit the website for the status of the listing. What a great time to BUY!

The stables has its own website which can be found at www.UpperPondStables.com. For all you horse lover’s out there, take the time to visit the website and, if interested in a personal viewing, give us a call at Meservier & Associates of Keller Williams Realty Mid Maine, at 207-784-2525, and we’ll arrange it for you.

Effective March 3, the Maine State Housing Authority is offering more mortgage options to homebuyers using their mortgage program. Options include a choice of 0 or 2 points, and a 30 or 40 year mortgage term.  These new options join other recent program changes that include expanding the program to veterans and active duty military (even if not first-time homebuyers), and Maine HOPE program that provides payment protection for program borrowers. For more info: http://www.mainehousing.org/NEWSPressReleases.aspx?PageCMD=newsDetail&NewsID=181

Maine real estate Buyers and Investors….Today’s market plays to your advantage, you should be swooping in to make the most of reduced housing costs and favorable interest rates, instead of waiting. When the market turns, today’s bargains will be yesterday’s missed opportunities. 

While it is conceivable that home prices may drop further, it is likely that these decreased prices will be accompanied by increased financing costs due to rate cuts by the Fed. This means that any money saved on paying less for a house in a few months time will be offset by you having to pay off your mortgage at a higher interest rate making “playing the waiting game” a waste of time (and very little fun). This rate increase isn’t just speculation. Just a couple of weeks ago, in early February, the fixed mortgage rate jumped a full half-percent, making it the fastest rate increase in 20 years. 

The table below demonstrates how even as home prices may drop, monthly mortgage payments basically stay the same; due to increased interest rates:   Scenario 1:
Prices decrease by 5% and interest rates increase by 0.5%
Scenario 2:
Prices decrease by 10% and interest rates increase by 1.0%

Today	Scenario 1	Scenario 2
Home Price $218, 900	Home Price: -5% $207,955	Home Price: -10% $197,010
Interest Rates 6.04%	Interest Rates: +0.5% 6.54%	Interest Rates: +1.0% 7.04%
Monthly Payment $1,054	Monthly Payment $1,056	Monthly Payment $1,053

Table: Kadlec, Dan. “Ignore the Headlines!”  Time 25 February 2008  

I have to ask myself…Why would my clients spend months in a situation that they want out of when they can begin their new lives in their new home today, with less interest? 

It’s NOT too late…Call me or email TODAY!…or…Fill out my Dream Home Finder yourself at: meservier.com - Dream Home Finder 

Michael Meservier
Meservier & Associates
Keller Williams Realty Mid Maine
34Center Street Auburn, ME

04210

office: 207-784-2525
email: REALTOR@mainerealestateexperts.com

Keller Williams Realty Mid Maine - 34 Center Street Auburn, Maine 04210. 

Sales of single-family homes fell 28% last month compared to January 2007, according to the Maine Association of Realtors. In January 2007, 688 homes were sold in Maine compared to just 495 last month. The median sales price for homes sold in January also dipped just over 2%, from $189,200 in January 2007 to $185,000 last month. The Maine Association of Realtors said in a press release that record snow fall could impact home sales.

Meanwhile, national home sales were down 22.4% from January 2007, and the median sales price for an existing single-family home dipped 5.1% to $198,700, according to the National Association of Realtors.

County Units sold
2006-07 Units sold
2007-08 % Change Statewide 2,656 2,131 -19.77% Piscataquis 71 31 -56.34% Franklin 83 46 -44.58% Washington 17 10 -41.18% Kennebec 272 186 -31.62% Cumberland 640 476 -25.63% Knox 92 70 -23.91% Lincoln 78 60 -23.08% Somerset 80 65 -18.75% Sagadahoc 66 54 -18.18% York 406 333 -17.98% Androscoggin 179 149 -16.76% Hancock 123 105 -14.63% Penobscot 290 269 -7.24% Oxford 108 108 0.00% Waldo 73 81 10.96% Aroostook 78 88 12.82%

PRESS RELEASE:  In a press release to the Maine media today, MREIS reports single-family real estate sales decreased over 28% during January 2008, compared with January 2007, with a total of 495 homes being sold. Statewide median sales prices for those homes dipped just over 2% to a median sales price of $185,000. The median sales price indicates that half of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less.  While prices decreased overall, several Maine Counties experienced double-digit price gains during the month of January. Nationwide, real estate sales were down 22.4% from January 2007.  According to NAR, the median existing single-family home price dipped 5.1% to $198,700. The Northeastern United States experienced a 25.7% regional decrease in sales.  However, NAR reported that prices rose 3.1% to $270,800 in the past year.

The good: The University of Maine’s Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center in Orono this week unveiled a new composite-coated, blast-resistant building, which the U.S. military has reportedly shown much interest.

The bad: Maine’s 2007 lobster catch dropped 23% from the previous year, according to preliminary numbers released this week by the state’s Department of Marine Resources. Maine lobstermen landed 56 million pounds of lobster last year, with a total value of $248.5 million, compared with the 16.6 million pounds worth nearly $300 million landed last year, according to the Bangor Daily News.

The caffeinated beer: Maine Attorney General Steven Rowe recently joined attorney generals from five other states in demanding information from Anheuser-Busch Cos. and Miller Brewing Co. as part of a probe into whether the companies are targeting underage drinkers in their marketing efforts for caffeinated alcoholic beverages, according to the Associated Press. The companies deny the claim, and are reportedly complying with the subpoenas, the AP said.<.

Mt. Abram, a ski area in Greenwood, is up for sale with a price tag of $1.8 million.The 44-trail ski mountain went up for sale last month with no publicity, the Portland Press Herald reported. “We think the time is right,” Mt. Abram owner Josh Burns told the paper. “We’ve done a lot to the mountain. We think new owners can come in and take it to the next level.” Burns bought the 644-acre property in 2000 at a foreclosure auction for $325,000 plus back taxes, and has invested around $900,000 into the ski area, including refurbishing facilities and installing a new chair lift.

Dan Greenstein, who is listing the property at  CB Richard Ellis/The Boulos Co., told the paper that cash flow from skiing will support the $1.8 million purchase price. The property is being marketed to ski operators throughout the Northeast and eastern Canada.

If you have any interest, Please call:       Meservier & Associates of Keller Williams Realty Mid Maine, 34 Center Street Auburn, Maine 04210  207-784-2525

These Articles came out in today’s Mainebiz.biz “The Daily”.
 

Lobster catches fall in 2007
The amount of lobster caught in Maine in 2007 dropped nearly 23% from the previous year.

Preliminary numbers released yesterday by the state’s Department of Marine Resources show that Maine lobstermen landed 56 million pounds of lobster last year, with a total value of $248.5 million, the Bangor Daily News reported. That’s a decrease of 16.6 million pounds, nearly 23%, from 2006, when the amount of lobster totaled 72 million pounds and was worth nearly $300 million.

State officials say such fluctuations in the lobster industry are considered normal, and noted last fall that catches seemed to be lower than the previous year. The department will continue to receive more data on 2007 transactions in the next few months and determine final totals, the paper reported.

Snowe pans lobster gear changes
Sen. Olympia Snowe yesterday criticized a new federal rule that will require lobstermen to buy more expensive gear to help protect whales.

Snowe yesterday presided over a U.S. Senate subcommittee field hearing in Brewer on the requirement. About 160 people at the hearing, mostly fishermen, said the National Marine Fisheries Service didn’t have enough data to support the new requirements and that replacing floating lines with sinking lines would be too expensive, according to the Ellsworth American. “It’s no exaggeration that this could put many lobstermen out of business,” Snowe said, according to the paper.

Snowe said the NMFS should push back the October compliance deadline and conduct more research, but George Lapointe, commissioner of the Maine Department of Marine Resources, said there are no plans to push back the deadline, the paper reported.

“AT HOME IN MAINE”:  Today’s Kennebec Journal reports the Maine State Museum is creating a permanent exhibit “At Home in Maine” depicting the decorative arts in a series of rooms set up to represent different decades from the 1880s to 1966.  The print article (but not online) includes a request for items needed to complete the exhibit:  early 1900s bathroom sink (white, wall-mounted, chrome legs); bathtub dated 1900-1910 (faucets at end, date on underside of tub); small bureau 1950-1960 (42-48 inches tall, light finish); metal painted TV tray; Thanksgiving decorations used before 1966; 40th-50th wedding anniversary gifts; and 1960 or earlier holiday decorations.  Contact museum staff at 287-2301 if you can help.  To read more about the exhibit:  http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/4775341.html

Real Estate at the Crossroads: Choosing to Thrive

Recapping the shift in the real estate market at Family Reunion, Gary Keller urged attendees to seize the current market to their advantage.  Keller explained that the 10-year run-up in real estate that began in the early 1990s, led to an environment in which homes were no longer affordable, lenders were willing to take unreasonable risks and inventory rose to record levels.

This chain of events led to mortgage lenders pulling back, followed by a credit squeeze, increased inventory, dropping prices, rising defaults, slipping consumer confidence and reluctant buyers.

 

ECONOMIC STIMULUS: NAR applauds the Economic Stimulus package passed by the U.S. Senate last night which includes important provisions that will temporarily raise the FHA loan limits.NAR developed estimates of the temporary FHA and GSE single-family loan limits based on HUD’s existing FHA loan limits. Per the economic stimulus measure, HUD is required to publish the official new temporary loan limits within 30 days of enactment. NAR’s figures are estimates, not official figures. GSE limits remain $417,000 in Maine.  Maine’s estimated FHA increases here - Androscoggin - from $200,160 to $271,050; Aroostook - from $200,160 to $271,050; Cumberland - from $256,025 to $336,875; Franklin - from $200,160 to $271,050; Hancock - from $207,100 to $272,500; Kennebec - from $200,160 to $271,050; Knox - from $200,160 to $271,050; Lincoln - from $241,395 to $317,675; Oxford - from $200,160 to $271,050; Penobscot - from $200,160 to $271,050; Piscataquis - from $200,160 to $271,050; Sagadahoc - from $256,025 to $336,875; Somerset - from $200,160 to $271,050; Waldo - from $200,160 to $271,050; Washington - from $200,160 to $271,050; York - from $256,025 to $336,875.