ISLANDS FOR SALE 2007
If privacy and getting away from it all are important to you, and the market downturn on the mainland hasn't made a dent in your assets, you might consider an island property.
If privacy and getting away from it all are important to you, and the market downturn on the mainland hasn't made a dent in your assets, you might consider an island property. Islands are selling about 20% cheaper per acre than other waterfront property in the same locale, according to real estate experts. But be careful: owning an island often comes with some big headaches, especially in development, construction, and renovation. Just getting to your retreat can be a challenge. Here's an update on an August 2006 story that appeared in Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. The slide show begins with the navigation bar to your right:
By Amy Pollak
McGregor Bay Island
Price: $466,446
Location: Georgian Bay (Lake Huron), 200 miles north of Toronto
Acreage: 9 acres
Dwelling: None
Remote, yes. But this island is one of the largest in an archipelago of othwerwise inhabited islands and there is a local public marina six miles away. Building permit is available.
Grisslehamn
Price: $782,808
Location: Baltic Sea, 70 miles north of Stockholm, Sweden
Acreage: 3.7 acres
Dwelling: Main house and guest house
Here it is, Ingmar Bergman fans. A private island just like Faro, where the legendary film maker spent his final years in seclusion. The residences have electicity and running water. But you'd better like cold, rainy weather.
Seneca River Island
Price: $1,700,000
Location: Auburn, N.Y., 30 miles southwest of Syracuse.
Acreage: 3.2 acres
Dwelling: None
This property is undeveloped and wild, home to a variety of local flora and fauna. As you can see, a river runs around it, with plenty of places to construct a boat mooring. Seneca River feeds into Cross Lake and eventually into Onondaga Lake, where the city of Syracuse is located. The property is four and a half hours from Manhattan.
6 Mile Island
Price: $1,250,000
Location: Lake Winnipesaukee, N.H., 100 miles north of Boston
Acreage:
Dwelling: Three-bedroom cottage
This property offers top-drawer cottage life, in the middle of one of New England's most beautiful mountain lakes. Think Golden Pond, only bigger.
Lower Birch Islands
Price: $1,795,000
Location: Pleasant Bay, Me., along the Atlantic Coast 200 miles northeast of Portland
Acreage: 30 acres
Dwelling: Three-bedroom house
The price tag covers two islands-- one 24 acres, the other 6 acres. The residence on the larger island has electricity.
Ram Island
Price: $3,500,000
Location: Puget Sound, Wash., 175 miles west of Seattle
Acreage: 8.8 acres
Dwelling: None
This rugged property with cliffs and evergreens is the length of 5 football fields. Zoned for a single family residence.
Longmeadow Farm
Price: $2,950,000
Location: Penobscot Bay, along the Atlantic Coast 100 miles northeast of Portland
Acreage: 22.21 acres
Dwelling: Two-story, three-bedroom home
This property is within a loon's call of Islesboro, Camden, and Belfast, some of the prettiest small towns along the Maine coast. The farm has a half mile of shore front, a deep-water dock, and a barn. The price tag shows, however, how much property values have soared in this area.
Parrot Point
Price: $2,850,000
Location: Abacos Islands, 175 miles east of Palm Beach. Fla.
Acreage: 4.96 acres
Dwelling: Main house and cottage
Just a short boat ride from a local Bahamian marina, this island comes with two houses, two electric transformers, a generator, 5 water cisterns, a 1/2 mile of beach shoreline, and underwater cable telephone service.
Mutri Island
Price: $3,500,000
Location: Pacific Coast, Patagonia, 650 miles south of Santiago, Chile
Acreage: 59 acres
Dwelling: Main house
How's this for getting away from it all? The island residence has a windmill that generates electrical power and a freshwater pump. The island also has an apple orchard, sheep, chicken and pheasants.
Tahaa Motu Villa
Price: $2,165,812
Location: Tahaa, French Polynesia, Pacific Ocean
Acreage: 4 acres
Dwelling: Main house
Surrounded by coral reefs, this island has a 3,000-square-foot villa with three bedrooms that can accomodate 10 people. It's about a five-minute boat ride to the next island in the Tahaa archipelago. Tropical island tourist desinations Bora Bora and Raiatea are nearby, too.
Price: $2,670,650
Location: Pacific Coast of New Zealand, 150 miles east of Wellington
Acreage: 50 acres
Dwelling: Main house and nearby beach cottage
This is actually a parcel of land that juts out from Matatoko island. The property comes with a 4,300 square foot, five-bedroom residence plus a beach cottage close to a wharf with a boat launching ramp. Electric power and fresh water access included. But as you can see with most islands, luxury plus privacy don't come cheap.
