A Working Homestead Setup on Sandy Pond
$670,000
On Sandy Pond in Embden, in Maine's Kennebec Valley — 9.57 acres of homestead land with direct water access.
This is a homestead that's already been started for you: a fenced garden bed, a working chicken coop with its own run, and a barn-sized three-car garage with a partially finished space above just waiting on some workshop or living-space finish work. Down at the water, 300 feet of owned Sandy Pond frontage means the shoreline is yours alone — walk a canoe down to fish, paddle, or watch the sunset. Every bedroom has its own full bath. 3 bd / 4 ba, 1,900 sq ft, built 2003, on 9.57 acres.
Listed at $670,000. Listing courtesy of eXp Realty.
Homestead Potential
Water & Infrastructure
The home runs on well and septic typical of rural Somerset County, but the real water asset here is the 300-plus feet of owned Sandy Pond frontage — direct, unshared access that most waterfront listings can't claim, since so much of Maine's pond shoreline is already carved up between multiple owners.
Crop & Income Potential
This is wooded lake-country terrain, not row-crop farmland, but real homestead infrastructure is already in place: a fenced, cultivated garden bed near the house and a chicken coop with an attached run, hens included in the photos. Embden's own agricultural history goes back to 19th-century wheat and wool, but here the work of getting started has already been done for you.
Sustainability
The coop and garden mean eggs and vegetables are already possible from day one, not a someday project. The home has a new furnace and central air, and the stone chimney backs a wood-burning option for backup heat. The unfinished space above the garage is a genuine head start on a workshop or more living space without new construction from scratch — insulation and framing are already in, which is most of the hard part.
The Boundaries
Maine's shoreland zoning rules are strict this close to the water, and they specifically govern what you can build, clear, or change within a set distance of the pond — confirm exactly what's allowed before you plan anything for the shoreline or the space above the garage. A current survey is worth it too, given how much of the property's value sits in that 300 feet of frontage.
Beyond the Property Line
Local Flavor & Small-Town Character
Embden is a small, quiet town of under 1,000 year-round residents, home to seven bodies of water including Sandy Pond itself and the well-known Embden Pond, a deep, spring-fed lake famous locally for landlocked salmon and lake trout. This is real Kennebec Valley character — rural, water-centered, and not built up.
Agricultural Resources & Neighbor Networks
The UMaine Cooperative Extension office for Somerset County, based in Skowhegan, provides research-based agricultural and natural-resource support for the region's landowners.
Outdoor Recreation & Natural Surroundings
The Forks, where the Kennebec and Dead Rivers meet in a stretch of Class 2–4 whitewater, is a well-known rafting destination not far from Embden, and local snowmobile trails connect straight through to Bingham, Carrabassett, and The Forks corridor in winter. Closer to home, Embden Pond adds some of the area's best landlocked salmon fishing.
Listed on Zillow
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