I lived in a small 6-unit building in JP for 8 years and right before I bought the owners basically came to the realization that they were being hosed by their so-called property manager. We didn’t have a plow guy, no trash service etc- the only thing was coordinating insurance renewals, paying city water/sewer, collecting the monthly fee, and keeping up the books. Our fees were $190/mo and when we switched to doing everything ourselves, our reserves were so easy to replenish! If you think you and your neighbors are interested and willing to take on the duties, for a small association I highly recommend doing it yourselves.

Jon Howard - MaineLand Real Estate in Scarborough. It is his own business, he is extremely knowledgeable, hands-on, and goes above and beyond. Check out his reviews on Google, too. He helped me find a house before it even went on the market!

Bayside American Cafe is fantastic!

Maine Health is hiring for many Inventory/Supply jobs. These are not public-facing and you definitively aren’t stuck in a cube - on your feet a lot! Not an easy job, but it’s not one that you have to take home with you either. They have good benefits and offer retirement match (to a point).

If you are not absolutely set on using this particular realtor, there are plenty who only charge 2.5%. Insisting on 3% is odd, I think. Home buying will be slowing down due to rates, so I would think this realtor would give in on the .5%. It could be worth looking around for other realtors.