In this Aug. 6, 2017, file photo, motorists travel on Rte. 11 south of Patten, Maine, near the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. Road signs directing motorists to the national monument are going to be installed now that Republican Gov. Paul LePage has relented in his opposition to the signs on Interstate 95 and state roads leading to the Mount Katahdin region. The Maine Department of Transportation will allow signs to be manufactured and installed now that Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has recommended keeping the monument and a renewed request has been submitted by the superintendent for the federal land, the governor's office said. Credit: Robert F. Bukaty

The BDN is exploring Maine’s housing crisis from every possible angle, from how it affects home prices, to what it means for Mainers across the state. Read our ongoing coverage here and fill out this form to tell us what you want to know.

Home prices are continuing to spike across Maine, with a typical community seeing homes go up in value by more than $2,000 in just one month, according to newly released Zillow data.

It is another costly increase of homes in a market that has become increasingly expensive, fueled by the scarcity of housing and unprecedented demand from both those in Maine and across the region. The median increase for a Maine community was $2,100 among the 358 communities for which Zillow makes data available.

The median month-to-month price increase was highest at the beginning of the year, when the median increase in value for a Maine community was $3,800 from December 2021 to January 2022 and  $3,900 from January to February. It has declined since then, but has still been more than $2,000 for two consecutive months.

The northern Penobscot County community of Patten saw the highest increase in value from April to May. Its median value increased from $116,900 to $122,700, a 5 percent increase totaling nearly $6,000.

In a rural region bordering Aroostook County, buying a home in Patten remains cheaper than nearly all of Maine. But even it has begun to see its share of expensive homes. A $350,000 five-bedroom and $420,000 three-bedroom were both sold last month.

Several smaller communities in the Bangor area, including Garland, Corinna and Howland, all saw significant growth as well.

The largest absolute increase occurred in the Hancock County town of Brooksville, where a typical house went from $477,200 to $492,700, almost $16,000 more.

But most of the most expensive housing stock is located in the more populous sections of the Portland metro region, which is largely why the overall median home increased in Maine by $3,800 from April to May.

Kennebunkport was second in absolute gain, edging up by more than $13,000 to make the median home there worth around $990,000. If values continue to rise there, it will soon become the first-ever location in the state where the typical home is worth more than $1 million. The median cost of a house in Kennebunkport in May 2019 was $657,000.

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Acton, Cape Elizabeth, Yarmouth and Kittery Point, a village in Maine’s southernmost town listed separately by Zillow, all saw increases of more than $10,000 as well.

Of the 358 communities in Maine for which Zillow has data, the housing values of only 29 of them, or 8 percent, declined.

The 1,600-population Hancock County town of Franklin saw the largest absolute decline, with homes going down around $5,600 in value in just a month. Also losing value were Corinth, Mount Desert, Millinocket, Milford, Hancock, Mechanic Falls, Veazie, Jackman and Lincoln, among others.

Portland saw its median house go up by $5,200, Biddeford by $5,200, Augusta by $4,800, Bar Harbor by $4,700, Bangor by $1,600, Lewiston by $1,400, Skowhegan by $1,100 and Presque Isle by $900.