Maine Real Estate Insider

Want the inside track on the Maine real estate community? Look no further. MEREDA is your go-to source for the latest news, trends, and insights in the industry. Whether you’re a developer, construction company, or management company, we’ve got you covered with comprehensive articles and expert advice.

Stay informed and make informed decisions in the ever-changing landscape of Maine real estate development.

Recent Articles

Archive

Signs of a Stabilizing Rental Market

August 13, 2024

By: Ben Sprague, Senior Vice President/Commercial Lender, First National Bank After several frustrating years of frenzied activity, there are signs the rental market is stabilizing. To be sure, rents are...
Read Article

Bad for Business…

June 18, 2024

By: Justin Lamontagne, CCIM, SIOR, Partner | Designated Broker, The Dunham Group The year was 2011, and a young, ambitious broker received a lead on a 30,000 SF industrial tenant...
Read Article

The Greater Portland Retail Forecast for 2024

May 14, 2024

On February 29th, 2024, Peter Harrington of Malone Commercial Brokers presented “The Greater Portland retail forecast for 2024” at the Maine Real Estate & Development Association’s (MEREDA’s) 2024 Annual Forecast...
Read Article

Factors Affecting the Value of a Company

February 20, 2024

By: BerryDunn Professionals, Casey Karlsen, Senior Manager | CFA, ASA and Seth Webber, Principal | CFA, ASA, CEPA Consider the value of the following two hypothetical companies. Anita owns A+...
Read Article

OSHA Recordkeeping Requirements

January 23, 2024

OSHA Injury and Illness Recordkeeping and Reporting – Post Form 300A by February 1 Brought to you by the Safety & Risk Consulting Team at Clark Insurance & Marsh McLennan...
Read Article

Construction Technology Trends

January 16, 2024

By David V. Jean, CPA, CCIFP, CExP |Principal, Albin Randall & Bennett Contractors have always had to keep a close watch on technology trends to stay on the leading edge...
Read Article

Maine’s Housing Shortage Conundrum

June 27, 2023

By John Finegan | Associate Broker, The Boulos Company Like many states across the country, Maine has a housing crisis. The ripple effects of COVID and the needs of asylum...
Read Article

Solving Maine’s Housing Crisis

May 16, 2023

MEREDA to Host Dynamic Panel Discussion at Spring Conference PORTLAND, Maine – On May 25, 2023, the Maine Real Estate & Development Association (MEREDA) will host a vital and forward-looking...
Read Article

Is Winter coming?

February 14, 2023

By: Justin Lamontagne, CCIM, SIOR, The Dunham Group For years now, I’ve had client after hopeful client ask if things were “cooling off” in the industrial market. And my answer...
Read Article

Lewiston-Auburn Multifamily Market Update

August 30, 2022

By Noah Stebbins, Associate Broker, The Boulos Company The multi-family market is always evolving. Rising interest rates, inflation, and government policies have caused some commercial real estate investors to re-trade...
Read Article

Innovating with Materials

June 28, 2022

By Matthew Bronski, P.E., Principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Mankind has innovated with design and construction methods and materials since Homo Habilis laid one flat stone horizontally across two upright...
Read Article

New Horizons in Housing

May 24, 2022

What Public Law 2021, Chapter 672 (LD 2003), the “Housing Act” Means for Maine Overview LD 2003, signed into law by the Governor on April 27, 2022 as Public Law...
Read Article

Midcoast Maine is Having a Moment

March 15, 2022

By Dave Holman, MBA, Associate Broker – ReMax Riverside On January 20th Dave presented the “Midcoast Maine Market Forecast” at the Maine Real Estate & Development Association’s (MEREDA’s) 2022 Annual...
Read Article

MEREDA’s Year in Review for 2020-2021

July 20, 2021

Since its inception, MEREDA has continued to make progress on behalf of the development community addressing the challenges and issues relating to Maine’s real estate activities. MEREDA’s strength has always...
Read Article

MEREDA Awards Top 6 Notable Projects of 2020

June 8, 2021

The Maine Real Estate & Development Association (MEREDA), the state’s leading organization promoting responsible real estate development, honored projects from Portland to Pittsfield to Bangor, with each receiving special recognition...
Read Article

Midcoast Maine Market Forecast

March 23, 2021

By Dave Holman, Broker, RE/MAX Riverside Commercial On January 21st Dave Holman, Broker at RE/MAX Riverside Commercial, presented the “Midcoast Maine Market Forecast” at the Maine Real Estate & Development...
Read Article

The Greater Portland Retail Forecast

March 9, 2021

By Peter Harrington, Partner & Associate Broker, Malone Commercial Brokers On January 21st Peter Harrington, Malone Commercial Brokers, presented the “Greater Portland Retail Forecast” at the Maine Real Estate &...
Read Article

OSHA COVID 19 Update

November 10, 2020

Article courtesy of Clark Insurance Confirmed cases of COVID-19 have now been found in nearly all parts of the country, and outbreaks among workers in industries other than healthcare, emergency...
Read Article

Business Interruption Insurance and COVID-19

September 15, 2020

By Conor Shankman, Associate, Bernstein Shur Few industries or aspects of business have been left untouched by COVID-19 and the resulting economic closures. Though construction was permitted to continue in...
Read Article

What’s Happening in the Market?

August 18, 2020

Market Insights By The Boulos Company Brokerage Team Because of the uncertainty in the business climate, our brokers are regularly asked what is happening in the commercial real estate market,...
Read Article

Industrial Market Mid-Year Review

August 4, 2020

by Justin Lamontagne, CCIM, SIOR, Partner, Designated Broker at NAI The Dunham Group How’s the market? It is the most common question asked of any commercial broker in these trying...
Read Article

Maine Issues COVID-19 Guidance for Town Meetings

June 30, 2020

Throughout the pandemic, MEREDA members have navigated participating in various town public proceedings conducted virtually. Now, with the opening of municipal buildings and the need to accommodate municipal matters requiring...
Read Article

Message from MEREDA’s President

April 7, 2020

To our Members: What a challenging time we find ourselves in!  First and foremost, I hope this email finds you, your family, loved ones and coworkers safe and healthy.   We...
Read Article

Vital Ideas – The 1031 Dominoes

March 24, 2020

by Brit Vitalius, Principal, Designated Broker, Vitalius Real Estate Group In 2019, we saw 1031 exchanges used even more frequently than in past years. Interestingly, the variations in the transactions...
Read Article

What’s Up in the Hotel Business?

March 17, 2020

by Sean Riley, President & CEO, Maine Course Hospitality Group Great Ride for Hotels I recall speaking at the MEREDA conference back in 2009. It was a tough year to...
Read Article

Construction Trends in 2020

March 3, 2020

by Asha Echeverria, Shareholder, Bernstein Shur Welcome to the new decade! Though we can expect trends from 2019 to continue, the focus on the new decade and the bull construction...
Read Article

Stop me if you’ve heard this before

February 11, 2020

by Justin Lamontagne, CCIM, SIOR, Partner, Designated Broker at NAI The Dunham Group Is it plagiarism if you copy yourself? I hope not, because here goes… “Vacancy rates are getting...
Read Article

Perceptions of Housing in Maine

December 17, 2019

By:  MaineHousing Staff Housing is a hot topic these days – from affordable housing challenges across Maine, to having enough housing for our communities and businesses to thrive, for aging...
Read Article

Maine’s Coming Solar Expansion

November 12, 2019

On October 29th, a panel of experts gathered in Bangor to participate in MEREDA’s Morning Menu Breakfast event titled, “What You Need to Know about Investing in Solar in Maine”. ...
Read Article

A Stream or a Ditch? What You Need to Know

August 20, 2019

By: Joe Roy, Project Technician & Rodney Kelshaw, Project Manager/Project Scientist, Stantec When evaluating a site for purchase or development it is important to understand environmental resources that could affect...
Read Article

The Evolution of Retail Ownership

June 25, 2019

By John Meador, Associate Broker, The Boulos Company The consumer retail sector continues to strategize around how to reposition physical stores to offset the growing demand of online shoppers. Many...
Read Article

The Future of Home Buying

March 12, 2019

Will technology make real estate transactions a whole lot easier? The number of single-family home transactions in Maine has been flat for the last three years and is not expected...
Read Article

Build-to-Recruit

February 26, 2019

As of August, the unemployment rate was 2.4% in Cumberland County, Maine. At this level, economists will tell you that everyone who wants a job has one. So attracting talent...
Read Article

The times they are a changin’

February 19, 2019

My mind wandered recently while on a long solo drive, as it often does. I had the music cranking and, in typical Maine fashion, cell phone coverage was spotty. It...
Read Article

Selecting the Right Project Delivery Method

February 12, 2019

Identifying the right construction project delivery method is critical to successful execution. Three of the most common delivery methods are Design-Bid-Build, Construction Manager (CM) at Risk, and Design-Build. Each of...
Read Article

Are you in for a (price) shock?

November 13, 2018

Compared to where we were ten years ago, the real estate and construction segments of our economy are booming.  The uptick in development in hotels, condominiums, apartments and commercial facilities,...
Read Article

Meet Dan Brennan, New MaineHousing Director

September 18, 2018

Earlier this year, Dan Brennan was confirmed as the new director of MaineHousing, succeeding John Gallagher who recently retired. Brennan has been with MaineHousing for 25 years, and before his appointment as director, he was Senior...
Read Article

So Do We Have a Deal? Maybe Not

August 7, 2018

By: Asha Echeverria, Shareholder, LEED AP, Bernstein Shur A written contract signed by both parties is always best. So what happens when negotiations take months and only one side signs...
Read Article

MEREDA honors top 10 “Notable Projects”

May 29, 2018

The Maine Real Estate & Development Association (MEREDA), the state’s leading organization for responsible real estate development, honored the top ten real estate developments in Maine in 2017, and honored...
Read Article

PAST AS PROLOGUE

April 17, 2018

by George Casey, CEO of Stockbridge Associates, LLC I admit it. I keep things, particularly written things. I have an old and cracked leather copy of Nathaniel Bowditch’s “American Practical...
Read Article

The Future of Buildings

March 20, 2018

by Alan Kuniholm, PDT Architects and Gunnar Hubbard, Thornton Tomasetti  We are all involved in the world of real estate.  For some of us, it’s our profession. The rest of...
Read Article

Tax Reform and the Real Estate Industry

February 20, 2018

by Greg Bryant, Managing Partner, Bedford Cost Segregation, LLC  I started my career in commercial real estate in 1976.  Things seemed straightforward then, maybe it was because I was young...
Read Article

MEREDA’s Year in Review 2016 – 2017

August 8, 2017

Since its inception, MEREDA has continued to make progress on behalf of the development community addressing the challenges and issues relating to Maine’s real estate activities.  MEREDA's strength has always...
Read Article

Is Your Paycheck Protected?

July 11, 2017

By Kerry Peabody, CSA, CLTC Long Term Care, Life & Disability Insurance Agent You’ve insured your home, your car, your boat – but have you insured the one thing that...
Read Article

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM 2.0

June 27, 2017

by George Casey, CEO of Stockbridge Associates, LLC Here’s home-building operations guru George Casey’s take on how tech-driven automation will drive into site-built home building sooner than later. My recent...
Read Article

Office Market Overview

February 14, 2017

The Greater Portland office market continued to improve in 2016 as the vacancy rate fell for the 7th consecutive year for a direct vacancy of 6.17 percent and total rate...
Read Article

Passive House Pushes [& Seals] The Envelope

November 15, 2016

Making Affordable Housing More Affordable Multifamily housing projects around the state have contributed to an improvement in construction activity post-recession. Hidden among the number of multifamily projects, two developments in...
Read Article

The New-Old Humpty Dumpty

November 8, 2016

Here are 10 trends likely to come amidst a full-circle return to housing finance and economics like it was before homeownership became a policy priority. Humpty Dumpty sat on a...
Read Article

When Generations Collide

October 25, 2016

By Dean Strombom, Principal, Gensler, Houston, TX This is the first time in history when five generations of employees may co-exist in the workplace: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials or...
Read Article

How Technology is Disrupting Real Estate

September 27, 2016

Commercial real estate has historically relied upon in-person interaction to get things done, but an influx of new technology is transforming the space. Now, transactions, updates, searching and more can...
Read Article

MEREDA’s Year in Review 2015 -2016

August 16, 2016

Since its inception, MEREDA has continued to make progress on behalf of the development community addressing the challenges and issues relating to Maine's real estate activities.  MEREDA's strength has always...
Read Article

New England Market Overview

April 12, 2016

After a slow and steady recovery it is time to officially say goodbye to the effects of The Great Recession. At this time two years ago the national economy experienced...
Read Article

Multi-Family Market Update

March 29, 2016

The multi-family market is at or near the top of hot real estate sectors in Southern Maine. The dramatic price increases are driven by strong buyer demand, low inventory and...
Read Article

Southern Midcoast Commercial Happenings

March 15, 2016

The Southern MidCoast (Bath-Brunswick-Topsham) region experienced several long years of anxiety in the general real estate direction, both residential and commercial, beginning with the announcement of the base closure for...
Read Article

Legal Implications of Using Drones

March 8, 2016

Drones are used on an increasing basis in many industries, including real estate, farming, law enforcement and certainly in the construction industry. The evolution of the law surrounding drones is...
Read Article

Year End Planning for Businesses

December 15, 2015

Is your business ready? Businesses seeking to maximize tax benefits through 2015 year-end tax planning may want to consider several general strategies, such as use of traditional timing techniques for...
Read Article

Finding Equitable Stormwater Funding

November 24, 2015

Operational and capital costs associated with stormwater management seem to grow every year, driven higher by increasingly stringent permits, which mandate pollutant load reductions and require increased system resiliency. The...
Read Article

The “Cap Rate”

November 10, 2015

You may hear the term “Cap Rate” in discussions or articles involving commercial real estate. Even if you already have an understanding of what the term means, here is a...
Read Article

Maine’s Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit

May 26, 2015

Paxton recently joined MEREDA members for breakfast in Lewiston to present on how Maine’s Historic Tax Credit has transformed Historic Rehabilitation in the State. Read on to learn more about Maine's Historic...
Read Article

TechPlace an Exciting Project for the State and Region

April 21, 2015

In January, the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority (MRRA) opened TechPlace, Brunswick Landing’s Technology Accelerator. TechPlace supports the business development needs of early-stage companies and startups in a shared and collaborative...
Read Article

Real Estate Tip: Buyers’ Blues

April 14, 2015

Buyer beware is an old warning. A recent title insurance case reminds us just how wary a buyer must be, even in 2015. In the case of IQ Holdings, Inc. v....
Read Article

Are you ready for IPD?

April 7, 2015

Successful design and construction projects require multiple parties with specialized expertise to work effectively together for the duration of the project. Often, within the constraints of today’s traditional construction delivery...
Read Article

Donating Real Estate to Charity

March 24, 2015

Donating real estate to a charitable organization can benefit both the charity and the donor.  The tax laws provide several methods for donation of real estate, both during a donor’s...
Read Article

Green Building Systems – What is out there

March 17, 2015

With continued national concern regarding energy costs and environmental efficiency, green building systems allow owners and the public to increase, assess, and understand the environmental and energy efficiency of a...
Read Article

Shoreland Zoning Rule Changes Coming Soon

October 7, 2014

Shoreland zoning rule changes at the state level are on the regulatory agenda over the coming months.  Through Maine’s shoreland zoning statute, municipalities are required to adopt and enforce local...
Read Article

The Shift to Renting

September 30, 2014

Maine prides itself in having a higher rate of home ownership than the nation as a whole.  The trend toward homeownership had been moving upward in Maine and across the...
Read Article

Implementing Integrated Work

May 6, 2014

There are many drivers of change in today’s organization. The use of technology has enabled employees to become highly mobile, allowing work to occur in a wide range of spaces...
Read Article

Leveraging Public Entertainment Space

March 25, 2014

While patrons of the Cumberland County Civic Center and the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor enjoy the comforts and acoustics of these two fine facilities, the amenities are merely a...
Read Article

Reset