Portland, ME Intel

[stealurface831]

Maz, you ever check out Portsmouth NH? Cool spot, smaller than Portland but also closer to Boston and access to sports, theater, airports, hospitals etc. Lots of restaurants, good food scene for sure. Plus no income tax.

Fishing, too.

[schuss]

Portsmouth is way overpriced these days and overfull with condos. That said seacoast NH is pretty great.

[ötzi]

I don't know about overpriced, it has a lot going for it as you know. I mean it's not going down at the moment.

[bennymac]

Used to like watching the F111s and tankers come and go from the AFB there before it closed/switch to national guard

[Mazderati]

Where do you live now and where else besides Portland are you looking at? Also what industry do you work in? Are you married? Do you have kids? I got married in Maine about 5 years ago up in Boothbay and have spent considerable time in Portland over the past 12 years.

I just left the Boston area and moved to CA to be closer to friends and outdoorsy shit. If I was going to come back east it would probably be somewhere in VT like the Mad River Valley/Stowe area. Food and beer game to me is on point with Portland, mtn biking blows portland out of the water, and more options for ski resorts. Pm me if you want to chat more about it.

Considering most of the northeast plus Chicago. Finger Lakes is really nice. Coastal New England is most likely; Boston, Portland, Newburyport, Marblehead, Westport, Providence, Newport. Maybe in that order. Maybe not. All places I've visited but there are surely others I haven't that are also really cool. Walkability to eat and drink is high on the attributes list. Only familiarity with Vermont is Stowe and Jay to ski. Bounced around the southeast the last few years while the better half chased work. In Greenville, SC now and ready to live somewhere we want to live. Previously lived in Boston so cold is fine but the short days are a grind as mentioned earlier. I'm medical research and remote. She's healthcare and will probably end up remote but a really good position on site somewhere would definitely be a factor. Thanks for the response.

Maz, you ever check out Portsmouth NH? Cool spot, smaller than Portland but also closer to Boston and access to sports, theater, airports, hospitals etc. Lots of restaurants, good food scene for sure. Plus no income tax.

Newburyport MA is also pretty cool, even smaller than Portsmouth but still kinda happening.

Westport on the radar because of the trip to your place. Looking at Newburyport but have not considered Portsmouth for no reason in particular. First big mountain ski movie I saw was at a small theater there. Friendly Toast postgame.

[buttahflake]

What’s Greenville like, I hear the cycling scene is robust. Any other selling points? Older I get the less I like cold weather.

[MyNameIsAugustWest]

Considering most of the northeast plus Chicago. Finger Lakes is really nice. Coastal New England is most likely; Boston, Portland, Newburyport, Marblehead, Westport, Providence, Newport. Maybe in that order. Maybe not. All places I've visited but there are surely others I haven't that are also really cool. Walkability to eat and drink is high on the attributes list. Only familiarity with Vermont is Stowe and Jay to ski.

Hate to say it, but sounds like you're describing Burlington. West Coast of New England and whatnot. PM Peruvian for beta on living downtown.

Finger Lakes area is nice but it's a long way to decent skiing and all of the airports (Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester) are just feeder airports. More layovers, more chances to get screwed. Also, other than Ithaca and maybe Skaneateles, not many towns that tick your boxes. Skaneateles is pretty desolate in the winter.

[schuss]

I don't know about overpriced, it has a lot going for it as you know. I mean it's not going down at the moment.

It's pricing has pushed out most except wealthy retirees and a different group of people than those that made it interesting. Couple that with the super boring condos going up everywhere and the charm is being faded.

[ötzi]

Westport on the radar because of the trip to your place. Looking at Newburyport but have not considered Portsmouth for no reason in particular. First big mountain ski movie I saw was at a small theater there. Friendly Toast postgame.

Yeah I love Westport as you know but it scores about a zero on the walkability scale. Everywhere I go is within about 4-5 miles but none of it is next to each other. But otherwise it has a lot going for it. I was in Portsmouth last year and liked it is why I mentioned it but Schuss is right there so I defer but I'd still say check it out.

Providence is coming up and seems cooler every time I go there, there's tons of food, art, music etc. Definitely has the walkability thing going for it. Lots of cool architecture. The waterfront is mostly kind of industrial but in about 2 minutes on a boat you're on Narragansett Bay, which is awesome. Commuter train, Amtrak or driving takes under an hour to downtown Boston. And it's relatively reasonable for real estate prices. RI taxes blow though.

edit: To throw a curveball in the discussion, we sold our place outside DC but needed to keep a MD connection for various reasons. I came down from Westport a few days ago for a doctor thing so I'm writing from our rental condo in Baltimore right now that's pretty amazing and costs probably a third what the same place would cost in Boston. Baltimore gets a bad rap but this whole South Baltimore/Federal Hill/Inner Harbor/Fells Point/ Harbor East/Locust Point/Canton area, which is a big area (well it's multiple areas all next to each other) and all right on the water, is all very cool and upbeat and mostly quite safe.

Baltimore's gritty though, it has an edge. You need to stay awake. Big areas are still straight out of The Wire, no doubt, but it's not like you'd have a reason to go there either. I like it, but I can see how some people wouldn't. It's 10-12 degrees warmer than Boston all year, which is not an advantage in summer but is pretty decent in winter and fall lasts late and spring starts early. Hopkins is right up the road from where I'm sitting, which could work to your professional benefit I'd guess. Colonial-era seaport city like the others mentioned, there's similarities and differences. Also I can see the weed store from my window and I have my Maryland medical card, so that's a plus. In Mass you don't even need a medical card but it's a 10-mile drive to the store for me, so I guess I give the advantage to Baltimore.

[gravitylover]

While the Fingerlakes area is kind of pretty and generally quiet it's a cultural wasteland. Sure there's a bunch of good vineyards and breweries but between the Mennonites and Amish that don't pay taxes the towns and infrastructure are falling apart.

[schuss]

Also, to be clear - Portsmouth is great to have access to, but unless you're a huge drinker, you're better served living in nearly any other surrounding town.
Schools are better in Exeter district and Durham/Lee/Madbury. House pricing is at least 100k lower for a better plot and more space south of the bridge and 200k north of it. I'm north and can get to Portsmouth in 15-20 mins and have bike trails out the backdoor.
If you're a city person that needs density it's fine, but the value doesn't hold up unless you have a "no driving" rule.
If you do need that, sure? But since it's growing there's some serious growing pains around parking/internal roads and development that's not going to resolve anytime soon.

[ötzi]

While the Fingerlakes area is kind of pretty and generally quiet it's a cultural wasteland. Sure there's a bunch of good vineyards and breweries but between the Mennonites and Amish that don't pay taxes the towns and infrastructure are falling apart.

I always find Ithaca pretty cool though. Haven't been there a ton but I've liked it.

[Benny Profane]

Saratoga, hands down.

[gravitylover]

I always find Ithaca pretty cool though. Haven't been there a ton but I've liked it.

Not a bad town at all actually and probably the only place the goes against the grain elsewhere in the Fingerlakes region.

Saratoga, hands down.

Toga has so much going for it, you're right. Easy access to outdoor things and pretty much the only town in the region that's not a cultural void. Good food, good music scene, cool car museum and car scene and the money that comes with the horsey set. Too bad the bike shop in town sucks but there are a few good ones not too far away and the riding is great.

[Benny Profane]

Weird how the birthplace of Serotta can't have a good bike shop. I agree. Awesome roads, an hour to Gore.

[jackstraw]

It's pricing has pushed out most except wealthy retirees and a different group of people than those that made it interesting. Couple that with the super boring condos going up everywhere and the charm is being faded.

Unfortunately, yes. The funkyness of downtown has been pushed out by the insane lease costs. What was once a pretty cool little town is becoming incredibly generic. So typical of what happens when a place becomes popular. Its popular because of the diversity and/or uniqueness. Once that goes, it's just your stiff tools walking around going to the chain restaurants. I would take living outside Portland over outside Portsmouth at this point.

Well, with that just said, Portsmouth made this happen [emoji106]
https://amp.seacoastonline.com/amp/3...mpression=true

[Mazderati]

What’s Greenville like, I hear the cycling scene is robust. Any other selling points? Older I get the less I like cold weather.

It's an old mill town that was used hard but revitalized in recent years. The river running through town and waterfall on one side of it were cleaned up and made a centerpiece after people realized it could be leveraged. Downtown is walkable with some good restaurants. There is a cycling scene. The Swamp Rabbit Trail is popular and connects several towns, Furman University, breweries, and restaurants. I think Hincapie the company and a couple other known cycling stores are based here. BMW, Michelin, GE Power, and all supporting businesses make for a relatively strong economy. Asheville is an hour away. The US National Whitewater Center is about an hour and a half. Summer heat and humidity are oppressive. Like, don't want to move oppressive. There is a big dichotomy of haves and have-nots too many people seem to be OK with and the politics aren't my thing.

Hate to say it, but sounds like you're describing Burlington. West Coast of New England and whatnot. PM Peruvian for beta on living downtown.

Finger Lakes area is nice but it's a long way to decent skiing and all of the airports (Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester) are just feeder airports. More layovers, more chances to get screwed. Also, other than Ithaca and maybe Skaneateles, not many towns that tick your boxes. Skaneateles is pretty desolate in the winter.

Haven't given Burlington much thought but will have to check it out. Nailed it with Skaneateles; really close to buying a place there last year.

Will get to the rest tonight.

[frosted flakes]

Like a surprising number of people in this thread, I also grew up in Cape Elizabeth. As a kid, all of my friends couldn’t wait to leave Maine because it seemed like there was nothing to do, but now a lot of them have moved back. Turns out it was actually a great place to grow up. Portland and Burlington are my two favorite cities now. If you could move the Wasatch (and my in-laws I guess) to Maine/Vermont, we’d move in an instant.

Given the rest of your list, it does seem like you should consider Burlington (and the surrounding areas) - great food and beer, best skiing in the east, decent amount of culture, solid music scene, mostly walkable (why are western cities so spread out?), biking, lakes, outdoor-centric, great summers, sort of close to Montreal/Boston. Pretty much all of that applies to Portland too. Portland adds the ocean, and it’s closer to Boston if you need that. They’re both busier than they used to be though. Winters are long and dark, but they’re fine as long as you have things that you like to do in the winter.

[Benny Profane]

"(why are western cities so spread out?)"

Cars. Most were established well into the twentieth century.

[Self Jupiter]

I always find Ithaca pretty cool though. Haven't been there a ton but I've liked it.

This saying always amused me. Fun place to go to college.

OP— Salem MA might be another place to put on your list to look at. Eleven months of the year it can be to tough to get in and out of by car, and it can be impossible to get in and out of in October. But it’s got a lot of what you’re looking for. It’s grown a ton lately and the RE values reflect that but so have most cool places to live. Still inexpensive compared to a lot of nearby areas. Feels like there’s plenty of room for growth and improvement. It’s more funky than Newburyport or Marblehead. The public schools aren’t great.

[frosted flakes]

"(why are western cities so spread out?)"

Cars. Most were established well into the twentieth century.

Well I understand WHY, but I just don’t agree with it. It’s stupid. SLC needs to force some density. The most popular area of every city is the densest part.

[Ottoclave]

It's further from Portland to Sugarloaf than it us from Boston to Cannon, so nah not really

Boston to Cannon is 80 miles and Portland to Sunday River is 64 miles. I suppose it depends on your starting point.

[singlecross]

If you like ocean it’s hard to beat, Beyond that I’d go back out west for real winter.

Ticketchecker speaks the truth.

I enjoy living in Maine immensely in the Spring, Summer, and Fall but my future Winters will soon be spent out West.

[schuss]

Boston to Cannon is 80 miles and Portland to Sunday River is 64 miles. I suppose it depends on your starting point.

Yes, but one is solely interstates vs the patchwork getting to SR.

[bennymac]

I feel like 99% of Stephen King’s inspiration probably stemmed from driving the back roads of Maine.