July 27: Attentive reader(s) may recall a post in November that mentioned finding a real estate ad for Regatta Island in Lake Muskoka. Even though it was “eye-wateringly expensive” and an inappropriate expense for someone of my vintage, my “interest” in buying the island has evolved into something closer to an obsession over the last few months.
There were many issues to be overcome. Firstly, there was a constant struggle to figure out the financing of something that I clearly couldn’t afford. This became more problematic as the apparent sale price increased, lenders vanished at the last moment and other bidders appeared. Secondly, there was the more pleasant focus on what I might actually do with the island once I had somehow magically acquired it. How to lay-out the kitchen and bathroom ? What kind of roof would be best ? What process should I use to get building materials on and off the island ? Really, an endless procession of mind-games that may ultimately bear little relationship to reality.
My obsession began more than 20 years ago when we owned a cottage on the adjacent Browning Island. I would sit on the deck and look across to Regatta as it sat vacant and unused for most of the summer. Occasionally, an elderly woman would arrive and spend a week or two, and then the place would be shut down again for the rest of the season. It seemed such a waste of a valuable resource, and I couldn’t help imagining how wonderful it would be to have that island, or something very like it, for my own.
My heart literally skipped a beat when the real estate listing appeared last year. The price was set a level designed to create multiple offers and it seemed a foregone conclusion that someone with very deep pockets would simply buy it for what it represented – a private island with the opportunity to demolish the old cottage and build a new monstrosity. It was the end of the season; the marinas were closing and the market went quiet. In a fit of unnecessary panic I made a low-ball offer that was written back at a level I might have been able to afford. I was ill-prepared for this eventuality, and the cottage was delisted for the winter.
When it returned to the listings in April, it was at a price more than 40% higher than the previous listing. This seemed to me to be naked greed, and I couldn’t understand the approach as a strategy to sell the place. There was a brief flurry of interest and then things went very quiet. I played chicken hoping that no serious offers would arise. None did, and in time there was a price reduction which brought one or two low-ball offers. Finally, two weeks ago, I went in with what I believed to be a reasonable offer and it has been accepted.
Certainly, patience and determination brought the cottage to me, and I am thrilled to have it. At times the pursuit of the cottage felt like an exercise in trying to prove to others that I could actually figure out the financing to buy it, and overcome other problems as they arose (septic service, for example). It was less about the cottage, and more about proving myself to others who were interested in the process, so I am left with some mixed emotions. Having bought the place, I now have to do the work to prove that the vision I had many years ago is real. And that’s something that will undoubtedly be found in following posts. For now, I’m off to the island….