Introduction
Island homes for sale are plenty all over the world and it’s a dream for many people to own these types of houses. However, they are pretty expensive and unless you have enough money and insider tips, you won’t be able to find decent island homes for sale.
Step 1
Structuring your research for island homes for sale is the first step. You must know which part of the world you want a secondary home or a primary residence when you retire. Ideally, finding homes on an island that is near to your country of residence is advisable so that it is not difficult to manage the property or travel to the place. For example, if you are an American, you might look at island homes for sale in the Caribbean, Central or Latin America or even within US territory.
Step 2
Once you have decided where you want to locate your houses, you can make a realistic budget defining how much you are willing to spend on island homes for sale. They are not cheap at all, unless you are thinking of relocating in far places or developing countries where real estate is still affordable.
Step 3
Since you already know where you want to settle, look for island homes for sale on the internet by putting your keywords in the search engine’s browser and see what it comes up with. Real estate listings may appear on island homes for sale and you could just check if there are interesting offers. The real estate broker is also listed and you can contact the realtors to see if the prices are negotiable. For example, if you are interested in buying a house in North Captiva Island, Florida, there are several island homes for sale in the area. Prices range from a low of $189,000 to a high of $2.5 million. Watch out for island homes for short sale as this is where you can get good prices for beach real estate.
Step 4
Another way to find island homes for sale is to look at real estate agencies in the particular country where you want to buy a house. For example, if you are thinking of buying a house in the Philippines, go to real estate websites of the country and check the prices. These island homes for sale are cheaper than those found in developed countries such as the US, Australia, or New Zealand. However, the disadvantage is you have to be sure that you like these island homes for sale and are willing to travel to check out the place. In addition, there are many pitfalls to buying island homes outside of your country of residence such as laws pertinent to foreign ownerships, property taxes, and often bureaucratic sale procedures.
Step 5
There are also auction sites dedicated to island homes for sale where you can find a decent deal if you are quick enough and have the right capital to put the money upfront. Again, these island homes for sale are not cheap and you have to put an enticing bid in order to win. Example of these types of sites are The National Auction (national-auction.com) and Island Auction Rooms (islandauctionrooms.co.uk).
Tips
You can also buy your own island and build homes on it. Private Island Online is one such website that has an extensive catalog of islands for sale where you can build homes. It offers islands anywhere in the world and as expected, these are hefty prices ranging from $2.75 to $4.7 million in places like Belize, Panama, or the Seychelles. Other island homes for sale can also reach as high as $50 million on Buck Island, British Virgin Islands. These are ideal for investors who are thinking of building up resorts on the property or retirement homes.
Sources and Citations
http://www.privateislandsonline.com/