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Updated: 7 hours ago

Developer provides path for nontraditional investments in real estate

A house has a lawn. Photo / Courtesy Maine Development & Excavation Group Three lots sold to buyers planning to hire their own homebuilding contractors. Two homes are being built on speculation, with construction on one expected to wrap up in a few weeks and construction of the other to start soon. The sixth is under contract for a custom-built house.
By Laurie Schreiber

A financial-advisor-turned-residential-developer has a six-lot subdivision underway in Windham and others in the pipeline.

Laurie Bachelder is a financial advisor and owner of Freedom Wealth Advisors in Falmouth.

A specialist in “self-directed retirement accounts,” she provides clients with guidance on investment options that include not only traditional stocks, bonds and mutual funds, but also non-traditional investments such as real estate. 

A person poses for a headshot.
Photo / Courtesy Maine Development & Excavation Group
Laurie Bachelder

Two years ago, the real estate piece led her to establish Maine Development & Excavation Group in Falmouth. 

“I started the real estate development company for clients to invest in local real estate,” Bachelder said.

Spec builds

The first project was a subdivision called Deacon Hayes Commons, consisting of 12 townhouses at 7 Parsonage Road in North Yarmouth. The 1,500-square-foot townhouses were built on speculation, then put on the market. The last one is finishing up construction now. 

Smaller projects include a $3 million single-family home in Cape Elizabeth built on spec.

Windham subdivision

The latest project, on Betty Lane in Windham, is a six-lot subdivision with open space on over 14 acres, called Edgewood Estates. The project received town approvals toward the end of 2024 and houses began construction at the beginning of 2025. 

A drawing has lines and words.
Photo / Courtesy Maine Development & Excavation Group
The six-lot subdivision in Windham, called Edgewood Estates, received town approvals toward the end of 2024 and houses began construction at the beginning of 2025. 

Bachelder invested about $1.1 million in the land acquisition and infrastructure development. Three lots have sold to buyers planning to hire their own homebuilding contractors. Two homes are being built on speculation, with construction on one expected to wrap up in a few weeks and construction of the other to start soon. The sixth lot is under contract for a custom-built house.

The homes, averaging 2,800 square feet, are priced from $900,000 to $1.1 million.

The general contractor for this and other projects in Bachelder’s portfolio is Dan Meyer of Meyer Development Solutions in Gray. The engineer is Stephen Roberge of SJR Engineering in Monmouth.

The customer market for the subdivision is higher-end buyers, including those upgrading from a starter home and others  moving to Maine from out-of-state, said Bachelder.

Other projects working their way through permitting processes is another six-lot subdivision in Windham, called Monty Way, near Edgewood Estates. Bachelder said the project could receive final approval and break ground in the coming weeks.

It’s expected that a sketch plan for a 10-lot subdivisions will be ready for Gray’s planning board in a month or so, she said.

The projects are financed through her own funds, through private lenders who provide short-term loans at higher interest rates than traditional lenders and through investors looking to diversify their retirement portfolios with nontraditional investments.

Search criteria for potential development parcels include being in southern Maine.

“I love Windham,” said Bachelder. “Windham is very open to bringing in new development.”

Forming neighborhoods

Gray, North Yarmouth, Standish and Gorham are also areas of interest. She prefers smaller subdivisions that form a neighborhood.

“It goes way beyond just building a house,” Bachelder said. “Thought goes into where the land is located: Is it convenient for families? Is it in a town where people want to live? Will I be able to create plenty of open space to play, explore or conjugate with neighbors?”

“Of course," she continued, "you always need to make sure the numbers work. But for me, it is not all about the bottom line. Yes, people have to get paid and make money. But at the same time, I would rather take less of a profit to ensure I have created a welcoming environment for people to live and raise a family.”

Being a woman, with a family, in real estate development brings “a little something extra to the table,” she added. “The vision comes from a place of emotion, thinking about the people and families who are going to live there.”

Bachelder works with Andrea Page of Keller Williams Realty to identify potential development parcels and to market the units.

The goal now is to find parcels that provide opportunity for denser developments, in order to build more-affordable homes. 

“Building million-dollar houses doesn’t help people get into houses that are more affordable,” she said. “Andrea and I are working hard to find tracts of land where we can build $400,000 houses. That’s the challenge right now.”

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