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https://www.barrons.com/articles/how-to-live-the-remote-life-on-your-own-private-island-01662998763
When Chris Krolow was 11 years old, he persuaded his parents to let him camp on a private island adjacent to the one in Georgian Bay, Ontario, where the rest of the family camped. He caught the “island bug” and a decade later started a company focused on creating that magical experience for others.
Today, the CEO of Toronto-based Private Islands Inc. and host of HGTV’s Island Hunters, says the isolation of his personal island in Georgian Bay keeps his extended family connected. The 90-minute drive and 30-minute boat ride to get there helps him disconnect from daily life, too. For people who catch the island bug, location is often of little consequence.
Unlike shopping for a traditional home, where an investor might browse different neighborhoods, multiple countries may be on the table when it comes to carving out a place where you can be “king” of your own island, Krolow says.
“There’s something about private islands that awakens the Robinson Crusoe childhood fantasy in people,” he says. “But it can be a slice of heaven or a slice of hell depending on how prepared you are for the challenges of owning a home on a private island.”
When you’re isolated on an island, logistical complications include building and maintaining the home, power, water, communications, provisions, and access to healthcare in an emergency.An affinity for boats is nearly a requirement for private island owners.
No matter where it is, deep pockets are usually needed to buy, build on, and maintain a private island.
Island Life, One Season at a Time
When the pandemic hit, sales of private islands soared, says Margaret Muir, a real estate agent with William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty in Madison, Conn. Muir sold four private islands in the Long Island Sound near Stony Creek Harbor off the coast of Connecticut last year—three that are part of the Thimble Islands and Green Island, which is nearby.
“We used to sell to people with a childhood or family connection to the Thimble Islands, but during the pandemic we had virtual showings for people all over the world,” Muir says.
Wheeler Island, which sold for $2.99 million in February 2021, is about three-quarters of an acre with a furnished eight-bedroom house and a sandy beach. Nearby Belden Island, which sold for $1.25 million in May 2021, is a one-acre island with a furnished four-bedroom cottage.
Muir says many people who own homes on the Thimble Islands socialize together and cooperate to help each other with provisions and in an emergency.
“The islands used to be more rustic, but now creature comforts have crept in,” Muir says. “At the same time, this place remains magical and unique because you have the peace and quiet of your own island within sight of the shore and other islands.”
Designing a Private Island Home
Thirty-three years ago, the owners of Green Island turned to Duo Dickinson, founder of Duo Dickinson Architects in Madison, to design a contemporary home that would honor the location.
“As an architect, I don’t like to Xerox history with reproductions of homes, but I don’t like to deny history either,” Dickinson says. Dickinson incorporated the stone walls of an existing home on the island into his design and included Stony Creek granite—the same stone as the base of the Statue of Liberty—from a nearby quarry.
The Green Island house has a swooping standing seam copper roof, deep overhangs, and is built of raw wood and stone for protection against wind, sun, storms, and salt water. A curving two-story wall of glass provides a distinctive architectural feature that can be seen from the nearby Connecticut shoreline.
More than 30 years later, the home’s soaring beamed ceilings, two-story stone fireplace, and elevated master bedroom pod have withstood salt air and hurricanes.
“Some parts were delivered by helicopter and others by barge; then it took a year to put everything together,” Dickinson says. “Everything had to be hand-carried to the building site from the barge.”
Green Island, which sold in 2021 for $2.35 million, requires a private boat or a special reservation with the ferry company for transportation. Unlike many islands, Green Island has water, electricity, and a sewer system connected to the mainland instead of using a well or a septic system.
Construction challenges were moderated on Pine Island, a 56-acre private island in Okatie, S.C., because it’s connected by a causeway to Spring Island, home to a private golf club. The 6,130-square-foot home on Pine Island, designed by architect William McDonough of Charlottesville, Va., mixes Japanese and Low Country architectural elements.
“The owners built this house in 2002 to use as a family retreat,” says Jack Huguley, a real estate agent with Daniel Ravenel Sotheby’s International Realty in Charleston, S.C. “They wanted privacy and acreage and deep water access to the Atlantic Ocean, but the causeway to the adjacent island makes life easier.”
The property has a guesthouse, a swimming pool, a six-car garage, a deep-water dock, and is connected to public water and sewer systems on Spring Island and has satellite internet service. Pine Island is listed for sale at $10 million.
“When you’re inside and you look out through all the walls of glass across the nature preserve, marsh, and river, you feel like there’s no one else anywhere around you,” Huguley says.
No matter where the property is located, owners must make some accommodations to the limitations of a private island.In most of Asia and the South Pacific, buyers need to partner with a local for a long-term lease because governments own private islands. In the U.S., Canada, the Bahamas, and most of Central America, you can buy an island.
Environmental restrictions may limit what you can build on an island, so it helps to find an island with a property that can be grandfathered in, Krolow says.
Owning an island has become easier over the past 15 years or so because of technology improvements in desalination systems, solar panels and batteries, generators, and satellite systems for internet access, Krolow says.
Generator fuel costs can be $1 million annually for some island homes and staff costs at least $100,000 annually in the Bahamas, Krolow says. Islands in warmer climates are more expensive than those in cooler climates, but people may use them for longer periods, he says.
“It’s critical to understand the limits of building on a private island,” Dickinson says. “There may be septic and power issues. The nature and cost of building a structure can be high because you need impact glazing on windows, stainless steel, and solid wood to hold up to the elements.”
Houses must be built on high enough land to withstand storms and rising sea levels, which could mean damp areas need to be filled in or dredging could be needed to create deeper water for a boat, Krolow says.
It’s also essential to know whether a marina or a mechanic can be reached if you have a boat that needs repair and to know where you will be able to get provisions. Since private islands typically cost a minimum of $1.5 million to $2.5 million and easily top $50 million, most owners hire a staff to manage logistics, Krolow says.
Despite the complications, the allure of owning an island continues to draw buyers looking for that ultimate level of luxury and privacy.
This article appears in the September 2022 issue of Penta magazine.
When Chris Krolow was 11 years old, he persuaded his parents to let him camp on a private island adjacent to the one in Georgian Bay, Ontario, where the rest of the family camped.
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