In the SIX TORTUROUS WEEKS that we waited (thanks to the winter in Maine) before going to actually visit Serenity Island, there was remarkably little to do. The loan was in place, just waiting on the final appraisal, and the contract was in place, with the safety net that said it was all contingent on whether we actually loved it as much in person as we thought we would in theory. But because we couldn't just "sit still and wait" we used that time to educate ourselves as much as possible.
Obviously, owning a private island is not the same as owning a vacation property on the mainland, and we knew there was a LOT that we didn't even know we didn't know. I started by Googling things like "I bought an island" and "owning a private island" and I learned a lot just from that. There are a lot of articles cautioning you against making a vacation property purchase if you are counting on being able to rent it out when you're not there, as that carries with it lots of issues and costs and uncertainties. Well, though we hoped to be able to share Serenity Island with lots of friends and family, we did not have any desire to rent it out to strangers so...check.
The other thing people on the internet wanted to warn me about was island accessibility. There was one island real estate agent who told about taking a couple out to an island they were interested in, and the boat trip to their island took fourteen hours...she said she knew she'd lost them by hour five. I guess!
As much as Roger and I love the ocean, we are not boaters. In fact, our one attempt at kayaking was a hilarious failure, one which neither of us was keen to recreate. Serenity Island was, we learned, so close to the mainland that, at low tide, one can simply walk out to it. Just walk! We can totally walk!
The other thing to consider was general development of the island, and on this point, we felt pretty good. The 640 square foot cabin was already wired for electric (powered by a Troybilt gas generator) and with a functioning septic system and a composting toilet. Two sinks (kitchen and bathroom) and the shower are supplied by a cistern which has a full water-collection system, but could also be filled by hand-carried water (like 25 gallons bought at Walmart) during the dryer weather. This is not water for drinking or cooking, mind you, but fine for washing. This is definitely what they call "glamping."
There were 35 pictures of the island and the cabin that we were able to gather from various online sources, and we studied them thoroughly. We talked about all the things that we knew we could handle, and all the things we felt unsure about. The cabin, for instance, is absolutely beautiful...but has a bit of a personality disorder: it was built like a little lodge, all in the most gorgeous wood, but then decorated like a Florida beach house, which was all wrong.
I immediately had a million ideas to warm it up and bring it to the feeling I thought it was meant to have (like CURTAINS, for Pete's sake!)...but we also had to talk about things like whether we actually wanted to deal with a gas generator and a stove and fridge that are powered by a propane tank.
I'm a counselor, and Roger is a retired music professor; we're not really "off the grid" people. But we agreed that, for Serenity Island, we were willing to learn! I began researching contractors in the Downeast Maine area who did off-grid solar power (and I had to learn the difference between off-grid and grid-connected solar power!), and we started filling our Amazon wish list with solar lamps and lighting and a small portable solar generator. The goal: to NEVER have to use the gas generator!
Another goal: to not actually have to fill that cistern with hand carried water every day. On this point, we learned about so many interesting things like toothpaste tablets and waterless shampoo and dozens of other camping products that would reduce our need for running water. We decided we really didn't want to use that gas refrigerator at all. A gas stove can be turned on and used and then turned off, but if once we decided to use that fridge, it would have to be kept running 24/7...and that meant a steady supply of propane tanks...we figured with canned foods and with MREs and with an ice chest, we could unhook the fridge and just use it for storage. This was glamping, after all.
The last pieces of the paperwork puzzle were the inspections (one for "building" and one for "septic") and the final appraisal commissioned by Quicken Loans. These had also had to wait on the weather, and so they were all happening together at pretty much the last minute before our trip. We were so excited to receive all the paperwork, especially because of all the new photos of the cabin, from angles we'd never seen. Everything was exactly the same. In fact, when looking at the original pictures which were noted with "everything conveys" Roger and I had laughed together that, probably that bottle of mouthwash didn't come with it. But no...that bottle of mouthwash was still there! Do you see it there by the little basket?
Don't worry...we won't be using that. But it was fun to see that all was exactly as represented, and the inspections were all favorable. The appraisal found the property to be worth $8k more than the asking price, so we were quite pleased.
By now, we were only 4 days before flying to Maine to visit Serenity Island in person, and to sign the papers...but then 2 days before the flight, we had the rug pulled out from under us...and that will be for another chapter. :)