Vacation rental on semi-private island?

Question

My wife and I are looking at a property on an island this weekend. The property is not listed but likely will by the end of the month. We do not know much about it but the island itself is roughly 3-5 acres. It has 3 independently owned cabins(called camps in Maine). The one we are looking at has the majority of the land associated with it. I know it has electricity, running water(well), indoor plumbing...everything your home would.

We are looking at this primarily as a vacation home for ourselves but we’re wondering if it would be feasible to rent it out from time to time, maybe one week per month in the summer. This would allow us to potentially spend a little more. The reason we aren’t sure about that being possible is that the only access to it is by boat. Meaning anyone staying there has to have their own boat, rent a boat...just to get to it. It wouldn’t be possible for us to ferry groups back and forth. I’m sure convenience is very important for vacation rentals but wasn’t sure if the lure of being on a fairly private island would overcome some of the challenges.

We are just looking for some insight as we prepare to look at it. It may be completely wrong for us but figured those with more experience may be able to help.

Michael Baum · Answer

Hey @David Miller. Sounds like a cool place. There are quite a few places that are boat access only here on Lake Coeur d'Alene. We looked at several of them (well virtually) before deciding to pass on any of them due to exactly what @Julie McCoy said.

Our lake is large and brings boaters from all over. Even then I would be concerned about booking it out. Now you are looking for a place for yourselves and are not as concerned with the rental aspect. If that is so, then I would certainly not go over budget for what you can afford with zero bookings. It takes a certain person/group to really just want to be away from everything for a duration. Especially on vacation. They want to hit a restaurant or 2, take in some local activities etc. Pretty hard when you are isolated and need to take the boat to get anywhere.

Is this an island on a lake or salt water? How long is the boat ride? Is there plenty of free parking for the truck and trailer? What about the other owners on that island? Are they hip to this particular groove? Those are all things you need to get hashed out before you decide to rent it out.

We are in the same boat here. We bought a place we could afford without booking it at all. We use it as a vacation house and it might end up being a retirement place for us as well.

If you buy a place that you can easily afford, everything you do above and beyond is gravy.

Julie McCoy · Answer

@David Miller The logistics hurdle is a big one. Is there any kind of local ferry/boat taxi you could recommend to your guests? Also consider the liability side - if someone has a medical emergency while they're at your property, how can emergency personnel reach them? Etc.

Are there any other vacation rentals in the area - or even in Maine in general - on an island with these kinds of logistics challenges? I'd look to see how other people are doing it. If nobody's doing it, there's probably a reason.

Matt Devincenzo · Answer

My wife's family used to go up to Canada for 1-3 weeks every summer and camp on an island like this with quite a few other families. Some of the other islands had homes like you're talking about, but theirs was a primitive camp style. They would bring their small sail boats for going back and forth, and I believe other families would do the same and/or rent a boat for the week. From what I hear it's not too 'uncommon' and I'm sure quite a few people would be interested in staying there if it was marketed. I'd look for a local PM in the area that can share their experience.

David Miller · Answer

All great points made above. I had not thought about the medical emergencies. While it would be rare its good to prepare for those possibilities. Luckily the lake it is on is not all that remote and the shore is only 500ft or so from the island. I have not seen any other properties like it in the area for rent but I'll do a little more digging. Saturday will answer a lot of questions for us when we see it.

John Underwood · Answer

I have people that bring their own boat to our lake house.

Those are the prime candidates to rent the place from you.

Just describe all this in your listing and you should be fine.

Vacation rental on semi-private island?

Vacation rental on semi-private island?

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