Selling Homes Instead of Houses

I was picking up a Newcastle Square Realty (Midcoast Maine’s Favorite Real Estate Agency) sign a few weeks ago from a listing that I had just sold when my cell phone rang. Coincidentally it was the former owner of the property returning my call to work out some final details. We talked a bit about the sale, the people who bought the house, how happy we were with the price and then she said something that really touched me. She had printed off the lengthy ad copy I had written about her parent's home the previous night when she got a little teary about selling the home that she had grown up in. She explained that she was relieved that she was selling the house but that the sale marked an end of a chapter in her family's narrative and the beginning of a new one, not only for her family, but for the people who were moving into the house. My ad copy gave her a written reminder of what it was like growing up in that house, on that street and in that town in a way that pictures couldn't. Her parents had been gone for some time now but while she and her siblings still owned the house they still had a connection to what had made them a family.

I was very surprised that she was keeping the ad copy I had written. It isn’t often that a client will mention liking either the photographs or advertising copy and this was the first time that someone said that they were keeping anything that I had written aside from my mother (who can take my 6th grade report about the moon colony I predicted would exist by now off the refrigerator). It also reminded me that selling a property can sometimes be more like an adoption instead of a business transaction. I see this all the time when I am taking pictures. Every house tells some sort of story of the owners but some homes are a book while others are a short magazine article.

There are tell tale signs of life in almost every house. Scuff marks on the ceiling of a bedroom from a lacrosse stick, a tennis racket or hockey stick. Dents from a ball against the back of the house or the side of the garage and crudely constructed tree houses with rusted nails and now rotten 2x4s.The graduated marks in a doorway that are almost always near the kitchen or basement steps with dates and initials spanning several years, starting near a couple of feet from the floor and ending close to the top of the door. Sometimes you can just almost hear what was said with the last height mark. “Ah mom, really?”

I don’t think those details sell houses. Most buyers are looking for a place that does not need to be painted or have holes that need filing. They are looking for a blank page to start their own narrative but I have worked with other clients who feel that they are not buying a house so much as applying for a care taking position. Some will even go so far as to write a letter introducing themselves to the sellers and promising to look after their home as part of their offer. Some sellers really appreciate knowing that the person who wants to buy their home can see that their house is more than just a three bedroom, two bath Greek Revival that sits on a couple of acres. That there is a history that goes along with the place.

So the next time you are out house hunting remember that you may not just be looking at someone's house you may be looking at a part of their family as well.

Enjoying the Sights of Midcoast Maine From the Air

I have always said that you can not really appreciate all the beauty of Maine if you only see it from the land. Part of the reason I say that is that it is the best argument I have when trying to convince my wife that we really need a boat. I still believe that (I am going to wear you down eventually honey) but now I have something to add to it. Seeing Maine from the air. Last Sunday a friend took me with him for a quick "flight around the block" from the Wiscasset Airport. Sunday was a beautiful day. Lots of visibility, very few clouds, little or no turbulence and warm.

So taking off from Wiscasset we flew down the Sheepscot, over Southport Island and Dogfish Head (such a cool place they named a beer after it), over Pemaquid Harbor, across the peninsula to Muscongus, over Round Pond, past Moxie Cove to Broad Cove and Hockomock Channel then up the Medomak to Dutch Neck and then straight over to Damariscotta Mills, the Lake and then over downtown Damariscotta, the harbor and straight back to the airport.

 If you haven't seen the Midcoast from Wiscasset to Waldoboro and many of the locations in between from the air here is your chance to do so without fear of airsickness. If you can spot your own house let me know in the comment section because I would love to hear it. Enjoy the view! Just a few hints of things to look for. Some of my listings are in these shots as well as other Newcastle Square Realty listings. Can you pick any of them out? There are also a couple of shots of a house that will be featured on a cable network that is devoted to real estate and helping people with do it your self projects. I worked with their producer to purchase the house this spring and it will be on their network next year.

                

If you can't see the slideshow above click HERE to see the album.

And if you want a Google Earth Link to a little video of the tour send me an email and I will forward it to you.

Tom 

The Housing Equivalent of the Island Of Misfit Toys (or What is the HUD Section 203(K) Program?)

There have been a lot of changes in the real estate world over the last couple of years but the one that stands out in my mind the most is the death of the "Fixer-upper" or "Handy(wo)man) special". When I was looking for my first home and didn't have a lot of money to work with (actually I think this is true of all my home purchases) there were lots of homes that were in my price range that needed work. Not a huge amount of work but enough work to make it difficult to say that the home was in "move-in" condition. For example, I bought a home on Damariscotta Lake in Jefferson that had a toilet installed off of the kitchen in the space that was sort of the dining room. There was no door or even a wall to separate it from the rest of the living space. So if you were sitting in the living room and looking toward the kitchen, there was the toilet. When people came by and asked what was a toilet doing in the middle of the room we would just say it was the entertainment center. When we began our renovation of the interior one of the first things we did was to wall off and enclose the "entertainment center", put in a washer dryer hookup, add a door and voila! A half bath with first floor laundry. It wasn't a difficult or expensive renovation but it added value (a lot of value as it turned out but that is a different story).

These days it is very difficult to sell a home that needs work. I hear the same refrain over and over from people looking at homes, "It needs a new roof which is more work that we want to do" or "I hate carpeting, I want a house with wood floors on the second floor". Neither of those two things are impossible or very expensive to do and yet people turn up their noses at a house listed at $200,000 that needs $20,000 of work to be exactly what they are looking for and will spend $250,000 or more for a home that doesn't need the a new roof or has wood floors on the second floor too. And why do they do this? Because they can. There is enough inventory on the market that a buyer can find what they are looking for even if it means spending more money than they really need to. That is great and I am glad that they are buying any house right now. But what about those homes that just need a little love like the elephant from the Island of Misfit Toys? They will eventually sell to someone who is getting a great deal because they have a little imagination and either know how to do the work themselves or have enough expertise to write a check. I've seen waterfront that a few years ago the land that they sit on would sell for $500,000 that are being offered for less than $300,000.Why is that? Because it is more work than people want to take on, even if it means spending a couple hundred thousand more somewhere else.

Which brings me to the point of this entire diatribe. There is a U.S. Housing and Urban Development loan insurance project called the Section 203 (k) program. What the program does is to give home buyers the ability to purchase a home (or up to a 4 unity apartment building) that needs some work (new heating system, energy conservation, etc.) or to turn a single living unit building into more living units. This means that people who are not cash rich real estate investors can get in on buying distressed properties and returning them to livable homes. Not only does this benefit the buyer (who is probably getting more house than they could otherwise afford) but it benefits local contractors, the seller and the neighborhood that no longer has to look at the eyesore on the corner that brings down the value of all of their homes as well. This program isn't for everybody and being a government program there are lots of forms and steps to undertake but if you are interested owning a home and the only homes in your price range need work it may be worth checking out. And if you are looking for someone to help you find that bargain home feel free to contact me.

"Eco Friendly" Damariscotta Lake Homeowners Resort to Extreme Measures to Improve View

On a recent canoe trip on Damariscotta Lake my wife and I saw several shore front trees that have been cut down in front of a large shingle style cottage. At first glance it seemed like a blatant violation of Maine's Shoreland Protection Act and the town's Land Use Code until I noticed that the trees had been felled by beavers. For those not familiar with beavers (Warning!: do not "google" the word "Beaver" without changing your search settings to "Safe") they are a large furry rodent with the Latin name of Castor canadensis. Hunted almost to extinction in the 18th and 19th centuries they are remarkably able arborist/engineers with big teeth who normally cut down trees to use them as materials to build dams and lodges. Being a native species and largely illiterate the beaver is not subject to most state or municipal regulations. This gives them free reign to practice their destructive tendencies. 


There was something that bothered me about the levelled trees and on closer inspection I noticed that they were systematically cut down in a very straight line. Coincidentally this newly felled line of trees dramatically improved the view from the cottage out to the lake. Or was it coincidental? 


I checked in with a local wildlife biologist and asked her about the straight line of tree destruction and whether it was normal for beavers to cut in that manner. Wishing to remain anonymous the biologist I spoke with said that it was highly unusual since beavers have exceptionally short attention spans and often don't even finish cutting one tree let alone a line of trees. But she went on to say that in recent months a number of sections of the lake had been subjected to the same damage using the similar methods. And what was more revealing was that in every case the tree damage had resulted in improved views for the homeowners. 


After a trip to the town hall I was able to turn up the names of the owners of one of the earliest effected cottages and after several attempts to contact them I was able to track them down at fundraiser for an local organization environmental organization dedicated to protecting the the lake and its watershed. Trip and Bitsy Hardwood were reluctant to talk at first but as the night wore on and they consumed several Mount Gay and tonics the truth started to come out. The beavers had been trained to cut down the trees so that the cottage owners could improve their view without incurring fines or the scorn of their community. "How would it look if someone found out that a board member of the local conservation group was cutting down trees to improve the view? I can easily afford to pay the fines and it would certainly be less expensive than hiring trained beavers but what I can't afford is to have my clients or neighbors know that I intentionally violated environmental regulations just to improve my view. But really, why would I have a summer house here if I can't have a good look at the lake from the every room in the house? After the beavers finished with my place some of my friends noticed the improved view and I put them in touch with my beaver handler." Trip said. 


Bitsy added, "I mean we are all about protecting the environment, I have reusable grocery bags that I found at a darling little shop in Camden, we have a Prius, our golf cart is electric, we pay our cleaning lady with returnables but do we really have to suffer having an obstructed view? I mean really." 

Reached at home, Marcel Beavrez had very little to say about the matter. Off the record he was willing to admit that he had done a little "night landscaping" but refused to take any direct responsibility. He went on to explain that the last several years had been very hard for his family and a promised apology and reparation payment from the British Government for the wholesale slaughter of his species didn't look like it was forthcoming so he was forced to do what he could to put food on the table. "It is not like there are many opportunities for beavers to earn a living, eh? With the paper mills shutting down left and right we can't earn money cutting pulp wood so this is all that is left to us. What would you have us do? Move back to Canada?" 

I See Dead People on the Water

The other day I was in Portland for an appointment and had some time to kill, a lot of time as it turned out. Normally I would grab a book somewhere and find some place to sit in the shade and read it. But it was hot, I didn't have a book and I wasn't all that interested in shopping or eating or whatever else one does in Portland. So I went to the cemetery. Yes, I know that is an odd thing to do but I had a purpose. Ever since I read about the fight of the HMS Boxer and the USS Enterprise I have wanted to find where their captains were buried but never seemed to have the time or been with people who would indulge my historical geekiness (is that a word?) by walking through old cemeteries reading headstones.

For those who aren't familiar with every naval engagement between the United States and Britain between 1775 and 1814 the Boxer and Enterprise fought their duel in September of 1813 in the waters between Popham and Monhegan. The Boxer had been patrolling along the Maine coast capturing merchant ships and sending them to Halifax, Nova Scotia to be sold for the prize money. The Enterprise, a veteran of the battles with the Pasha of Tripoli, was cruising the same waters looking for the Boxer (and possibly to remind some of the locals that they weren't supposed to be shipping goods to Canada or other British ports). There are differing accounts of how they came to find each other, one historian says that the Boxer was pretending to chase an American merchant ship into the Kennebec as cover for their smuggling activities when it was spotted by the Enterprise who was using Damariscove Island as a hiding place. Other accounts hold that the two ships were looking for each other and finally met when Maine fishermen informed the Enterprise that they had just seen Boxer near Phippsburg, at the mouth of the Kennebec. It was reportedly a clear day and spectators found vantage points along the shore from Pemaquid Point all the way to Portland. The Portland Observatory with its high tech French telescope was able to witness much of the action and reported it play by play to the crowd on the ground.

It was a brutal fight that lasted for almost an hour. The 29 year old British Captain Blyth was killed in the first exchange of fire. Eventually the Enterprise dismasted the Boxer, captured her and brought her to Portland as a prize. Enterprise's own captain, 28 year old William Burrowes, died of his wounds on the way into port but not before refusing to accept the sword of Boxer's dead captain because he had fought so bravely. The crews of the Boxer and Enterprise buried their respective captains side by side in the East End Cemetery in Portland, almost at the foot of the Portland Observatory and later held a reception in their memory.

I don't know what if anything there is anything to learn from this episode but I can't help but wonder when I am at Pemaquid Point or out past the mouth of the Damariscotta River near Damariscove Island what it must have looked like to see these two sailings ships fire and maneuver with murderous intent so near shore while the citizens of Bristol watched from shore. Equally as fascinating to me is how two enemies who had been hell bent on the other's destruction could put that aside to pay respects to their two young captains and to bury them next to each other.

Desperate Home Sellers Resort to "Parting out" Their House

   I recently read a story in the Boston Globe about a couple in East Baldwin Maine who have decided to "part out" their house and donate the Jonathan Porter murals to a local museum. It seems the owners of the house were unable to sell the house after two years on the market without so much as a verbal offer. So they have resorted to doing what many Mainers who are stuck with a car do when they can't find a buyer. Selling it for parts. Well not really. They are actually donating the murals to a local museum after removing the walls where the murals were painted (and making themselves eligible for a serious tax deduction) and sending them to the Rufus Porter Museum in Bridgton.

But this got me thinking about how much I could get for my house if I were to sell it in pieces rather than all at once. The lot alone should be worth about $100,000 because of its location and pre-existing well and the sewer connection. Then we have the some wicked modern propane wall mounted forced hot water system should go for about $8000 (unless someone finds out that it needs to be "rebooted" after every power outage), then a few thousand for the copper pipes, a couple hundred for the copper wiring and then another couple hundred for porcelain. Which brings us to the real money makers. The wide pine floors and the beams. Since the house was built in 1830 it is post and beam construction and if you have ever priced out a a 12x12 beam for an architectural effect in a new house that is over 20' long you'll know that I am sitting on a gold mine.

Then we have the foundation materials. What do you think your landscaper would charge you for a piece of cut granite that is 6'x4' and 10" in height? Multiply that by 5 then add in a couple hundred smaller pieces that would be perfect for steps or retaining walls and all of a sudden you are talking some real money.

So if you happen to see me this weekend with a large crowbar and a sledgehammer feel free to stop by and make me an offer on some fireplace mantles. I'll make you a great deal. Just don't tell my mortgage company.

Damariscotta Region Prepares for Pirate Invasion or Tsunami

Citizens of the Pemaquid Peninsula and specifically the Damariscotta/Newcastle Greater Metro area are hastily preparing their defenses for an apparent Pirate Raid or Rendezvous scheduled for their town this Saturday, June 11th sometime between 10 and 4. Although recent encounters in 2009 and 2010 resulted in no deaths, a couple of dropped ice cream cones, a few pathetic slaps and very little property damage, trying to predict what a bunch of bloodthirsty buccaneers are capable of after consuming several gallons of homemade grog is impossible.

Preparations have been under way for some time at the Newcastle Harbor House where cranes were being used today to fortify sections of the wall to withstand whatever size canon ball the pirates have in their possession. Last year the defense of the area was left to a small band of very brave but entirely ineffective militia who could not keep the voracious horde from ransacking the town. Probably because they were too busy eating BBQ provided by the good folks at the Newcastle Public House (who remind you that Wednesday night is Mug Club Night).

Up and down the peninsula the state workers have been erecting signs to help the local coastal population flee in the correct direction rather than being brutally assaulted by inebriated out-of-staters who arrive by boat. Although the State of Maine says that it is just Tsunami Prepardness, paid for with a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, it must be noted that a Tsunami has not struck the coast of Maine, or more specifically the Pemaquid Peninsula, in recorded history. The same can not be said about pirate attacks. In 1632 the dread pirate Dixie Bull attacked the Pemaquid Settlement with three ships making off with 55 British pounds, a couple of wicked nice outboards (they wuz jest layin' theyah)t, several lobster pots (probably just caught up on the keel), 10 cases of Allen's Coffee Brandy and a carton of Newports. At the time settlers thought it was a delegation from Augusta but it did in fact turn out to be a pirate raid.

So hide your valuables, put on an eye patch (poke a hole in it so you can have some depth perception, don't want you to trip on my account), grab the kids, a fake sword and watch the pirates loot and plunder the town. It is, after all, just good clean fun.

Real Estate Urban Legends: Mercedes in the Barn

In our office we have Tuesday Caravan. Caravan is that day that we set aside for everyone in the office to see each other's new listings before they are put into the Multiple Listing Service. There are lots of reasons for this but my favorite reason is looking for treasure. Now I don't mean real treasure like doubloons or pieces of eight but more realistic treasure like the mythical "Mercedes in the Barn". The "Mercedes in the Barn" is kind of a mix of legend and real estate porn stories ("I never thought it would happen to me but.....") where the unnamed real estate agent is doing a market analysis for the sweet little old lady and as they are walking around the barn notice that there is a locked door. "What is behind the locked door in barn?" the brokers asks.

"Oh, that is just my dead husband's old car. I kept meaning to sell it but I never got around to it." So the broker gets inside the barn and there finds a 1954 Mercedes 300sl with gull wing sitting on blocks and covered in dust. You can imagine the rest.


But of course this never happens. But sometimes something close happens. Today on Caravan I saw a 1930s Cadillac LaSalle in a garage (up on blocks after a long ago restoration attempt that stopped) and a 1970s Honda 550 Four just waiting to be restored. I didn't manage to get a picture of the LaSalle but I did manage a picture of the Honda. I wonder if I could work the bike into a commission split somehow? I have no idea what I would do with it but I want it.

The Green Wisdom of our Forefathers (and foremothers)

Less than 100 years ago our great grandparents had a pretty good solution for getting by without being held hostage to the oil companies. They called it "Living in Town". It didn't require a huge sacrifice and in many cases they were  the envy of their friends who lived out of town on farms and for whom every trip to the store, the church, the bank or going out to eat would have been an event at best or an ordeal at its worst. People lived within a short distance of almost everything they needed to do on a daily basis. Work, library, church, doctor's office all within a short distance of home. And if you needed to go out of town on business you had the 1911 airport equivalent just across the bridge at the railway station. No metal detectors, no strip search, no lines. You waited on the platform for the train to stop and stepped into the rail coach you wanted to ride on. From Newcastle you could get to Portland, from Portland to Boston and from Boston to anywhere in the lower 48 that you wanted to go. O.k. it did take a bit of time (in 1876 it took the Transcontinental Express 83 hours from New York to San Francisco) but they didn't charge for an extra bag or two.

Now I am not advocating eliminating the internal combustion engine but maybe living close enough to those things that you need to do (or want to do) on a daily basis is a better way to thumb your nose at the Petro Speculators who keep bidding the price of a barrel of oil up every time they think the economy is starting to rebound. And what better way to do that than to live in a cozy little home that is just blocks from everything you could ever want to do in town like heading over to the Maine Coast Bookstore for the New York Times, coffee and free Wifi, go shopping for new sneakers at Reny's, or pick up a book at Skidompha, or sit at the counter at Waltz Pharmacy  for a frappe and a hot dog with your friends? Later in the evening after you walk the dog around the neighborhood and say hello to your neighbors (Hello Mr. Bartley) you might want to take a stroll across the river with your sweetie, watch the reversing falls as the sun goes down and stop in at the Newcastle Publick House  for a burger and a beverage on the porch. And just think how much time you would save driving kids from practice to rehearsal to home! So stop talking about how much you hate paying $4 at the pump, ditch the 8 mpg Urban Assault Vehicle and buy a place in town. Like this home on River Road that was built by a (wind powered) sea captain for his wife and has waterfront.

Or maybe something smaller in Damariscotta on the other side of the river that is cozy and charming?  

 

 

So listen to your ancestors, be Green and move back to town!

 Tom Field 

What the Rapture will mean for Real Estate Values

With the Rapture fast approaching many of my clients have been asking me what it will mean for the value of their property. My response for most of them has been that they shouldn't care because there are many mansions in our father's house  (John 14:12) and that they really shouldn't be concerned with such earthly trivia. On the other hand it got me thinking "How will I price my listings to reflect the changes in demand"? Well I'm not very concerned because since it is easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than a rich man to get into heaven most of my listings will still be appropriately priced. I will probably cancel the open houses I have scheduled for Saturday and Sunday since there will be empty cars careening all over the road and I just had the scratches buffed out of the Passat. So unless you are in the market for a well kept ranch next to the Church of the Nazarene I don't think there will be many deals to be had out there after Saturday. The one possibility that does exist for people looking for a deal is to convince those in a house that you really do covet that of course they are one of God's chosen and if they are leaving on Saturday for their date with destiny why wouldn't they want to sign their name to this Quit Claim Deed I just happen to have in my pocket? Just saying......

P.S. If you are pretty sure you are heading off to your ultimate reward could you leave me the keys to the BMW in the garage?

Tom Field