This is the BEST Picture EVER! Very Happy Buyers!!! - 06/18/12 04:04 PM
This is the BEST Picture EVER!  Very Happy Buyers!!!

It's been a struggle...
 
It's been one thing after another since January.  We would clear up one issue and another one would crop up.  My buyer client was so frustrated and distressed...month after month after month.
 
But WE MADE IT.  Thanks to Corey Scott at Cumberland County Mortgage!!!  
 
 
… (11 comments)

Speechless Sunday - Juxtaposition - 06/17/12 02:42 PM
Speechless Sunday - Juxtaposition
 

 
This picture is of Mill Pond, Wayne, Maine, taken from the foot bridge that crosses over the Mill Pond Dam, right behind Tubby's Ice Cream in the center of Wayne Village.  Mill Pond feeds into Androscoggin Lake.  The Mill Pond Dam is on the opposite side of this foot bridge - the difference in water motion from one side of the foot bridge to the other is amazing.
 

 

… (4 comments)

Will Advertising Your Home in the Newspaper Find a Buyer? Probably Not - 06/16/12 05:39 PM
Will Advertising Your Home in the Newspaper Find a Buyer? Probably Not.
 
If you asked me this question 20 years ago I would have said, Yes, definitely!  Even 12 or so years ago, my answer would still have been YES.
 
But now?  My answer is NO.  Most likely not.
 
Where will your FOR SALE home most likely be found these days?  THE INTERNET.
 
The National Association of Realtors 2011 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers reports that nearly 9 out of 10 home buyers use the Internet for their home search.  For 35% of home buyers, their VERY … (5 comments)

Free Entry to Maine Parks and Historic Sites This Sunday! - 06/15/12 04:39 PM
Free Entry to Maine Parks and Historic Sites This Sunday!
This Sunday, June 17, the Maine Department of Conversation, Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, is holding Maine Resident’s Day - at day where, from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM all vehicles with Maine license plates have FREE ADMISSION to all State Parks and Historic Sites.*
I don’t think it is a coincidence that this Sunday’s event is being held on FATHER’S DAY.  What better way to spend the day with your Dad than to head out to a Maine State Park or Maine Historic Site?The Maine Bureau of Parks … (3 comments)

Need a Special Place for Your Function? Try The Riverback Dance Club - 06/14/12 03:53 PM
Need a Special Place for Your Function? Try The Riverback Dance Club

Overlooking the Kennebec River in downtown Augusta is a hidden gem: The Riverback Dance Club.

I didn’t even know this place was here until the Kennebec River flooded a couple of weeks ago.  I was down along the river taking pictures and met a man doing the same.  Since what I do for a living necessitates meeting new people whenever possible, I started a conversation with him and discovered that his wife owned the huge, 5 story brick building we were standing in front of.  I … (2 comments)

Charming Little Bungalow - Home For Sale in Augusta ME - 06/12/12 08:40 AM
Charming Little Bungalow - Home for Sale in Augusta ME … (2 comments)

The Five Votes of Confidence - 06/11/12 06:04 PM
The Five Votes of Confidence
 
I have no idea where I got this, but I have been carrying this piece of paper around with me for about 15 years.  You can't tell from this copy I made, but the original has push pin holes and bent corners from being shifted from bulletin board to file.  There is even old tape residue on the back.  For the past three years I have kept it tucked into a file tray next to my computer monitor so I can see it, along with a couple of other inspirational items.  
I guess I'm … (3 comments)

Speechless Sunday - Reds, Whites and Blues (and Greens...) - 06/10/12 04:51 PM
Speechless Sunday - Reds, Whites and Blues (and greens...)
 

 
This picture was taken at the corner of Winthrop Street and Water Street, Hallowell ME.  Behind the red buildings is the Kennebec River.  The colors are vivid after a week of rain.  American flags line Water Street (one can be seen across the road) and the surrounding side roads - they have been up since Memorial Day.
… (11 comments)

The 35th Annual Whatever Family Festival: June 20, 2012 - July 4, 2012 - 06/09/12 05:07 PM
The 35th Annual Whatever Family Festival: June 20, 2012 - July 4, 2012
 
The 35th annual.  When I read that I had to sit back and absorb that for a minute.  35 years.  1978.  Yeah, I guess (unfortunately) that's right.  Wow.
Waaay back 35 years ago, the Great Kennebec Whatever Race was started to celebrate the cleanup of the Kennebec River.  You see, for many years the Kennebec River was severely polluted by the various mills located along it's shores between Augusta and Gardiner.  I remember when the river was brown and you wouldn't think of putting a toe in … (3 comments)

No, We're Not Buying Right Now, But Can You Show Us That House? - 06/08/12 03:54 PM
No, We're Not Buying Right Now, But Can You Show Us That House?
 
Hey.  I get it.  Really.  I love looking at properties - it's one of the reasons I like what I do so much.  Real estate is cool.  Viewing properties is fun.
 
But.
 
Don't get me wrong.  You're great people.  I really enjoyed being your listing agent and I'm very happy that we had a successful sale and that we're staying in touch.  But when we last spoke you told me you're comfortable where you are.  I understand that interest rates are so low you feel … (7 comments)

‘Tis the Season For Summer Theater! Theater at Monmouth’s 2012 Season Begins! - 06/07/12 06:37 PM
‘Tis the Season For Summer Theater!  Theater at Monmouth’s 2012 Season Begins!The Theater at Monmouth is gearing up for what looks to be a great 43rd season - and the first for TAM’s new Producing Artistic Director, Dawn McAndrews.  Cast and crew have begun to arrive and the lineup of shows looks to be exceptional as usual!The season kicks off with the 13th annual Black Fly Follies variety show (named rather aptly after Maine’s late spring/early summer bane, the black fly)  on June 30, 2012 at 7:30 pm.The childrens' show, The Little Prince, opens on June 23, followed by the openings … (2 comments)

Tomorrow Is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day! - 06/06/12 05:40 PM
Tomorrow Is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day!
 
June 7, 2012 is National Chocolate Ice Cream Day!
 
I passed by National Donut Day on June 1.  Donuts.  Eh.  I can take them or leave them.  (Mostly leave them, I guess.)  
But pass up a whole day dedicated to chocolate ice cream?!?  I don't think so!  I don't even have to feel guilty about eating chocolate ice cream tomorrow...because it's a National Holiday!  I'm being patriotic by eating chocolate ice cream!  Demonstrating my national spirit!  (I wonder if I get extra national spirit points by drizzling chocolate syrup over my … (7 comments)

Is it better to have the seller pay closing costs? - 06/06/12 05:27 AM
Home Buyers:  I said it before and I'll say it again - a good offer made with no request for the seller to pay the buyer's closing costs will almost always look much better to the seller than an offer that includes closing cost assistance.  
Sellers look at the offer's bottom line...how much goes into their pocket (or the bank's) at the end of the day. These closing costs in question are the fees associated with taking out a mortgage and they are the BUYER'S costs, not the seller's.  If you don't have the cash for both a down payment and … (1 comments)

Dear Maine Home Seller: Does Your Agent Offer a Service Guarantee? - 06/05/12 05:48 PM
Dear Maine Home Seller: Does Your Agent Offer a Service Guarantee?


When you interviewed your agent about selling your home, did you ask about his or her service guarantee? 
 
Last night I got a call from a woman I had been talking with for a couple of months about selling her home.  Three weeks ago she listed her property with an agent from a different company. This is actually the second call I've received from her since she listed.  Both calls have been because she was not happy with the service she was receiving from her agent.  
… (3 comments)

Kennebec County Flood Warnings In Augusta, ME - 06/04/12 05:40 PM
Kennebec County Flood Warnings In Augusta, ME
 
The heavy rains coming down over much of Southern and Central Maine for the past 2 days have caused the Kennebec River to rise to over 15' today in Augusta.  (Flood stage for the river in Augusta is 12'.)  The flood warnings have been extended through Wednesday morning for Augusta.  
 
I took a trip down to Water Street, Augusta to take a look at the river.  The Front Street parking lot was under water, as was the boat dock, the path along the waterfront, steps leading to the path, and the … (0 comments)

Kennebec County, Maine - May 2012 Single Family Home Sales - 06/03/12 11:02 AM
May 2012 Market Data
Kennebec County, Maine – Single Family Home Sales
 
… (0 comments)

Bringing Her Back to Life - The Shipbuilder’s Mistress: Part 2 - 06/02/12 06:37 PM
Bringing Her Back to Life - The Shipbuilder’s Mistress: Part 2
This is an update to an October 2010 blog post about a renovation project my husband and I had taken on in Gardiner, ME:  Bringing Her Back to Life - The Shipbuilder’s Mistress.  






The renovations have gone slowly because we’ve been distracted - last summer we purchased the house across the street from this lady, which was ALSO a distressed property.




Despite the distraction, we have made some progress.  The crazy floor plan has been completely torn out (over … (2 comments)

The New Rules of Money - 06/01/12 02:14 PM
The New Rules of Money
 
The question of the day:  Where is your money?

Is your money in the stock market?  With today's news about the job market and the subsequent plunge in the stock market, any gains made since the beginning of the year are gone.  How about treasuries?  10 year treasuries have sunk to an historical low of 1.47%.  CD's are paying hardly anything.  And bank savings accounts?  You might as well have your money in a bank safe deposit box...the earning power would be the same.
 
So where should your money be?  REAL ESTATE.  Mortgage … (0 comments)

 
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Lisa Hicks - Central Maine Real Estate/ Kennebec County Real Estate Agent

Monmouth, ME

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The Maine Real Estate Network

Address: 34 Center Street, Auburn, Maine, 04259

Office Phone: (207) 689-9800

Cell Phone: (207) 592-5374

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All about living and working in Central Maine. Maine really is the way life should be! Looking to buy or sell real estate in Central Maine? Let me help you FIND YOUR MAINE OASIS!



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