Contemplating a move from Mass to Maine.

[Charlie MacPherson]

Iv've been a lifelong resident of Massachusetts.  My wife of 39 years was born and raised in Maine and when she retires in several months, she'd like to move back.  Somewhere in mid-coast Maine, most likely between Brunswick and Camden.

I need to put in another 5-10 years in real estate before I can pull that retirement trigger.  That means that I need to figure out what my strategy should be if we make this move.  

Keep in mind that I will have virtually zero sphere on influence contacts, aside from about 7 in-laws.  This is very much a "start from scratch" propersition.

First question - Small brokerage or big franchise?  I don't want to get swamped in a big office of locally famous agents, but I'm not sure I want to compete with them either. 

Second question - How do I overcome the Mainer's bias against people "from away"?  They especially tend to dislike and distrust city folk from places like Massachusetts.  I'm a Mainer by marriage, not by blood.

Third question - can any Maine agents reading this help me to figure out what towns in that area have the most sales?  I'm thinking that might be a good location to look for a place to hand my license.

I'd really appreciate any thoughts you can share.