Buying and moving to an island in Canada: Part 1, the pros

You may be surprised to hear that it’s possible to buy your own island. It sounds almost like a tale out of The Swiss Family Robinson. And you might wonder, ‘but why would I want to do THAT?’ Or, you may be thinking, ‘where do I sign up?’

Well, watching a show like Island Hunters can give some insight into what it’s like to go shopping for an island to buy. But scouring the Internet for ‘How to buy an island’ will tell you two sides to the story for AFTER you’ve moved in.

The short end of it is that:

• Islands are not usually long-term living spots (not that they can’t be though!).

• Island can be cheaper than you’d think, for the initial investment.

• Islands come with a lot of living limitations and ongoing expenses.

In this article, we’re going to discuss the pros of buying and moving to an island in Canada. Next week, we’ll delve into the cons, to help give you a balanced view of what it is like to own an island.

Moving to an island can provide a personal sanctuary and a fun adventure

According to one part owner of a Nova Scotia island, buying an island was about the feeling of sovereignty, and not so much about having a tropical getaway, as some may assume would be the only reason to own an island. He says about his choice to go North for island ownership that, “They may not fit the archetype of the tropical private island, but the climate wasn’t why I wanted the island. I wanted to share a miniature country with some friends and see what we could build.”

While he and his friends who bought the island may not literally have formed their own “country,” they seem to have made a fun settlement project for themselves, as they plighted towards making the island more conducive to even just basic camping standards. But as you’ll see from this post, that was no easy feat: https://hackthesystem.com/blog/why-we-bought-an-island/

You’ll also want to check out next week’s article where we talk about the cons of island buying and living. It can be more restrictive than building whatever you want on your own turf.

Islands in Canada can be affordable real estate investments that aren’t hard to find

Now, when we say ‘investment’ we don’t mean high turnover like buying real estate in downtown Vancouver. We learned that from Ed Hanja, a realtor specializing in remote land, who also rightly said that people who buy islands are usually not the type to be doing so because of a need to turn profit.

But – and this is a big ‘but’ – if you’re like the blogger and his 9 friends mentioned at the beginning of this article, moving to an island in Canada may actually be an attainable goal for the ‘average joe.’

According to this Business News Network article, a realtor specializing in islands says, “We have sold islands to teachers for $50-60 thousand in Nova Scotia where they built a $20-30-thousand cabin.”

And, privateislandsonline.com says “Canada‘s islands cost a fraction of properties located in the U.S.” The site also points out that Canada’s East and West Coasts are really watery with lakes and all, so islands can be spotted more easily than you’d think. They can also be located next to common tourist hubs, or at least where ‘people’ are.

Here are articles that list islands that were for sale in 2015, though the first list is world-wide:

• https://www.businessinsider.com/16-islands-you-can-buy-right-now-2015-4
• https://notable.ca/want-your-own-island-for-under-500k-heres-a-list-of-more-than-thirty-for-sale-right-now-in-canada/

Make money off your island instead of moving to it

After you buy your island, if you don’t want to move there to live all-year-round, you could also consider renting it out to vacationers. But you’d need to check with local bylaws about that first, according to WikiHow. You’d also need to consider the cost of maintenance while you’re not there, and someone to take care of the place and prep it for your rental move-ins.

There’s more to buying and moving to a private island than meets the eye

While what we’ve said here may sound like it’s all butterflies and roses when moving to an island, we want to assure you, that is only one side to the debate. When you begin your soul searching for whether or not you should buy an island, you’ll also want to be well aware of the cons involved.

Read: Cons of Buying & Moving to a Canadian Island (part 2) — where we discuss things you’ll want to know before signing up to move to your future island!

Need professional help moving onto your Canadian Island?

Strange as it sounds, chances are we can help you move onto your island — when your been moving people throughout Canada for over 100 years, you learn a thing or two about just about everything moving related!

Call us at 604-922-2212 and ask how we can help you.  Ferguson Moving Company is an all around great choice when it comes to helping folks move.