Newington, NH
This exclusive waterfront estate has 265 feet of frontage on Little Bay! The exquisite property was architecturally designed to showcase the gorgeous water views from nearly every room. Located in the heart of the Seacoast in a very private and peaceful setting, this 10,000 sq ft home features six bedrooms, nine bathrooms and an in-law / aupair suite with separate entrance above the 3-car garage. Whether you are looking for your own personal retreat where you can dock your boat or enjoy a walk along your private beach, or a home that is ideal for entertaining, 365 Fox Point Road is the best of both worlds! 365 Fox Point Road is offered at $2,500,000.
Incredible waterfront home with private beach and dock on Little Bay Captivating water views from nearly every room Views, white birch and pine trees create a private sanctuary Impressive entrance Dramatic two-story grand foyer, flooded with light with glass block walls Sunken living room with fireplace and expansive water views Amazing dining room with water views Kitchen built for entertaining with 6-burner gas stove, Meile double wall over, two refrigerators, large pantry and a huge center island The study is an architectural delight designed with gumwood paneling and custom built-ins Master en-suite has breathtaking water views, a sitting room and fireplace Penthouse with roof-top deck for incredible sunset views Separate 2 bedroom apartment / in-law / au-pair with fireplace Huge finished lower level for home gym, office space, rec room High ceilings, pocket doors, 3 car garage, state-of-the- art heating and cooling system 7 mile jaunt to the ocean, 1 hour from Boston, salt air and breezes!
What is the heating system? The heating system was replaced in 2012 with two Interlochen high-efficiency propane fuel furnaces. Propane was chosen because of the high level of supply projected for the next ten or more years. The burners are not only efficient, they can be "turned down" to a lower percentage of consumption to save a lot of fuel, in theory. What is the air conditioning system? We worked closely with a small HVAC company to make a minimum impact system, rather than a huge commercial installation typical for a 10,000 sq ft building. The master bedroom was the greatest need, so we installed a single-unit Mitsubishi unit to cool that one room. Separate units were installed for the apartment over the garage (two bedrooms, bathroom, living/dining/kitchen, all on or off together), the four rooms on the main second floor (three bedrooms, one office, a variable air volume unit to cool any one or combination of occupied rooms), one large unit for the main entry, and one unit for the living room-dining room-kitchen-family room area, sized to the large space involved. It provides heating for the winter as well. There is a unit for the basement rooms that acts as ventilation before cooling.
What is the standby generator? The standby generator was installed in 2012. It is propane powered as are the heating boilers, comes on when needed, is quiet, and has 38 kB of power, enough so that we don't foresee the need to shed the load to the airconditioning units when on standby power. It is made by Kohler, and operates at 1800 rpm. It is located behind the shed. All electrical power comes through the shed, so putting the standby power there eliminates a need for a lot of extra wiring. We bought it through The Generator Connection (Wayne Noyes) who also provides excellent service. What is the wood on the walkway and stairs to the dock? It is called Salinga Batu. It is a tropical hardwood that was available by chance when we needed it. It seems to resist most creatures, and provides a reduced-slip surface. It requires occasional power-washing to remove growth. What is the siding material? The siding was originally all cedar. However, with snow build-up it was doing poorly near the ground. We removed a few layers from the bottom up and replaced it with Hardie-board, a concrete material that seems to hold paint well and we expect to have a long life. What insulation material is used? The original insulation from the '80's was apparently pink fiber-glass in paper. Since the studs are 6� (nominal, about 5.5� actual), there is room for adequate insulation, and it seems fine. There were some awkward areas in the basement on the water side of the house around the sills. These were opened up several years ago and plastic foam was sprayed in at a level of about R-29. This process reduced air infiltration to near zero. The treated area included the wooden "chimney" for the kitchen fireplace. What is the wood on the main and secondary entrances? This is called Ipe, or greenheart, and has become very popular for unprotected decks. It is a tropical hardwood that resists critters and seems to last. I used a lot of it on a house I had in Chatham, MA near the water, and it was very satisfactory. It can use occasional power washing if any slime appears, although in the five or six years it has been in place in Newington that has not been necessary.
Why is the shed so full? See the reference to a home in Chatham above. I sold that house but was not very successful in getting my four children to take away most of the duplicate garden tools, since the children are all grown up and have better tools of their own. Most of the other contents are in storage. Tell me about the kitchen appliances The Miele double oven was chosen after a review of a lot of brands, because it is operated by a computer program that can be updated by Miele as needs change. It is also the widest model they make (available in the U.S. market only, about 30" wide) and tall enough to accommodate a 28 - 30 lb turkey. Other items like the Jenn-Air cooktop and refrigerators are common and satisfactory. Can I safely walk on the roof? Yes, but be aware of the possible issues. And think first before having a party on the roof. The flat areas are the thickest gauge of "EPDM" roll roofing we know of, but can be penetrated by stepping on a screw that a repairman may have dropped, or by a stiletto heel. The material is slippery after a rain. But the views are best here, sunsets are excellent, so maybe it should be treated like a fine floor and users should wear soft shoes, socks, or go barefoot.
Why does your plot plan differ from that filed with the Town of Newington? It doesn't. I checked with Tom Morgan, the town planner. in June, 2014, and he had the exact correct plan in his files. Whoever updated the tax map in about 1989 made some but not all of the changes. The area is 5.00 acres and the waterfront is 265.79'. Tom assures us these figures will be corrected in the next annual updating next spring (2015). Valerie Ellmer at Berkshire-Hathaway Verani has a copy of the correct plan if you want to see it. The description in the deed is correct in all respects. How does the sewage system operate? Sewage effluent is piped into a holding tank in the basement. When the tank gets mostly full, one of two large pump motors pumps it up into a tank near the driveway, from which it flows into the leeching field, a flat area by the driveway. The system is described accurately in a plan by Berry Engineering of Rochester, NH that is filed with the town and a copy of which will be made available. See the picture at the very end of the answers. The tank is under the steel grid on the floor. What are the terms of the rental on the apartment above the garage? Tenant at will. The tenant(s) will vacate the premises within 30 days, although I would prefer to give them 60 days' notice. Who are the contractors that work on the property? Lawn mowing and snow plowing: A Stone's Throw Landscaping. Ben Stone has done a fine job all around, and is the best at plowing snow I have had in nineteen years here. General carpentry, and used on all projects of any size since it always seems to involve carpentry: Mark Allen. Most of the work has been standard carpentry, and many handymen could handle it. But Mark has replaced most of the lower clapboards with Hardie Board, trim with Azek. Heating, new furnaces: Lamprey Brothers of North Hampton. Mike Meserve there knows a lot about heating/cooling. Standby Generator: The Generator Connection of Barrington, NH. Wayne Noyes comes prepared to do business, and he does. I have arranged a service contract with them to change the oil and check out the generator regularly. Not as cheap as doing it yourself, but they have the factory books and contacts when needed. Who designed the house and engineered the systems? The house was designed by Paul Brown, A.I.A., who practiced in Portsmouth in the 1980's but has since moved to Atlanta. He seems to be designing bigger projects today. In living here since 1995, we have come to appreciate his placement of windows to maximize views and make the interior more interesting. He planned for a big and substantial house, as his spec of 600A. electrical power (400A. installed), manufactured floor joists, a separate electrical entrance and many electrical subpanels, and a substantial sewage processing system indicate. Engineering was done by several local firms, most of whom are still in business. Their identities are shown on the various plans. Why does your price differ so much from the town assessment? Mostly it has to do with hiring an architect to plan this large house. As I understand it, the owners were having several very prosperous years when they engaged the architect, and I suspect they advised him to make the house very special. He drew careful sun-angle plans to maximize the views and the solar gain, and designed the house for forced hot-air heat and air conditioning. He specified high ceilings, 8 foot tall doors with four heavy hinges per door, solid core doors almost exclusively, large windows to maximize the view, heating and sewage systems that seem as if they belong in a commercial building, engineered floor trusses much stronger than ordinary 2 x 10 or 2 x 12 beams, electrical service that is more than adequate. The original owners were tall, and the space is scaled to them. He also designed an interesting space that has varied ceiling heights, big rooms, adequate closets, and that makes use of glass block to give an interesting interplay of light, shadow, color, motion from outside, without the drafts. All of the above leads to additional construction costs as compared to usual house construction using standard-size elements and construction methods. Much of the "additional construction cost" shows up in the replacement cost but not in the assessment, which is based on typical construction plans and materials. The property is insured by Chubb, which guarantees to replace the house with another of identical quality and value. They value the house at $3,051,000 (see attachment). Other elements that add cost include the relatively large 5 acre lot and the privacy of the location. Also, the location offers easy highway access to shopping, the Seacoast, the lakes and mountains, and the cities of Boston, Portland, and Manchester.
Aren't the airplanes an annoyance? In the 21+ years I have lived here, I have found the planes a problem on perhaps 3 or 4 occasions. The commercial planes are almost nonexistent, and they seem to climb fairly steeply and make their first turn well before they are overhead here.
The military refueling squadron departs and returns typically no more than once a day, and they are fairly close together so the noise starts and ends in a short period. And I feel that a bunch of guys who fly out over the Atlantic and act as a gas-station for fighters with a limited range, and then come home after a usually boring day, deserve all of our support, same as the troops abroad. On a few occasions I have been aware of, a single C-5 (humongous planes with room for several tanks and lifting capacity to handle them) will come by and do a few quick touch and goes. This has always been in daylight hours. The planes are based elsewhere, and the pilots need the practice to keep up their skills and certification. I believe these planes are being replaced with newer models with quieter engines. I am not aware of them coming by more than 10 times in the almost 20 years I have lived here. Air shows and fighter squadron visits are noisy but rare events. The roof is great for viewing. Copy of insurance policy page showing insured value for house (excluding content, land). Septic system in house: Large tank, pumps are below steel grid. When float in tank rises, threaded rod by grey box rises, eventually pushes switch in box ON. Pump (one of two) effluent is pumped to secondary tank near driveway, where it flows into leaching field. Pump shuts off, rod sinks waiting for next fill. DON'T play with the small green handle. What are the advantages of living in Newington? First, it is a fine place to live and bring up a family. Traffic is light, usually. Highway access is easy, shopping is everywhere. There are numerous restaurants within five or ten miles. Yet when you are here it seems like country, with the advantages of river and bay. UNH offers unlimited cultural activities, many of which are at low cost or free. Taxes are most reasonable. Compare them with other towns and over ten or twenty years the low tax rate makes higher house prices reasonable.
Newington is situated in New Hampshire's Seacoast Region, sixty miles northeast of Boston, and sixty miles southwest of Portland. The town is bordered on three sides by the Piscataqua River and the Great Bay Estuary. The first European settlers arrived in the 1620's. Despite the town's comparatively small land area, Newington has more publicly owned conservation land than any other municipality in southeast New Hampshire. Protected tracts include the 120 acre Fox Point which juts far into Little Bay, and the spectacular 1,100 acre Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge which accounts for six miles of shoreline along the Great Bay Estuary. Newington's 110 acre Old Town Center Historic District features an eighteenth century parsonage, a nineteenth century Town Hall, the 1892 Langdon Library, the oldest Town Forest in the United States, the oldest New Hampshire meetinghouse (1712) in continuous use, and a row of horse sheds behind the meetinghouse that were once commonplace, but are now quite rare. The entire district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.