Kat Mitchell walks to work Tuesday in Auburn. “It’s very festive for Christmas,” Mitchell said about the snow falling on Christmas Eve. “Another day in Maine,” she said. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Parts of Maine were reporting a snowy Christmas on Tuesday.

As of 11:30 a.m., the National Weather Service said 6 inches of snow had fallen in Rangeley, 5 inches in Madrid, 1 inch in Freeport, 3 inches in Lewiston and as many as 8 inches in nearby Jackson, New Hampshire.

Portland received only a dusting of snow.

Jon Palmer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, said forecasters expected precipitation to slow down in inland areas through Tuesday morning but said snowfall would continue up and down the coast with 1-3 inches expected from Portland through the Midcoast.

Palmer said Christmas Day would be “a pretty nice day” in Maine.

He said the day would start off mostly clear with some clouds building in the middle of the day all around the state. Temperatures are expected to be in the low 30s.

The forecast is expected to stay until Sunday, when 1 to 2 inches of rain will likely fall around the state. Although, he said, there could still be snow in the White Mountains.

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The Maine real estate market is beginning to see a shift to a more balanced market, according to the Maine Association of Realtors.

Maine Listings reported a 6.81 percent increase in sales of single-family existing homes during the month of November compared to November 2023. The median sales price (MSP) increased 8.45 percent to $385,000. The MSP indicates that half of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less.

“Prospective buyers are in a better situation than they were a year ago across many markets in Maine,” said  Paul McKee, President of the Maine Association of Realtors, in a Dec. 19 news release. “The number of homes for sale has increased, price appreciation is slowing, and the economic forecast is good.”

According to the National Association of Realtors, sales of single-family existing homes increased 7.4 percent nationally in November 2024 compared to November 2023, the release said. The national MSP reached $410,900 in November, a rise of 4.8 percent. Regionally, sales in the Northeast jumped 6.3 percent while the regional MSP increased 9.9 percent to $475,500 in November 2024 compared to November a year ago.

“We’re seeing promising signs that the real estate market is beginning to show signs of shifting slightly, with supply increasing and slower price appreciation.” adds McKee.

“The statewide sold statistics from January through November 2024 are 4.1 percent ahead of the same time period from a year ago. I’m optimistic that 2024 will end positively and buyer demand will continue to remain strong throughout 2025.”

POLAND, Maine (WABI) – Poland Spring has donated tens of thousands of dollars for Mainers in need of heating assistance.

$40,000 will go to several communities across the state including Lincoln, Howland, Passadumkeag, and Enfield.

The Kingfield bottling facility and the Farmington Elks Lodge also donated 100 gifts in support of Franklin County’s Operation Santa Claus.

Poland Spring has raised more than $14 million for various statewide causes in the past two decades.

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