Maine Waterfront Property Buyers – How Flexible is Your Wish List?

Sebago Lake Region Waterfront Property – More Sales Figures
August 27, 2008
Maine Waterfront Property – Can I Cut Down That Tree?
September 2, 2008

Maine Waterfront Property Buyers – How Flexible is Your Wish List?


Frequently our team members here at Mr. Lakefront meet lakefront buyers who seem to have a really clear idea about what they want in a lakefront property. At first blush, this might seem to be a good thing. However, sometimes it’s not.
In developing a lakefront home “wish list”, the mind of the acute and thorough buyer often conjures up the ideal house. Now, “ideal” is all well and good, but it’s a daunting, if not impossible, task to find a property that can fulfill all the criteria for the ideal house.
We suggest a more “elastic” approach, where a lakefront buyer would come to us with fewer preconceived ideas about what kind of lakefront property he or she wanted. Imagine the heightened sense of discovery a buyer would experience if he or she weren’t constantly looking for an ideal and was open to more possibilities. They would also lose that sense of frustration that comes with trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.
With fewer absolute criteria, the buyer could embark on an adventure, exploring possibilities where several, but not all, criteria are met. For example, it’s reasonable to hold firm on a realistic price and location. But rather than immediately dismiss any place that doesn’t have that two car garage, fourth bedroom, or finished, walk-out basement, set those criteria aside and open your mind up to other possibilities. Maybe something really special would come to the attention of the buyer if they had not become a prisoner of their own wish list.
It’s good to be discriminating. It’s not our place to tell buyers what they should like or dislike. But please, lakefront buyers, keep an open mind to properties that have less than 100% of your criteria. Your buyer agent knows the available inventory and what you wish to pay. Give them a chance to help you find it. What you eventually buy might not look like what you had originally conjured up. It might be better!
By the way, if you’d like to take a look at some current lakefront listings it’s as easy as clicking right here on our Lakefront Locator. View all the current lakefront listings for the entire state on this single website!

Stay Informed

Get the latest lake news delivered direct from Maine’s lake expert, Tom Ferent