Traffic is minimal. I hit a red light and think the traffic is awful today.

Gas prices suck up here though.

For most of us it’s all we know. Wouldn’t trade it

Positive: there are not many people. Negative: there are not many people

I like people a lot! But then sometimes I don’t like people. I like good people.

I believe that people are more tolerant of each other in low population densities. I think it’s easier to value human life rather than resent it when you’re not stacked on top of each other.

Bumping into someone in Portland vs. NYC while walking is a very different experience.

(+) can find solitude in the wilds, minimial light pollution, quiet at night, large backyard

(-) lack of convient public transport, minimal nightlife, small cultural diversity

Driving to town despite living miles away is quicker than getting downtown when I lived in a major city. Traffic's never a "real" issue. Stores aren't packed to the gills

The negatives is it can be a bit lonely where I am. I go whole days without seeing even a car go by. Maybe it's the SAD hitting me but I've been feeling the lack of life recently.

As a misanthrope, I love it. I live in the woods about 20mins from Augusta. It's relatively quiet out here. But if I'm in need of something I can't get at a local store, it's not a long drive.

The light pollution from Augusta covers about 1/3rd of the night sky, which sucks cause I love astronomy.

overall 6/10

Life's all around you. When feeling down go sit outside and see all the life around you. It will bring a smile to your face

Having people spread out so much results in a lot of administrative overhead (lots of small town governments, lots of school administration, lots of roads). We have a similar population to New Hampshire, but a lot more shit to pay for and maintain.

Positives: everything

Negatives: nothing

There's nothing around here but nature.

A traffic jam in my area is three cars at a stop sign.

I can bring my telescope out on my deck and see Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars on most clear nights.

There’s a huge swath of woods for exploring right out back.

We’re attractive enough as a place to live that people are actively moving here instead of fleeing for economic opportunity, so it gives me hope that my kids will stick around.

I also work part time in Philly, and I miss the good art, music, and culture sites that bigger cities have when I’m home in Maine. But for food? I haven’t found a serious competitor to Portland, yet.

The chickadees are great friends. More lonely in like of other people life around me.

The quality of food is absolutely incredible.

Something to be said for quality over quantity in the food industry.

Positive: Fewer people.

Negative: Too many people moving here to enjoy the low population density.

I’m York county - originally from south Jersey/Philly area. I don’t really have any complaints about the lower population density. The people here are genuinely very nice and neighborly.

I miss things being open past 8-9pm but that’s about it.

I like not having nearby neighbors. Night skies are clear, low light pollution. Great for star gazing!

On the downside, resources are scattered and thin, I have to drive over an hour to see a specialist doctor.

I can literally piss off the front step whenever I want, make as much noise as I want, go for a walk in the woods without seeing anyone. Negatives aren’t many, but zero food delivery and every restaurant closing at 9, and the nearest movie theater being an hour away are a bit annoying sometimes.

I think the low density really helped our Covid rates stay manageable.

Cons, if you're in IT there's a definite Maine penalty when it comes to salaries vs Mass.

So true!

It’s nice driving along and seeing woods and animals and not the 100th strip mall/plaza/condos.

Most of the more populated areas in this country are just disgusting urban sprawl with countless banal stores and bland fast food chains.

I don’t consider progress to be cleaning woods for another dollar general.

Social isolation was easy during the pandemic. I don't see any negatives since I don't care to be around people.

Honestly a lot of Oxford County and thereabouts is developing that kind of disgusting suburban sprawl in the rural areas. All the state routes are filling up with eyesores.

We have less sprawl than the rest of the country, but not because we have learned from their mistakes. Much the reverse, we are trying hard to catch up to them.

There was a traffic jam on my side road this morning. A flock of turkeys was crossing the road. A hundred yards past them five deer ran across the road.

Positive: We can afford a house with a big yard with swing set/slide/sandbox within walking distance of a lake.

Negative: When kids outgrow the swing set and get into sports, you need to drive them everywhere.

Pros: not having a ton of people means it's not as loud and crowded. Low traffic, and places like Portland have high enough population for it to feel city like without it being so God damn packed all the time. I like that I can get a sense of city life ND nature without having to travel too far.

Cons: less people means less opportunities. We just have less access to things, and it often feels like your options are stay here and work a trade/call center gig, or move out and find opportunity elsewhere. Less deversity means less variety, so things can get really boring. I often feel like I need to leave the state just to get a breath of something else every once in a while. Maine can get lonely. Finding community sometimes feels impossible here, and so the isolation can get to you. As an LGBTQ individual, I feel like there are parts of the state I'm simply not welcome. Basically no public transportation.

Honestly. I listed a lot of cons so I feel the need to say that I love Maine. I was born and raised here and I don't think I'll leave any time soon, but there are a lot of things I think the state needs to work on, but it feels like it's getting better, and more people are moving here so I feel hopeful

Everything

But the good thing is there are not many people.

I still keep reading young people are leaving Maine. So not sure how now they’re actively moving here instead now.

Even from a personal standpoint growing up in a family with 4 kids as of last year I’m officially the last one here, with plans to eventually leave. The ratio of cost of living to earnings here I don’t see getting better.

No traffic. 😎

Pros: if you're an outdoorsy type, good for you, Maine's perfect for you. Enjoy nature without people ruining it.

Cons: ...well there's still people...

Gas prices compared to where?

It’s the absolute best part. The ocean is really swell too. Get it? 😄

Formerly lived in a very big city and traveled a lot for work. I miss live music, dancing, and anonymity. I love being in the quiet, seeing planets and stars, animals. I love hiking every other day, year round. I love being intentional about my trips into town to go to the store. Don’t forget anything!

The way life should be.

Gas in the south is cheap as fuck. Probably like 250 right now in tennesee where it's 330 up here

Natural gas is also expensive as fuck up here because NY and mass won't run a pipeline from the mid atlantic

Positive: slow moving relative to most other places. Negative: not much to do for entertainment if you aren’t the “entertain yourself outdoors” type.

My husband and I want to live somewhere we don't see any traffic for days. That sounds like a huge plus.

This is the biggest issue for me, very limited doctors, dentists and veterinarians. I need a new pcp and can’t find one with any availability before June 2023. A family member needs to go to mass general for medical care. I wish we could attract more skilled healthcare workers.

Give us our power line, we’ll give you your gas line. Fair’s fair.

Good: nature

Bad: minimal economic power

Nah, too cold.

Take your Vitamin D! It really helps

If you're single, how do you find LGBTQ+ dating or hookup culture in more liberal parts of the state?

The areas I visited seemed very open-minded, but I have to imagine finding a partner (either for a night or for life) is difficult regardless of orientation or gender in Maine. Is that assessment correct?

Now if only politicians could think this way

Having a low population density in parts of a state, even a majority of a state, is fine and desirable. Having it everywhere is awful though. The nature argument doesn't hold up; Massachusetts has more conserved land than Maine. It completely hamstrings our economy because companies know they'll have a hard time finding workers. It guarantees that Southern Maine will remain unaffordable (high demand meeting rural zoning=high prices). It means we spend a fortune on cars. It means when a storm hits, 40% of us have no power because we're all in the woods. It means zero usable public transit.

I really don't see a strong argument for mandating rural density everywhere but that's what people here seem to want.

Pros: Solitude, saner drivers, lower crime, abundant outdoor activities, stunning scenery.

Cons: Not a large variety of museums, theaters, bars, restaurants. Nothing for night owls to do. Limited career opportunities in certain parts of the state.

Dating apps suck, but I imagine it's like that for anyone. I am not single, but finding someone wasnt easy. I live in one of the larger towns in the state, so it wasn't completely hopeless, and it took a while, but I did find some level of community, but I had to move to a more urban area and go on a lot of failed dates to get to where I am now

To be fair, it is different here at night.

I was in TN in early December and can attest to the 2.50 gas.

Positive: Not many people. I hate crowds and living too close to other people.

Negative: Not many people = not many tax dollars being taken in, meaning Maine is tied with Louisiana for 7th most dependent on federal tax dollars. Maine also has the 12th-largest federal funding to income taxes paid ratio (1.19). Federal funding makes up 43.27% of the revenue the state government collects.

Pros: Some may disagree with this, or say they've never felt the same, and that's okay. But for me personally, being a small state gives a strong sense of community and of home. It's something I never realized until I first left Maine, but it's certainly there, well, for me at least. Another thing is that there's not a lot of people, and if I want to be around more I can head down to Portland or Boston for the day. With fewer people there's more nature, and I love being around nature. It makes driving much more enjoyable.

Cons: There's not a lot of people, and as a young gay dude, having very few options really fucking sucks. Along with that, there's not many options for pursuing a career in Maine after obtaining a degree. Sure, there's a few places here and there, but for the majority of young people, whether or not we want to, we have to look beyond Maine for potential careers.

....and bourbon is my yoga, did we just become best friends?!?

Patience, grasshopper. Jobs are jumping out of the office, and Maine still needs to hire an abundance of infrastructure workers.

There are options, and in the future I'll argue there will be so many more. The future suits Maine... cant say that for many places elsewhere, imo

Penalties in almost every industry as far as pay goes. People say the cost of living up here is less but it sure doesn't feel like it.

There’s already plenty jobs around… hence Maine already has a shortage of workers… doesn’t mean wages are worth what they’re offering though… Maine isn’t a cheap state to live in, already has a shortage of workers, but somehow has low pay.

Would you say the prevalence of work from home has at least somewhat made for more opportunities in terms of careers in the state?

I suppose it's dependant on the industry.

But when I see the employment opportunities available, it does make me question what's going on.

Want to jump that pay hurdle? Get trained, one way or another. 6 months training could net a huge jump in salary, in many industries. And alot of training opportunities are one way or another aided by either the industry or a government entity. Because they need people!

I feel like the jobs are there, the money is there, the demand is there, and the workers are arguably there to a certain extent - it's just a matter of linking up all parties in need.

And the cost to live in Maine is all relative. I hear about how it's "not cheap", but let's be honest- financially, it's much more straightforward, and I think the end game is very financially viable. You don't realize the added everyday costs in an urban area, that may present cheaper. Until you're hit with daily $13 charges to cross a bridge....

Lots of positives, low traffic, low comparative prices of land, wonderful nature, etc etc.

Negatives. The population density is too low to justify a Costco, yet.

…I just want a Costco hot dog!

Would you say the young people moving to Maine are mostly young families rather than single young professionals?

Eh. As far as ocean puns go, that one was obay.

Aren't there plenty of local options for junk food and street food?

Your negative statement is actually false.

Negative: there are still too many people here.

Positives are that there aren’t many people up here

Negatives is that there are too many people living here inviting others to move with them.

I now live in Colorado and gas is way cheaper in Denver than Brunswick

I live in a neighborhood of 13 homes. That's 13 families on a dirt road 3/4 miles long. Before a tree blight took out so many of my hemlocks, I could barely see my neighbors and only rarely heard, smelled their woodsmoke or spoke to them except at our once a year HOA meeting.

I got stuck in the ice driving up my driveway one late afternoon last winter. My neighbor stopped on his way home to help me out. I hadn't seen or spoken to him in 2 years.

The local POV seems to be 'We're here if you need us, but we'd rather you don't!'

We love it here, but after 23 years are thinking about downsizing and moving on. We just can't seem to find a place we like better.

In general I like our low population density. It makes it very easy to be alone in nature, a quit walk in the woods can be amazing. The two main downsides for me personally: is the lack of public transport, and it makes it harder to meet other queer people.

it was like 50 today in dexter

You mean low density population?

I live in Southern Midcoast Maine. I love Maine. I grew up here, left and worked like hell to get back. It was hard being single, but eventually met my partner and solved that problem. What I now see as the biggest negative is poorly controlled development. Rural communities desperate for growth approve development without having good planning in place, encouraging sprawl and all the negative baggage ensuing. Housing is in high demand but infrastructure isn’t ready for increasing population, and we are not doing enough to protect what draws people to Maine.

Low population density and access to nature have nothing to do with each other. Portland could be 10,000 people per sq. mile instead of 3,000, but the conserved areas within 15 min drive would still be there. If anything, building compact communities allows us to preserve more nature. What we have right now is a lot of privately owned woods, not public land that anyone can use.

I love that is isn't overrun with people and you recognize your neighbors. I don't like the fact that if I need something in particular I may have to drive to Portland to purchase it or order it off Amazon. Also everyone knows everyone else's business which is good and bad.

More than fair. Plenty of great eats out here but some times you just want a Costco hotdog, ya know?

Everything closes very early. Even Stevie Nicks made fun of us when she was performing in Bangor. She's 74! It's extremely frustrating. It would be nice to get dinner after 9, but unless it's a weekend you are out of luck. My local convenience store shuts down the kitchen at 7:30.

Pro: light traffic; no long lines except chick-fil-A… easy to relax like sitting on a beach with few people around (even during summer time as long as you avoid famous spots).

Con: lack of labor especially contractors. This is a real problem given how old most houses are. Also, lack of students in colleges (community colleges and public schools) makes the in-state higher education really struggle.

May I ask what part of the state you're in? Too many people Mid-Coast!

[deleted]

Plenty of space, even rush hour traffic in Portland or Bangor isn't bad as normal traffic in other places I've lived.

Negatives are that we don't get the same amount of services up here, and lots of companies don't move their stores here because there just aren't enough people. Or if they do come to Maine, they stay south.

Negative - limited diversity, limited business hours for most things, limited/no public/quasi public transit, having to go out of state for anything major, limited/no options for various services.

Positive - fresh air, quiet nights

Idk if you’re able to or have any desire but snowshoeing is a great workout and excuse to get outside on a sunny day!

I used to think I was missing something by growing up in Maine because our big city feels like a cross between a small town and a big city (which is part of the charm of Portland) but then I went to college away and traveled the world and realized how special this state is. There’s opportunities for sure, but I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else

It's less a Maine penalty and more a Mass bonus. Mass has some of the highest salaries in the nation, 25% above the US median, whereas Maine is 9% below.

Baba buoy approves of this pun so much that he bought a house here. I heard it was on noine acres.

I moved from Colorado to Maine. Although gas is cheaper, it's literally the only thing cheaper lol. I no longer struggle to survive with a good job while living in Maine.

You think so?! The one thing I miss about living in Colorado was the food. The food up here is not very good imo. They don't know what a spice is, unless it's salt and pepper. Can't forget to smother everything in 27 sticks of butter. Absolutely no variety of different food. Vegetables go bad a day after I buy them since they're so old by the time they get way up here (unless you go to a local farmers market). The Mexican restaurants here are even horrible, and I didn't think you could ruin Mexican. Albeit the seafood is amazing, but good luck tasting anything other than butter if you venture out of the seafood. The food is about the only thing I DO hate up here. . .

Agreed. I notice almost every industry up here, especially dentists and doctors are lacking. The doctors are the WORST. My dad almost died from a simple broken bone by going to the hospital. And I've had to wait a year to get into a dentist, and when I did, they had to redo the cavity filling 4 times, at 2 different dentists offices and it STILL isn't right.

Dating in this state is horrible.

I wondered about that when I was there. At the very least do Bar Harbor, Stonington etc. residents stand a good chance of finding a hookup or week long fling with the summer tourists via dating apps?

[removed]

I live in a lake region inland where our population at least triples in the summer. Personally I stay away from dating tourists, but I'm 39 and not interested in flings. Most people my age left for college and never came back. Those who did return brought their young families. I love my quiet rural life, but I fully know I'd have to leave to find the kind of partner I want.

Driveway piss after a long drive! Nothing like it.

You in north or central?

This is exactly the reason why I love Maine. I drive 30-45 minutes to the store and maybe have one truck pass me. My husband is from a very small rural town here and I am from nj where even a store that is less than a mile away takes 20 minutes to get to a( without parking) . We have two tiny daughters and are trying to buy a house in said town but it’s been nearly impossible . Rightfully so.

Those turkeys are the worst! They act like they own the road.

Can I get that on a t-shirt? That's the funniest thing I've heard in a while, hahaha.

It was $3.30 by me the other day in florida.

I moved back up here from Rhode Island and gas was 20-30 cents cheaper down there a month ago.

But it's been thus for years, going back to the 90s or earlier when Mass. was coping with the collapse of the minicomputer industry.

Well that's not true at all. Groceries and heating costs more here since Maine likes heating oil and pop density is low here.

What is more expensive in Colorado? Groceries? No way. So what are you talking about? Restaurants here cost more than restaurants in Denver. 100% due to y'alls lack of workers and restaurant competition being low in Maine.

Homes are cheaper in Maine than in Colorado I'll give you that. I've lived in Denver for 15 years now and before that I lived in harpswell.

https://www.bestplaces.net/cost-of-living/denver-co/portland-me/100000

Literally according to this the only thing more expensive is homes. Food and utilities etc all cost more in Maine.

i'm from cali (grandparents in maine). 330 gas would be incredible here! granted, salaries tend to be a lot higher here, so that compensates... but i'm a student and don't have a salary! pain.

But yeah, gas in the south is so cheap that when I was there I thought they had made a mistake or something. I went to a different station because I didn't want to rip off people and saw the prices were the same.

Maine sucks. Tell your friends.

We're a "young" family that recently moved to Maine. While this is a great place to raise our family so far, I can't imagine being a single person looking for a partner here. Maybe it's my Northern Maine location, but there aren't many opportunities to meet single people. I was talking with one of my students a few weeks ago and she mentioned struggling to find a prom date last year because she is related to almost everyone in a 30 mile radius.

I moved up here a from Pennsylvania a while back!

Pros-

• space (i can have a full garden)
• i can see the stars
• paddling within a 2 minute drive to the nearest lake
• i’m responsible for my own heating fuel (ie i don’t have to depend on a pipe in the wall, i can stock up on wood)
• it’s normally quiet, but i can go somewhere else if i want to see people
• poutine
• easy to chat with local decision makers

Cons-

• loads more chores
• CMP
• much fewer random interactions with strangers
• finding medical care is a nightmare
• no “good and quick” takeout, like i need to drive a half hour if i’m feeling too lazy to cook at home- so i just cook at home

Similarities-

• Amish and whoopie pies

there’s a load more, but i’ll stop there for now

But young people do flee for economic opportunity. Most of the people moving here are working remote, so they built their careers elsewhere.

The problem is the jobs don’t pay enough.

This is all very optimistic, but the professional jobs here do not pay enough compared to the COL. A great example is nursing. Maine is in desperate need of nurses, but even Vermont which has the same COL treats and pays the nurses better.

I worked for an employer here that’s generally considered a good one, in a professional job, and the pay was just not enough. They also had a very old school mentality about remote days and WFH, and just poor boundaries between work and life. Unfortunately, there are better opportunities for young professionals outside of Maine. The reason we live here is because my spouse works remote and I am finishing my masters. Unless I can find remote work once I finish my degree, I don’t know if we’ll stay in Maine because there are so many career opportunities outside of Maine with better pay, benefits, time off, and policies.

There are many things to love about Maine. The professional opportunities, are unfortunately, not one of them. Maybe this will change as employers get desperate.

I have some single friends in the southern maine area, and the dating scene seems hard and limited.

There are some ugly spots but it is easy to get out into the countryside on smaller roads. I don’t think you’ll ever see real sprawl here.

The positive is all the available nature to explore. I wish my town had more restaurants, but I love the rural aspect, and I can easily drive to Portland, Portsmouth or Boston.

Yeah, but you have to live in the south, and although the cheaper standard of living is nice, you’d be living in confederate and Trump loving land.

Man, just look 30 minutes away in New Hampshire. Strip malls in mountain valleys.

I'm near Bangor actually, so it is fairly populated within about ten-fifteen minutes of me. It's just where I am is 10 minutes back windy, dirt camp roads.

About thirty minutes outside Bangor. So the area I am in is decently populated, I'm just way back dirt camp roads. About ten to fifteen minutes drive time back here It's just us as full time residents and only one other house even back this way.

I love costco.

We have natural gas here. There is a pipeline and a repressurization station a couple miles from me. Natural gas runs through most sections of the state to support what used to be papermills.

They just don't let residents use it because they say it's too expensive to pipe to our houses.

... why do you care? Seriously. It literally makes no difference to you other than supposed greenhouse gas emissions. It certainly won't be cheaper than the electricity you are already getting.

Besides that... we already have natural gas pipelines throughout Maine.. but only for commercial businesses not residents.

So.. negative?

We can't get good internet or natural gas because of the lack of housing density. Corporations decide that because there are fewer people per mile of road that they will not distribute things like water, sewer, internet, gas... some of these things we can do privately like a well but other like internet? Not so much.

Positive. Everything else. I fucking hate people