COUSINS ISLAND, YARMOUTH – Cousins Island is connected to mainland Yarmouth and the Foreside by a causeway, making it an easy, no-boat commute to Portland and Brunswick. Locals in this small, seaside neighborhood near the historic Chapel are keenly aware of additional advantages.

Stroll to the end of Birchwood Avenue and you are on a rocky beach, gazing out across the broad cove to Sandy Point Ledges and the Princes Point shoreline beyond. Barely two streets away, Hillcrest Avenue trails down to the private Seashore Land Association picnic sites, and dock.

This home enjoys Association privileges for the nominal annual fee of $70, or just $250 if you would like a mooring. So whether you like to kayak or prefer a larger craft, here is your steps-away starting point for exploring Casco Bay and its islands.

Homes in this island enclave do not come on the market every day, and tend to change hands very quickly. So this one-level house – thoroughly renovated over the past couple of years, and offered for sale at $314,900 – represents a great opportunity, very possibly for a young family or a couple looking to downsize.

And the home, a 1970 classic recast to meet contemporary preferences in decor, while retaining features such as hardwood floors and an oversized brick fireplace in the spacious living room – matches the charm of its setting.

Updates were carried out with a designer’s eye. All interior walls, and the exterior, are freshly painted. New touches in the kitchen include stainless appliances and very cool backsplashes. The dining room is minimalistic-sleek, and its full-view doors open to the  new, 10-foot-by-20-foot deck, which overlooks the fenced back lawn of the .21-acre lot.

The full basement has been beautifully finished, bringing the home’s total living space to 2,120 square feet. Here are a family room that’s open to a big media room; another full bath, with a cast-iron clawfoot tub; a walk-in closet; and a large, L-shaped workroom/office (its present role) which has some daylight, and walkout, accessing the “doghouse” egress.

The home at 24 Birchwood Ave., Yarmouth, is listed by Joe Rotondi of King Real Estate in Falmouth.

For more information or to arrange a private viewing, please contact Joe at 653-8364 or at jrotondi@maine.rr.com.

Produced by the Marketing Department of the Portland Press Herald, the Friday feature home is provided at no cost.

Photos by Melanie Sochan, staff photographer.

Please send feature home suggestions to jrolfe@pressherald.com.

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