Vermont is one of the toughest places in the country to buy a house. Demand far exceeds supply here – so much so that the median price of an existing home has doubled in the last decade, to more than $200,000. If you’re in the market for something brand new, expect to pay in the neighborhood of $320,000, on average, according to the Vermont Housing Awareness Campaign.

Before it adjourned last week, the Vermont Legislature took a small step toward increasing the supply of newly built homes that average wage-earners can actually afford. Under a new bill, the state will waive some permitting requirements for urban projects in which 20 percent of the homes are priced at $250,000 or less.

It remains to be seen what a quarter-mil will get you – and where – when the new rules kick in. Right now, though, Vermont’s MLS listings in the $250,000 range feature a variety styles and sizes, from a tiny camp in Colchester to a custom-built home on one-and-a-half acres in Eden.

Last week, we looked at dozens of current listings from across the state. Here’s a sampling of seven we found . . . interesting.

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Main Street, New Haven

  • Bedrooms: 8

  • Baths: 3

  • Square feet: 3908

  • Land: 1 acre

  • Year built: 1885

This former home for the elderly could accommodate quite a brood. But with its mountain views and clapboard exterior, it has B&B written all over it.

Marble Avenue, Burlington

  • Bedrooms: 3
  • Baths: 2
  • Square feet: 1165
  • Land: .06 acres
  • Year built: 1899

This two-story next to the Five Sisters neighborhood comes with a $2500 credit toward construction crew labor.

Colchester Point Road, Colchester

  • Bedrooms: 1
  • Baths: 1
  • Square feet: 768
  • Land: 60-by-150-foot lot
  • Year built: n/a

A vintage lakeside cottage, with a large screened porch and 60 feet of sandy beach on Colchester Point Cove.

Hilltop Drive, Eden

  • Bedrooms: 4
  • Baths: 3
  • Square Feet: 2630
  • Land: 1.5 acres
  • Year built: 1989

A custom-built Cape Cod with wrap-around deck and plenty of lawn and garden.

Main Street, Barton

  • Bedrooms: 3
  • Baths: 1
  • Square Feet: 4400
  • Land: n/a
  • Year built: 1854

This Main Street apartment sits atop a general store, available for an extra $100 K. New urbanism in the Northeast Kingdom?

Cold Hill Road, Lyndon

  • Bedrooms: 1
  • Baths: 1
  • Square feet: 721
  • Land: 12.5 acres
  • Year built: 1920

Standing in a field, this one-story ranch comes with a private pond.

Dugar Road, Calais

  • Bedrooms: 1
  • Baths: 1
  • Square feet: 1101
  • Land: 10 acres
  • Year built: 1960

A four-room Alpine chalet overlooking Worcester Village has a new kitchen and an unobstructed view of the Green Mountains.


Click a photo above to see the location.

This article appears in May 7-13, 2008.

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