Maine Moves Differently: Maine Real Estate Market Update

Episode Title: Maine Moves Differently

Host: Elise Kiely, Global Real Estate Advisor with Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty
Duration: ~20 minutes
Air Date: September 2025

💬 Episode Summary:

In this month’s market update, Elise Kiely reads between the lines—and the headlines—to explain why Maine moves differently. While national real estate trends point to cautious buyers, rising inventory, and flat pricing, Maine’s story is one of steady appreciation, lifestyle-driven decisions, and generational ownership.

From basketball courts in basements and Mahjong lounges in dining rooms to off-market, multi-million dollar coastal homes passed down for generations, this episode explores the nuance behind Maine’s real estate market today—and what it means for buyers and sellers heading into the fall and winter of 2025.

📌 What You’ll Learn:

🏠 National Market Overview:

• National median sales price: $422,400 — flat YoY
• Inventory: 1.55 million homes on the market — highest since 2020
• Buyer behavior: More leverage, more cancellations, builders offering concessions
• Lock-in effect: Homeowners with sub-3% rates are staying put
• Lifestyle shifts: Renovations reflect how people live today (hello, basement hoops & Mahjong)
• Policy watch: Trump proposal to eliminate capital gains tax on primary home sales—mostly benefits high-equity markets

🌲 Maine Market Highlights:

• Statewide sales up 5% YoY; median price ~$420K (also up 5%)
• Inventory climbs to 5,400 units — most since October 2020
• Cumberland County: Sales up 14%; median price $600K+
• Lincoln County: Sales up 24%; median price up 12% to ~$507K
• York County: Sales up 13%; median price ~$550K
• Portland property revaluation: Median assessed values up 43%
• Yarmouth: Six-month moratorium on development due to sewer capacity limits

🌊 Signature Maine Properties & Generational Ownership:

• These properties often stay in families for decades—when they do sell, it’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity
• Recent examples of off-market sales:
  • Curtis Road, Yarmouth: Waterfront, held by one family for decades, sold privately for $3.1M+
  • Town Landing, Falmouth: Waterfront with mooring views, sold off-market for $3.05M
  • New listing: 1 & 2 Tenth Street, Scarborough — beachfront property offered at $3.9M, owned by only two families since the 1950s

🧾 Maine Tax Alert:

• Effective Nov 1, 2025: Transfer tax more than doubles on the portion of any sale above $1 million

Connect with Elise

🌐 Website & Listings: Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty
📸 Follow Elise on Social Media:

• Instagram: @elisekielyrealestate
• Facebook: Elise Kiely Real Estate
• LinkedIn: Elise Kiely

Have Questions or Topic Suggestions, e-mail Elise at

• Elise@EliseKiely.com
  
  

Subscribe, share with a friend, and join Elise every other week to discover what makes Maine not just beautiful—but beautifully lived.

Please remember this podcast is for entertainment and educational purposes only and does not create an attorney client or real estate advisor client relationship. Please reach out to me directly if I can assist you in your real estate journey.

Transcript

Elise Kiely: 0:10

Hello friends. This is Elise Kiely, your host of Kiely, and a global real estate advisor with Legacy Properties, Sotheby's, international Realty. Welcome back to another market update where we don't just look at numbers. We read the tea leaves of what's happening nationally and what it means for real estate here in Maine. And today's phrase of the day is, Maine moves differently because while the national headlines can look a little shaky, Maine real estate is its own story. Signature lifestyle properties that often define Maine real estate. They're generational. In other words, they don't come up often, and when they do, savvy buyers know they have to act quickly. Well, let's start with a national market update. As of today, early September, 2025, the national average of a 30 year fixed mortgage is sitting either side of six and a half and, and in fact, I've seen it as low as just under 6.3%. Now, this of course, depends on your lender and your loan type and credit score and so forth. And what's interesting nationally in July, existing home sales rose just 2% compared to June, and about 4 million homes traded hands. And what's really important to note is that the median national sales price was$422,400. That's basically flat compared to last year. So we haven't seen a lot of price growth nationally, and that's consistent with a lot of headlines that you may have been seeing about real estate across the United States. However, the real story in national real estate is inventory. 1.55 million homes are on the market nationwide. That's the most since 2020, and that is up 16% year over year. What that means is that buyers now have more leverage than they've had in the last five years. And in fact, builders across the country are starting to make concessions, lower prices, offering to buy down rates, and buyers are showing caution. Cancellations are at their highest level in years. That means when a buyer puts a property under contract, they're terminating that contract and not closing rather than going through and buying the property. And that's happening, especially in markets like Texas and Florida. And then there are the lifestyle shifts. The Juxtapositioning, a relatively stagnant national real estate market with homeowners enhancing properties for unique and very specific activities. For example, there has been a trend in higher end homes of people putting basketball courts, not on the first level, not on the ground level, but in basements of homes, and some are converting formal dining rooms into Mahjong lounges. Homeowners are investing six figures to create spaces that fit how they actually live and enhance their activities. Now, on the other side of the market, we have the lock-in effect, and what that means is that homeowners with a low interest rate of three, or sometimes even in the twos percent interest rate, they're locked into their home and can't afford to sell. And that's having a big impact as well. In fact, we're seeing divorcing couples opting to live together rather than sell a house with a 3% mortgage. In fact, there was one couple in Florida where they had a 2% interest rate, and rather than living separately, they agreed that he would live in the house and she would live in the Airstream trailer in the yard, and the children would go between each of those. That's the lock in effect in action. On a policy level, as I explained this in my last real estate market update, President Trump has floated the idea of eliminating a capital gains tax on home sales. And Marjorie Taylor Greene, the representative from Georgia, is sponsoring legislation to support this. Now, if this happens, experts say it likely won't help most home sellers because there's a current.$250,000 for single homeowners, or a$500,000 for married couples exemption on capital gains that covers the majority of homeowners. So the biggest benefit of this potential legislation would go to owners in very high equity markets, markets like California, Hawaii, and, and we have some of those, uh, properties here in Maine as well. While speaking of Maine, let's bring it back home to Maine. The Maine Association of Realtors reports in July that we had just over 1500 homes sold statewide. That's up 5% from last year, and our median sales price is pretty close to the national median sales price. We're just around 420,000. But that's a 5% increase compared to last year. But the real story, so we have appreciation in prices. We have an increase in the number of homes that have sold and our inventory is climbing. It has climbed now to roughly around 5,400 homes, and that's the most since October of 2020. So that's the most inventory that we've seen in the last five years we're seeing right now. Now looking at things by county, Cumberland County saw sales rise 14% with a median sales price of over 600,000. Lincoln County, which I've shared before, is just been a standout in its appreciation and the number of sales. Their sales are up 24% and their median price has increased by 12%. That is a county to keep an eye on as prices are continuing to appreciate significantly there. And again, I think that's because some people are being priced out of Cumberland County and are moving up to Lincoln County. Similarly, York County and the southern part of the state sales are up 13% and the median sales price is about 550. So Maine is moving, it's moving differently than the national market, which seems to be cooling Some other main notes that are interesting when you think about real estate in this area. Portland's property revaluation has pushed the median residential values up 43%. Now they've dropped the tax rate, but because the valuations have risen so significantly, many homeowners are seeing higher tax bills and it's something to keep an eye on. Another interesting development is in the suburb Yarmouth, which is three towns north of Portland. There's a new six month moratorium on development. Because the pump station, the sewer pump station has reached capacity. And so they're restricting new builds, additions, and even the ability of some homeowners to add an extra bedroom until the infrastructure can be upgraded. And I think what is most significant, and this has been a consistent theme that I've touched on in many real estate market updates, is that the older sellers who I affectionately call LABBs luxury active baby boomers, they continue to drive activity in both the condo and the second home markets. They are often prioritizing simplicity and speed over top dollar, and what I mean by that is on the sell side, they're willing to leave a little money on the table if it means they can negotiate a deal with great degree of certainty and a fast sale. They do not want uncertainty in their real estate transactions. They want to sell and move on to their next chapter. On the buy side, when they see a signature property that fits their lifestyle and will attract their children, and more importantly their grandchildren and friends to come and visit and stay and linger in their property, they will strike fast on the buy side. So now I want to talk about one of the unique aspects of Maine real estate, and that is Signature Maine properties and generational ownership. Here's where Maine really bucks the national trend. Our most sought after properties are often generational. And what do I mean by that? I mean, these properties don't trade hands every five or even 10 years. These properties, because they are special, because they are unique, because they provide easy access to a healthy, often outdoor active lifestyle. These properties stay in the same families for decades. For example, I had a couple of sales off market sales in the last few months. One on Curtis Road in Yarmouth. It's a waterfront home with sweeping views. Was held by this one family for decades. I represented the sellers in a private off market sale for over$3 million. Similarly, in Falmouth in the town landing area, a very special property overlooking the mooring field at town landing. Also sold privately off market for over$3 million. Both of these homes had been held in the same family for decades and in the Falmouth home. It had passed between generations and my new listing at one and two 10th Street in Scarborough's Pine Point neighborhood, which is two homes on a rare three quarter beachfront lot is offered for 3.9 million. This property has only been owned by two families since the 1950s. So this is not unusual in the Pine Point neighborhood. Beachfront or beach access homes are so highly desirable, not only by the homeowner, but by the multiple generations of children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, uncles, aunts that come and gather at these beachfront homes. That the house will stay in the same family getting passed to different members of the family because it means so much to have that connection, that common gathering spot filled with memories and family events. These are the kinds of homes that define Maine real estate. They're rare, they're generational, where lifestyle, history and community all intersect. And when they come up for sale, you can't wait. They may not be available again for another 50 years. I want to turn now to a quick policy and tax note at the main level. A reminder for anyone considering selling starting November 1st, main real estate transfer tax more than doubles on the portion of the sale above a million dollars for buyers and sellers that share this transfer tax equally, you have a strong incentive to try to close before the November 1st deadline. So let me end with some of Elise's insights and predictions. What do I take from all of this information? Well, for buyers, I think fall into winter of 2025 and maybe early 26. I think that's the sweet spot. We have a growing amount of inventory here in Maine. We have less competition from other buyers because interest rates still are hovering either side of that six point a half percent, and buyers typically are seeing more negotiating room than we will likely see next spring if mortgage rates continue to fall this will bring in more buyers, giving more competition for buyers for the inventory that we have. For sellers, I cannot overemphasize this. Be strategic. Don't assume you can price aspirationally or overprice. Use private marketing strategies stage thoughtfully and strategically. Remember, condition is becoming increasingly important. Look at your property with a fresh, objective eye, and if your property is valued over a million, consider closing before November 1st. Overall, Maine remains strong. Nationally, we're seeing some markets lose value, but here demand is steady, especially for lifestyle driven properties and cash buyers still, about one third of our market here in Maine are a stabilizing force. And let's not forget, real estate is never just about numbers. It's about how and where people want to live, whether Mainers, cherishing waterfront homes passed down through generations, or a couple downsizing to a more manageable home or a young person starting out lifestyle drives real estate. Maine continues to rank among the top states to live, retire, and raise families and for dining, well Portland's owned Fourth Street and Scales, which is one of my personal favorites, made the Open Table Top 100 list, these are economic drivers that bring people to Maine and encourage them to stay and linger and often buy second homes or primary homes. So yes, main moves differently. And if you're ready to buy or sell, let's read the tea leaves together and make your next move strategic. If you enjoyed today's episode, please share it with a friend, a neighbor, or a coworker, and follow along with more conversations about real estate, design, lifestyle, and community here in Maine. And remember that this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not create a real estate advisory or attorney-client relationship. However, if I can be of assistance to you in your real estate journey, please send me an email to elise@eliseKiely.com or comment on this episode. Until next time, this is Elise Kiely, with Elegant Maine living the way life should be and keep living with elegance.