One contract to report, and that's about it until after Christmas

293 Lake Avenue

The MLS has shut down for the holiday and why not? People are busy doing more important things than viewing other people's homes, I hope (although if you attend a party at someone else's house and like what you see, take notes and call here Monday morning). The Fountain clan has gathered in Maine to celebrate Christmas and John's birthday, which would have been today. Although I often pointed out to him that the 22nd of December was the beginning of the end of winter's darkness: starting now, we gain a little more sunlight each day. I don't think that ever completely mollified him for being born so close to Christmas and thus being cheated out of the full collection of loot gathered by those whose birthdays are spaced farther from the 25th, but you go with what we've got. It's probably ironic, therefore, that the girls, Pal nancy and I spent much of the day in Freeport buying gifts for each other at the outlets; sorry, John, you should have been here.

In any event, 293 Lake Avenue, asking $3.450 million, has a buyer.

The real attraction here is the 3.74 acres of land, not, unfortunately, the house itself, which is in a sad state of repair. Or that's what my clients and I thought. Listing agent John McAtee is not only a great guy, he loves old houses, and if enthusiasm could power a renovation, this house would be preserved.

And perhaps it will, by a brave soul with deep pockets. My guess, however, is that it's being sold as land. 293 Lake is actually on a small, private lane, and so removed from the worst effects of Lake Avenue traffic; almost bucolic, in fact, and so very close to town; it will make a wonderful house site. The property is being sold as two lots, but to split the land is to ruin much of its attractiveness, in my opinion. The second lot would be served by a driveway running through the side yard of the first and almost in the house itself (I exaggerate, a little, but you get the point), And because much of the back yard is cliff, or, as John called it when we visited, "an accelerated incline", losing the southern half of the yard is to lose much of usable portion of the whole.

Which is not to say that  builder won't do that anyway, but if this is a private end user, a really nice home could replace the exiting one without doing irreparable harm to the street.