Home Sales in Maine Rise 8.7% From a Year Ago.

By Jessica Hall / Portland Press Herald, Maine... Home sales in Maine rose 8.7 percent in April, the ninth consecutive month of higher sales volume, according to the Maine Association of Realtors. A total of 824 homes were sold during April, up from 758 homes in April 2011. Last month’s median sale price for those homes was up 4.48 percent over April 2011, at $167,950, according to Maine Real Estate Information System Inc. "Nine consecutive months of higher (year-over-year) sales volume, plus two consecutive months of increased median sale prices, gives both buyers and sellers solid reasons to enter the market," said Tina Lucas, president of the Maine Association of Realtors. Lucas noted that much of the recent activity is from first-time home buyers. New buyers "realize now is the right time to take advantage of the historic low interest rates and attractive pricing," she said. The increases in Maine trailed the gains nationally. Sales rose 9.9 percent nationwide compared with a year earlier. The median sale price rose 10.4 percent, to $178,000, in April, according to the National Association of Realtors. In the Northeast, sales increased 19.2 percent and the median sale price rose 8.8 percent, to $256,600. "I’d expect to see national and regional housing numbers exceed Maine for some time to come because the nation and the Northeast declined further in the recession and there’s more recovery to be done," said Charles Colgan, professor of public policy and management at the University of Southern Maine’s Muskie School of Public Service. "Maine also has slower population growth." Home sales are driven by banks’ willingness to lend money and consumer confidence, Colgan said. "People shy away from big purchases when confidence levels are low. When confidence starts to resume, you start to see big purchases like homes and cars," Colgan said.

Jim Fullilove, Waterfront "Buyers Broker", Joins Our Team.

Jim Fullilove lived the dream that many people have of leaving the hustle-bustle of the big city behind and moving to Maine. Many years ago, he traded the congestion of the New York City area and the long commute by train to Manhattan for a 100 acre lakeside “farm” complete with apple orchard, trout stream and horse barn. Sounds great, but the move turned up a few funny missteps and some hard lessons along the way—all good things to know if you’re planning a similar move. Just ask him. Jim’s background is an interesting patchwork of magazine publishing, construction and all things related to boats. In his younger days, a stint as an equipment operator and house carpenter coupled with a penchant for journalism landed him a job as an editor with a construction magazine. A passion for sailing and the desire for a more laid-back lifestyle brought him to Maine and a job with National Fisherman and WorkBoat magazines. For the past decade or so, in his spare time he’s been editor of Marine Electronics Journal. All of this—an insider’s knowledge of home construction, a love of boats, fishing and the sea, and good communication skills—prepared him well for selling waterfront real estate in Maine, which he’s done for the past seven years. Jim works only with buyers. He prefers to deliver concierge service to clients who dream of finding the perfect waterfront property, rather than trying to serve the sellers of properties as well. Jim and his wife, Jeanne, live on a small horse farm a couple miles from Camden and Penobscot Bay. He’s still into boats and boating, only instead of the sloop he used to cruise aboard in Long Island Sound and beyond, he now messes around in sailing dinks and kayaks on the river behind his house—and takes friends up on their offers to crew aboard their larger boats every chance he gets. If you are looking for waterfront property in Maine – and would like a “Buyer’s Broker” to help you find just the right property and to represent you exclusively, contact Jim at Waterfront Properties of Maine or directly on his cell phone at (207) 542-9511 or by email at jim@homesonthewaterinmaine.com or visit his website at: http://www.homesonthewaterinmaine.com/