I Bought a House Where I Could Afford One — And I Fell in Love with My New Hometown

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Like many who were holed up for months inside their homes, I spent the better part of 2020 “Zilllowing,” aka looking at houses for sale online. I dreamed of leaving my Brooklyn apartment and buying a historic farmhouse in the Catskills or the Hudson Valley. I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to buy a home in New York, but I had spent four years laying down the groundwork for this dream. I worked with a financial advisor, took a first-time homebuyer course, and researched various home-buying programs that might make a home purchase possible.

I was still renting in January 2021 when I decided to take a break from New York City. This decision coincided with the death of my younger cousin, who passed away that month after a long battle with Lupus. Celebrating her life made me recall a plan we made as kids: We fantasized about living in a big house together in Maine when we grew up. We never even went to Maine as children — kids are so funny.

I took this memory as an opportunity to honor her, and I looked for a place to stay in Maine. (Plus, as a freelance florist, I’ve thought once or twice about living out my best flower farmer fantasies in a cute cottage.) I planned to spend the spring and summer in Maine and look for a house in the Hudson Valley in the fall, but I wound up with a 9-month rental. 

I moved to Portland, Maine, sight unseen in March 2021. I started exploring immediately, trying to make a place for myself in this unknown city. One night, while walking near Congress Square Park across from my former apartment, I stumbled upon a bazaar put on by Tender Table, a BIPOC community-building and storytelling organization. While I’ve grown to love Portland, it isn’t the most diverse city, and I enjoyed talking with people from different backgrounds and discovering a new facet of this place. 

A visit from my sister in September 2021 sparked my desire to buy a house in this city as we toured a few open houses. (It seemed like a more realistic dream than purchasing property in New York.) 

I realized I didn’t want to leave Portland after my rental ended and give up this new life I was creating. I’d started making friends — I knew people when I walked down the street! I filled my free time exploring nature with hikes at Jewell Falls and joining a running club. There were so many activities right outside my door, and I’d quickly become accustomed to an increased quality of life.

Toward the end of summer 2022, I made an offer on a decent, move-in-ready house in South Portland. Thankfully, someone outbid me because right after I put in the offer, I found what turned out to be my (affordable) dream home: a one-bedroom Cape built in 1949. The seller accepted my offer, and I got to call this wood-paneled cottage my home. My mortgage broker told me that I bought the cheapest house he’d seen in Portland in a while — I do love a good deal, and I take it as a compliment. 

I moved into my cute cottage on Friday, September 23, 2022, and hosted a housewarming party shortly after. The many trees in my backyard offered the perfect secluded woodland environment to host guests around the firepit. When my friend Marina came over a few weeks later, she said, “Yep, it’s definitely a typical Maine house!” 

Like many homes on the Maine coast, it’s a Cape Cod-style home with low ceilings — I think this helps keep homes warmer in the winter. It has vinyl siding, but I saw quintessentially coastal Maine shingle siding peeking out underneath. I plan to paint them the perfect shade of pink, a nice contrast to the burgundy shutters on my windows. I have to prioritize more urgent home improvement projects, but I can’t wait for the day I can remove that vinyl.

I made a conscious choice not to paint the interior wood paneling. Many of my friends suggested that I paint it white, but I love the warmth and sense of history it brings to the home. The natural wood paneling informs all of my interior design choices. I usually balance the darker wood with lighter accents, like my chrome and glass pedestal dining table I picked up at Anjou while visiting my friend in Burlington, Vermont. It was a fraught decision, as I’d always imagined either a green marble or wooden dining table, but the Anjou owners helped me see how the chrome would work well to balance the warmth of the wood, and I was able to haggle with them a bit. 

Living in a home with a good-sized yard has helped me connect even more to the outdoorsy aspects of my new hometown. I recently took a chainsaw safety course, and now I can fell a small tree without a problem, and I feel confident taking down some of the shrubbery in my yard. My tamer wildlife adventures include looking out my front windows to see blue jays or cardinals land on my picket fence. My home is right near a trailhead, and I love the mornings when I have time to take a nature walk before I start my day.

After almost two years in my cottage, I’m starting to feel like a real Mainer, and Portland’s quiet, less-rushed pace has made me feel at ease. Maybe this was my dream location all along.