About Oxford County, ME

Last Tuesday the voters of Maine rejected a proposal to allow the building of a resort-casino in Oxford County, probably somewhere along Route 26 in Oxford. The measure lost by a 55% to 45% differential.

Proponents of the proposal feel strongly that Mainers have missed out on an opportunity to bring good paying jobs to the state while opponents hope this rejection will dampen further attempts by the gaming industry to site a casino in Maine. Similar proposals to bring a casino to Maine have been voted down in recent years.

This latest vote is just further evidence that most Mainers don't really like the idea of Maine being the location for a big-time casino and resort. From the vote tabulations it would seem that the casino got its strongest support from the neighborhood that it wanted to locate in - Oxford County - but that fully 13 of the state's 16 counties voted against the proposal.

Many on both sides of the issue felt the legislation that brought the referendum to the voters on Tuesday was flawed from the start. Others questioned why voters, other than those in the specific county where the casino would be located, should be allowed to vote on the question.

For now, at least, the matter has been put to rest. But the winners this time around are ever-vigilant, feeling that there's just too much money involved for the gaming industry to give up easily.

Here's another installment on some basics about septic systems.

How do I get a septic system designed and constructed?

There are four steps to designing and building a septic system:

1. The system must be designed by a professional known as a Licensed Site Evaluator. Site Evaluators are private consultants licensed by the State of Maine who charge a fee for their service. A list of site evaluators who practice locally is available from the Local Plumbing Inspector of the town where the property is located. A statewide list of evaluators is also found here. The site evaluator will provide a system design in a standard format called an HHE-200 form.

2. A permit must be obtained from the Local Plumbing Inspector of the town where the system will be constructed. Three copies of the system design(HHE-200) are brought to the Local Plumbing Inspector(LPI) and a permit sticker will be attached after the permit fee is paid. The LPI will keep two copies of the design for local and state records, and give one copy back to the applicant. You will also need to notify the LPI of the schedule for installing the system so that inspection can be arranged.

3. Construction is normally done by an excavating contractor. It is permissible to construct the system yourself provided that the installation is done in accordance with the approved plans. It is recommended that two or more estimates be obtained from reputable contractors to ensure that the best price is obtained. The cost of the septic system is influenced by a number of factors including the contractor's schedule and source of materials.

4. The system needs to be inspected by the Local Plumbing Inspector to ensure that it is installed in accordance with the subsurface rules. Inspection of the system by the designer is not normally provided as a basic service, but may be available in addition to the design. Because inspections must be coordinated with the construction schedule, the contractor should be responsible for scheduling inspections and should be aware of who to contact to do so. The LPI will initial the HHE-200 when inspections are conducted as evidence that the proper inspections were performed.

Our thanks to our friends at Green Environmental Engineering in Wayne, Maine for providing answers to our septic questions. To visit their site go to http://mainesepticdesign.com/index.htm

If you'd like to visit some beautiful Maine lakefront property try out Lakefront Locator. Here you can search current listings by town, lake name, price, and region. And don't forget to register for our $100 L.L. Bean gift certificate here: http://www.mrlakefront.net/feedback.html

There's an election next Tuesday and among the ballot items we get to vote on here in Maine is the following question:

"Do you want to allow a certain Maine company to have the only casino in Maine, to be located in Oxford County, if part of the revenue is used to fund specific state programs?"

The plan is to locate a $184 million hotel, casino, spa, and conference center somewhere on Rte. 26 in Oxford. The promoters of this idea have estimated that once this place is built it will provide 907 jobs to the local economy at an average salary of $35,000 annually. It is my understanding that it will provide tax revenues to both the state and the local community.

As you might imagine, this ballot question strikes a nerve. Most folks are in favor of good jobs and economic growth, but question whether the casino industry is a good fit for the Maine "brand", if you will. Everyone sees that sign when you drive north over the bridge in Kittery - "Maine: the way life should be".

Maine is a poor state, not in small part because it is sparsely populated and sits geographically at the end of the line. Basically, there's one way in and one way out. Interestingly, these very reasons for its impoverishment are also, for many, its biggest attraction. Peace and quiet, few neighbors, and vistas of woodlands, lakes, and mountains.

What impact would a casino have in this area of Maine? If you vacation on one of our wonderful lakes or are thinking about owning a lakefront property in Maine, does the idea of a casino nearby attract or repel you?

My guess is that for those who come to this area to enjoy our lakes and ponds, to ski our mountains and hike our trails, to fish and hunt and snowmobile, having a casino nearby is not going to be high on the list of attractions.

For those who live here, however, those who have to make a living and support a family, they may be a little more positively disposed toward a casino, strictly for economic reasons. They simply can't afford to see it any other way.

Would a casino in Oxford hurt the Maine "brand"? And, if so, at what cost? Would the economic benefits outweigh the liabilities? Would a casino bring the kind of economic development that Maine so desparately needs?

It will be interesting to see how the vote turns out on Tuesday. To read in more depth on this issue go to this article: http://www.keepmecurrent.com/Community/story.cfm?storyID=59339

Just when you think it can't get much tougher for lakefront property sellers, or better for lakefront property buyers, it does just that. For the last few years lakefront sellers have had to put up with weak demand and too much competition because of the large amount of inventory on the market. Now sellers face a new challenge.

You might know that the purchase of most lakefront property in the last few years has been with financing. Interest rates were so low even some buyers with the cash would elect to finance.

During the boom times from 1998 through 2005 mortgage brokers were everywhere. The interest rates offered by mortgage brokers usually beat the rates offered by the local banks. Mortgage companies, like banks, offered conventional financing. But they also offered an array of creative financing plans that were attractive to lakefront homebuyers.

Like banks, as part of the approval process a financing institution would agree to lend money subject to the property "appraising out". That means that one of the final steps in approving the loan would be to send out an appraiser to the property for an inspection. Loans could not have been sold into the secondary market to outfits like Fannie Mae without an appraisal.

I must tell you that during the boom period I never had a property not appraise out. If the sale price was $475,000, it would appraise for $475,000, or better. The financing institutions were eager to get the loans and the market was rising, so everything got financed.

Things are different now. In the last thirty days, two of my transactions did not appraise out. One appraisal came in $25,000 less than the under contract sales price. The other came in at $15,000 under. In both cases the sellers had to agree to lower the sales price in order to make the deal happen. A bitter pill to swallow, I would say. Here's why.

Most sellers are selling their lakefront property for far less than they could have a few years ago. When a property goes under contract, it's contingent on tests, or investigations as we call them in Maine. So, a seller in some cases has had to sell at a big discount, reduce the price again due to adjustments made after inspections, and now reduce the price yet again because the property doesn't appraise out!

This situation, so painful for sellers, is so incredibly advantageous for buyers. No longer does a buyer have to be concerned about paying too much since the appraisers are going to make sure you don't !

Here's a a tip for our lakefront cash buyers. You don't need to finance in order to make your transaction contingent on an appraisal. Just make sure when you write your offer that it's contingent on an appraisal. The exclusive buyer agents here at Mr. Lakefront will be happy to assist you.

By the way, if you'd like to take a look at the current market, do so from the comfort of your home by using our Lakefront Locator. It's as easy as point and click!

The first snow fell atop Mount Washington on October 3rd. The leaves are reaching peak color. The Fryeburg Fair is over. The frost is on the pumpkin. The election is four weeks from today.

Do you get my drift here?

Summer is long gone and fall is much in evidence. While many current lakefront property owners are doing their planning to get their boats out, pull the docks in, and close up the camp, many lakefront owner "wannabees" are finding a jackpot of lakefront properties that have been reduced in price.

These price reductions are running concurrent with the calendar, as usual. But the added pressures of their being an abundance of inventory coupled with the turmoil in the financial markets has led to a larger number of price reductions than usual.

Some buyers seem to want out of this deteriorating stock market. They might prefer to have their investment portfolio more weighted in real estate and less in equities. Some sellers seem ready to negotiate on price. This might be the best time to be making an offer on something.

In the Sebago Lakes Region, which is comprised of 60 lakes and ponds and 26 towns, there are 317 lakefront properties currently for sale. Of those, over 43 % (or 138) have had price reductions. If you have contemplated purchasing a lakefront home, now may be a window of opportunity for you.

The reductions run the gamut of the market - from humble seasonal camps to mansions on the lake. Let us know what your price range is and we'll send you all those listings that have seen reductions in price. If you have a specific lake in mind we can send you those properties for that specific lake only.

You can also use our Lakefront Locator to sort through the hundreds of lakefront properties that remain on the market.

The season is coming to a close. It just might be the best time to have one last, long look.