Island Living Questions

[Pine Island Guy]

Originally Posted by Rattlesnake Gal

There have been some major life events in our family over the past year plus, which made us reevaluatie our life's goals and dreams - it's time for us to do some traveling. I do know that letting go isn't going to be easy... You can take the gal off the island, but you could never take the island out of this Gal. Lake Winnipesaukee will always be in my heart and soul. Sniff!

Hey Celia - very sorry to hear you're moving "off island", but hope you enjoy your future travels!! You've been a big part of the Forum and trust you will keep us posted with your new adventures

Think Spring!! -PIG

[rgilfert]

RG, I just saw your post and I am speechless ..... so sorry to hear that you're leaving the island. You were the very first person that I met when we bought our place on the island in fall 2011. You were kayaking by and stopped by to introduce yourself and say "hi" .... we had a great conversation that afternoon! My best wishes go out to you guys in life's next chapter!!

[Tired of Waiting]

Celia,

I am sad to hear that you are leaving the island. I hope you will still be visiting the lake.

Keep us informed of your travels and God bless. You and R-Guy have been a very big part of this forum family.

ToW

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Thanks everyone one for the well wishes. I sincerely appreciate them and plan on remaining an active member here on the Forum.

Originally Posted by MAXUM

Nancy is awesome and I second that recommendation. When we my wife and I bought our place she was there every step of the way and there is nobody else quite like her. In fact her husband just got his license and the two of them are now working together. Between the two of them you will not find more knowledgeable and dedicated folks to work with. They are the best no question about it. Don't be fooled by others that supposedly specialize in island property, you may find yourself disappointed.

Maxum, you aren't kidding about others that "specialize" in island property! Thankfully we found Nancy and Doug! (Though we have not met him yet.) We do know firsthand that this husband and wife team are perfect agent partners! They aren't afraid to get out on the lake to show properties and they also do not discourage clients that may be interested in a property on The Broads, which was especially important to us.

If anyone here on the Forum is considering listing a lake property, give Nancy a call and set up an interview. I think that you will be impressed too. She was/is a pleasure to deal with and really pays attention to details. In addition to selling the camp, we also listed our Hollis property last August. The difference between Nancy and our agent down here was night and day. Nancy sets up your listing and then sends you the link to proof read it and to get your input on any changes that you would like to make before it goes live. (Our agent here just plowed forward with a less than perfect listing and it was like pulling teeth for many days, with threats, to get changes made.) Nancy and Doug have a professional photographer they use for the listing photos. You may not think this a big deal, but it is! (I had to retake each and every picture for our Hollis listing!) Nancy and Doug do not put a lock box on your door. They believe in truly representing their clients by attending each and every showing.

If you are considering an island purchase this spring, I wish you the best of luck. I do have more input on buying and living on an island property. My iPad acted up and I lost my post. I will re-do it shortly.

Keller Williams Lakes and Mountains Realty a call. 603-498-3573

[Airedale1]

RG very sorry to hear that you are leaving. I hope that no matter wherever your travels may take you; that you stay on here at the forum and share tales of your trips with us all.

[RidgeRunner31]

Originally Posted by Rattlesnake Gal

Mike, when it's time to actually go out and look at island properties, I highly recommend that you give Nancy DePorter of Keller Williams Lakes and Mountains Realty a call. 603-498-3573 Nancy is absolutely wonderful and is a knowledgable islander and is a well seasoned boater. Tell her that RG sent ya! We listed our place with her last season and will relist with her as soon as the camp is ready at ice-out.
(There have been some major life events in our family over the past year plus, which made us reevaluatie our life's goals and dreams - it's time for us to do some traveling. I do know that letting go isn't going to be easy... You can take the gal off the island, but you could never take the island out of this Gal. Lake Winnipesaukee will always be in my heart and soul. Sniff!)

Having a place on The Broads has been nothing short of amazing!!! Clean water, wide open spaces and in our case, a super private and deep dock spot. We loved every second of our time spent at here and know that the next family will make life long treasured memories too.

Just to add a little bit more information, not all properties Broads side need a breakwater. We purchased our place that has a u-shaped dock back in 2003. We immediately put in oversized (for our 21' boat) whips and have never, ever had an issue of any kind... In any weather. In our case, there is a jog in the island just where our lot starts, which does act as a deflector of sorts for the waves. I certainly would not leave our boat out there in a hurricane, but otherwise, there is no weather that I would not feel comfortable out there in. Last year we only used the whips once. The rest of the time a super large bumper at the bow on the shore side and a snubber at the stern was absolutely adequate.

Best of luck to you and your family, RidgeRunner31! I hope that you find your piece of Lake Winnipesaukee heaven! If you ever would like to talk island living, please feel free to PM me for my number. R-Guy and I have gained a lot of lake/island knowledge over these past thirteen years and would love to share what we've learned with you.

Sincerely,

Celia

Thank you RG for taking the time to respond to the thread I created!! I really appreciate any feedback I get and this forum has been a great resource.

First, I hope you enjoy your future travels and I wish you the best of luck!!

Second, I actually started working with Nancy this past fall and you are 100% correct! She is very knowledgeable and passionate about her work. I feel like she really enjoys helping people find that special island property. I'm really glad we decided to go with her!

I have talked to another forum member that lives on The Broads and they love it as well. You can't beat the view that's for sure.

Thank you giving me the option to PM you as well if I have any questions.

Thanks!

Mike

[RidgeRunner31]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

Nancy is awesome and I second that recommendation. When we my wife and I bought our place she was there every step of the way and there is nobody else quite like her. In fact her husband just got his license and the two of them are now working together. Between the two of them you will not find more knowledgeable and dedicated folks to work with. They are the best no question about it. Don't be fooled by others that supposedly specialize in island property, you may find yourself disappointed.

I'm actually already working with Nancy!

This past fall I came across some older threads and noticed you had some very nice things to say about Nancy. Your comments were one of the reasons my wife and I decided to work with her!!

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Some camps/cottages have alternative septic systems. If you find one with an electric toilet... Run away!!! Just kidding. Plan on replacing it early on. Here is a post from another thread on the subject:

Originally Posted by Rattlesnake Guy

Dan
Note: this started as a PM but after reading it to my family, they encouraged me to post it here. I am still not sure... but if it saves a life...

I am just going to rattle off the issues. Celia is helping me with the list in no particular order.

The device requires a paper liner to be inserted into a stainless steel clam shell, sort of like putting a coffee filter in a coffee maker. Not a big deal for us regulars, but it freaked out our company a bit.

The liquid and solids go into that big paper cone. We had some guest with bladders that were capable of overflowing the cone. The result was urine running out of the unit while they were sitting there.

The concept of drying out the solids to ash actually works pretty well but the addition of all the liquid really slowed down the process. I was pretty impressed with how little ash remained from all the use.

The paper cone did not always go down into the heated pot correctly. Sometimes it would not go far enough down for the cover over the burn chamber would not close. This required you to interact with a combination of poop, liquid and paper in various forms of being on fire.

When the materials are dehydrating (boiling and burning), the vapor would pass through the unit and as it touched cooler surfaces of the unit, it would condense this brownish sticky buildup on the inside of the unit that would require periodic disassembly and cleaning. Truly disgusting. To add insult to injury, this sticky condensate was great at catching dust and ash that was also being pulled through the same air paths.

If you flush the unit while sitting, you would not have to worry about shaving anything for a long time.

One time we had a power failure while the unit was running. The coals were still burning but the fan was no longer running. It took about a month to get the smell out of the camp.

When we moved in, the exhaust stack was a straight shot out the back of the camp which hit the wall of rock behind us with the steep island. It became obvious with the 4 of us here in the summer, this was not going to work from an oder standpoint.

We raised the stack to a height of about 10 feet. It was not good enough to satisfy the smell factor of certain contributions.

We lengthened the burn time to insure that it was burning completely. Otherwise you end up with a build up each time. This helped the amount of clean outs we had to do.

Eventually, you have to take the burn pot out and scrape the ash and build up out of it. The constant heating of the stainless pot with liquids caused it to corrode. This made the ease of cleaning pretty tough.

The fan is pretty noisy and runs a long time for each cycle. I think we were doing a 2 hour cycle. Lots of rattling with the constant vibrating from the fan.

Raised the stack another 10 feet. This helped but it was sometimes bad enough we had to leave the deck on the other side of the house depending on the wind direction. Its a tough smell. And everyone knows what it is. I found myself trying to time my bathroom activities to when the family was leaving the house for a while.

The 20 foot stack was taken down and put up each season as I was not sure how it would survive the winter.

I think that's about it.

The smell. It is too easy a target. It's not good. And the little pellets they sell to mask the smell are useless.

We changed out to a plumbed in over sized composting unit and love it. Not perfect but compared to the incinolet, it is great.

Let me know if I missed anything.

Paul

Good times.

If the property that you are considering has a composting unit, be sure it is large enough to handle your family's needs. If it's too small, consider an upgrade. The composting units are very easy to maintain and on the upside, you don't need to hire a barge to bring a pump truck to the island.

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by RidgeRunner31

I'm actually already working with Nancy!

This past fall I came across some older threads and noticed you had some very nice things to about Nancy. Your comments were one of the reasons my wife and I decided to work with her!!

Great! Now all you need to do is find the perfect place. The hardest part is waiting, but it'll be worth it when you do and the deal is done.

Good luck!

[goldfly600]

I have been eagerly reading this thread, soaking up all the advice and half-afraid to read something I hadn't thought of before! My husband and I just closed on a house on the west side of Rattlesnake and we are dying to get out there. We looked at the house just once in August, and the incinolet almost scared us off. We have a new septic system being installed shortly after ice-out. Reading the play-by-play of the Incinolet above does much to bolster my confidence I having made the decision for the new septic!

We are excited about our new adventure, and an "adventure" it will be as we try to figure out how to hook up the water and navigate all the inevitable challenges of which we are not yet aware. We have only spent one week on an island last August, but it was enough to get us hooked on island living. I am looking forward to meeting our neighbors!

Best,
Beth

[Slickcraft]

Originally Posted by goldfly600

I have been eagerly reading this thread, soaking up all the advice and half-afraid to read something I hadn't thought of before! My husband and I just closed on a house on the west side of Rattlesnake and we are dying to get out there. We looked at the house just once in August, and the incinolet almost scared us off. We have a new septic system being installed shortly after ice-out. Reading the play-by-play of the Incinolet above does much to bolster my confidence I having made the decision for the new septic!

We are excited about our new adventure, and an "adventure" it will be as we try to figure out how to hook up the water and navigate all the inevitable challenges of which we are not yet aware. We have only spent one week on an island last August, but it was enough to get us hooked on island living. I am looking forward to meeting our neighbors!

Best,
Beth

Welcome to the Forum. Savor your 1st trip out after ice out this year. It will be the best.

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by goldfly600

I have been eagerly reading this thread, soaking up all the advice and half-afraid to read something I hadn't thought of before! My husband and I just closed on a house on the west side of Rattlesnake and we are dying to get out there. We looked at the house just once in August, and the incinolet almost scared us off. We have a new septic system being installed shortly after ice-out. Reading the play-by-play of the Incinolet above does much to bolster my confidence I having made the decision for the new septic!

We are excited about our new adventure, and an "adventure" it will be as we try to figure out how to hook up the water and navigate all the inevitable challenges of which we are not yet aware. We have only spent one week on an island last August, but it was enough to get us hooked on island living. I am looking forward to meeting our neighbors!

Best,
Beth

Welcome to the Forum and enjoy your new place. Hope the transition goes super smooth.

[Descant]

We are now into the fourth generation of island living. The one thing we are missing is a written history. I hope you will keep a journal and related pictures of EVERYTHING. When previous generations started, nobody knew how historic this island stuff could be.

[northforty]

Thanks for mentioning that- keeping an island log/history. Our family log dates to 1879 when forebears would stay on Camp Island. They finally bought in 1912 in the Forties. Some pretty interesting tales survive not to mention the sense of continuity... priceless.

[IslandRadio]

Originally Posted by goldfly600

I have been eagerly reading this thread, soaking up all the advice and half-afraid to read something I hadn't thought of before! My husband and I just closed on a house on the west side of Rattlesnake and we are dying to get out there. We looked at the house just once in August, and the incinolet almost scared us off. We have a new septic system being installed shortly after ice-out. Reading the play-by-play of the Incinolet above does much to bolster my confidence I having made the decision for the new septic!

We are excited about our new adventure, and an "adventure" it will be as we try to figure out how to hook up the water and navigate all the inevitable challenges of which we are not yet aware. We have only spent one week on an island last August, but it was enough to get us hooked on island living. I am looking forward to meeting our neighbors!

Best,
Beth

Welcome to the Island ! We're on Rattlesnake, and not too far from you at #250 (further down the Island on the "thumb" AKA the peninsula)

Hopefully, you (and/or your husband) are handy with tools and the like. It's kind of mandatory on the Island

Putting the water in usually isn't too bad. Some setups are a lot easier than others - it depends on how yours is constructed. Priming the pump is usually the biggest problem I face, not having a self priming pump. Do you know anything about the water setup?

The addition of a septic will certainly ease your Island life quite a bit !! Things will feel almost "normal"

That section of the Island where your place is located is generally somewhat protected from the heaviest winds unless they're coming in from the South or close to it - and usually (but not always) those winds are not nearly as strong as the winds that hit us from a Westerly direction.

Give a shout (or a PM) if you get stuck with something or need help or another set of eyes or just want to say "hello".

We hike the trails a lot and often go end-to-end, so we're up behind your place when hiking over to Washington Point.

Regards, Steve (AKA IslandRadio)

[goldfly600]

Originally Posted by IslandRadio

Welcome to the Island ! We're on Rattlesnake, and not too far from you at #250 (further down the Island on the "thumb" AKA the peninsula)

Hopefully, you (and/or your husband) are handy with tools and the like. It's kind of mandatory on the Island

Putting the water in usually isn't too bad. Some setups are a lot easier than others - it depends on how yours is constructed. Priming the pump is usually the biggest problem I face, not having a self priming pump. Do you know anything about the water setup?

The addition of a septic will certainly ease your Island life quite a bit !! Things will feel almost "normal"

That section of the Island where your place is located is generally somewhat protected from the heaviest winds unless they're coming in from the South or close to it - and usually (but not always) those winds are not nearly as strong as the winds that hit us from a Westerly direction.

Give a shout (or a PM) if you get stuck with something or need help or another set of eyes or just want to say "hello".

We hike the trails a lot and often go end-to-end, so we're up behind your place when hiking over to Washington Point.

Regards, Steve (AKA IslandRadio)

Thanks for the message, Steve.

I wield a mean paint brush, but apart from that, the best I can offer is that I take direction well. My husband, Todd, on the other hand, is great with tools, despite being an English professor. He's handy with home improvement and boats / engines and isn't afraid to tackle projects and figure things out.

We know absolutely nothing about the water set-up, but I'm glad to hear you say it isn't too bad! We will just have to wait and see on a lot of it, but we are eager to get to work.

Looking forward to meeting you!
Beth

[IslandRadio]

Ok sounds good! If the ice ever melts, that is

The first year on the Island was the earliest ice out in history (at that time) - March 24th, and it was a beautiful, warm summer too ! Two years later we had March 23rd for ice out....

No such luck this year but maybe we'll get a nice April warm up!

[Flyfisha]

Hey Goldfly
Welcome to Rattlesnake. I am farther down the island.

Don't let the Incinolet scare you off until you get the septic installed. I have been running two of them for years. One in our camp and one in our old outhouse. We have a family of eight-- sure it requires maintenance but does the job. Use it until you get you septic settled and when you are done let me know if you want to get rid of it!! With a family of eight we could always use a spare!

[Leoskeys]

Does Diamond have an interior walking trail?

[Leoskeys]

Hello,
I already have a home on the lake, but I'm trying to help a friend who is considering buying an island home. Anyone know if the mortgage process is different? And if he wanted one loan to cover buying home, boat, and upgrading home, can that be done with one loan versus two or three different loans?
For an "easy math" instance, home price of $300k, $50k for boat, and $50k for improvements. Do you think he can get one mortgage for $400k?

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Hello,
I already have a home on the lake, but I'm trying to help a friend who is considering buying an island home. Anyone know if the mortgage process is different? And if he wanted one loan to cover buying home, boat, and upgrading home, can that be done with one loan versus two or three different loans?
For an "easy math" instance, home price of $300k, $50k for boat, and $50k for improvements. Do you think he can get one mortgage for $400k?

Getting a mortgage on island property is not different, the process is all the same, HOWEVER....

Save yourself some trouble and advise your friend to discuss his mortgage with a local bank and don't try to go after a loan with a broker or big bank who are not adequately familiar with underwriting a seasonal island property. I ran into this with my mortgage broker, the deal eventually got done but not before dealing with some unnecessary heartache finding out a week from closing they would not close on the loan until they had a buyer for the mortgage all lined up and they did not typically service these kinds of loans. I was furious since had I known that AHEAD of time I never would have engaged them in the first place. That could very well have spelled disaster on the deal since the seller could have easily walked away instead of giving us an extension to get the loan done.

Had I known better I would have gone to Meredith Village Savings Bank, they are great to deal with and get the whole island property thing.

[HellRaZoR004]

I agree with MAXUM, give Pam Noble @ MVSB a call or email.

pnoble@mvsb.com
direct: 603.279.9291

[winni83]

Ditto for MVSB and Pam Noble. None of the "how far is the nearest fire hydrant" and similar questions. The Bank gets the reality of Winni real estate.

[codeman671]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Hello,
I already have a home on the lake, but I'm trying to help a friend who is considering buying an island home. Anyone know if the mortgage process is different? And if he wanted one loan to cover buying home, boat, and upgrading home, can that be done with one loan versus two or three different loans?
For an "easy math" instance, home price of $300k, $50k for boat, and $50k for improvements. Do you think he can get one mortgage for $400k?

Trying to tie your boat loan into your mortgage will not be possible, not to mention why spread out your boat payment over 30 years? It is possible to wrap in improvements as long as you have enough percentage of the total combined purchase to put down, and provided it appraises ok in completed state. Island appraisals can be tricky.

If there is sufficient equity position, he could put it on a HELOC but doing the simple math it doesn't sound like that will work unless they are putting a lot down. Assume a $350k all in on the house, you will need 20-25% down plus closing costs. That leaves you are $280k mortgaged with 20% down, or $70k+ out of pocket. In order to have enough equity on top of that to buy a boat on a heloc you would end up having to have a much larger equity stake in the house, or more cash outlay up front.

In short, buy the boat separately. It wont work otherwise. Also, make sure they have plenty of cash to start down this path, you are not going to get a island mortgage with 3% down and PMI... They will want 20-25%.

I will mirror the other comments made, don't waste your time with a big lender. Go to Laconia Savings, MVSB, or even Newburyport 5 Cent.

[Leoskeys]

Thanks for the comments. I too used MVSB when I bought my home on the lake.

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by codeman671

Trying to tie your boat loan into your mortgage will not be possible, not to mention why spread out your boat payment over 30 years? It is possible to wrap in improvements as long as you have enough percentage of the total combined purchase to put down, and provided it appraises ok in completed state. Island appraisals can be tricky.

If there is sufficient equity position, he could put it on a HELOC but doing the simple math it doesn't sound like that will work unless they are putting a lot down. Assume a $350k all in on the house, you will need 20-25% down plus closing costs. That leaves you are $280k mortgaged with 20% down, or $70k+ out of pocket. In order to have enough equity on top of that to buy a boat on a heloc you would end up having to have a much larger equity stake in the house, or more cash outlay up front.

In short, buy the boat separately. It wont work otherwise. Also, make sure they have plenty of cash to start down this path, you are not going to get a island mortgage with 3% down and PMI... They will want 20-25%.

I will mirror the other comments made, don't waste your time with a big lender. Go to Laconia Savings, MVSB, or even Newburyport 5 Cent.

Good point on the equity piece, 20% down is the bare minimum for a second home as a general rule, they can get even more needy if it's seasonal or if the value of the house is out of the value percentage skew versus the value of the land. In other words if the value of the building is to little of the overall land and building package price that can set off red flags.

If it were me I would worry about securing the property first and worry about buying a boat and improvements later. In fact your friend may find out quickly that spending big bucks on an island boat isn't necessarily a good idea. Whatever boat he/she gets will inevitably be used not just for pleasure but also as a freight/trash hauler. Not necessarily something you'd want to do with a 50K boat. Plus having two boats is really ideal, when one breaks you have an alternative way off the island.

[Joebon]

So, your friend wants to buy a second home with no money down, improve the home and buy a boat? Isn't America great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[TiltonBB]

Most all fixed rate loans are sold in the secondary market and there are guidelines for them to be accepted. Even when they are not sold and instead held by a local bank, the local bank generally uses the same underwriting guidelines to process the loan. That way if the bank ever wishes to transfer servicing the new lienholder knows it meets appropriate criteria.

The value that will be used by the lender is the lesser of the appraised value or the selling price.

[secondcurve]

Originally Posted by Joebon

So, your friend wants to buy a second home with no money down, improve the home and buy a boat? Isn't America great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The type of financing this person is looking for would have been tough to get even during the boom days of 2004-2007.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by Joebon

So, your friend wants to buy a second home with no money down, improve the home and buy a boat? Isn't America great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Did I miss something? Where does it say "no money down"?

I also used MVSB, and worked with Lori Borin. Great people.

Sent from my XT1528 using Tapatalk

[Joebon]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Did I miss something? Where does it say "no money down"?

I also used MVSB, and worked with Lori Borin. Great people.

Sent from my XT1528 using Tapatalk

It says purchase price $300, $50 for upgrades and $50 for a boat and a mortgage of $400. Math never lies.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[secondcurve]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Did I miss something? Where does it say "no money down"?

I also used MVSB, and worked with Lori Borin. Great people.

Sent from my XT1528 using Tapatalk

Yes you did. Basic math: Home price $300,000 + boat of $50,000 and $50,000 for improvements. mortgage loan he is seeking is $400,000. Basically, the person is asking for a loan well in excess of the $300,000 home purchase price.

[thinkxingu]

"For an easy math instance" implies fake numbers. We have no idea what the OP's friend is dealing with for numbers.

Sent from my XT1528 using Tapatalk

[Pricestavern]

Why so literal? <in the voice of the Joker>

The post asked about loan strategies; one vs multiple. The numbers supplied were used as an illustration.

[Leoskeys]

Wow, too literal is right! I gave ballpark numbers for he purpose of the question . They would put AT LEAST 20% down. But with how low rates are, they will put as little down as allowed without having to deal with PMI.

[Leoskeys]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

Good point on the equity piece, 20% down is the bare minimum for a second home as a general rule, they can get even more needy if it's seasonal or if the value of the house is out of the value percentage skew versus the value of the land. In other words if the value of the building is to little of the overall land and building package price that can set off red flags.

If it were me I would worry about securing the property first and worry about buying a boat and improvements later. In fact your friend may find out quickly that spending big bucks on an island boat isn't necessarily a good idea. Whatever boat he/she gets will inevitably be used not just for pleasure but also as a freight/trash hauler. Not necessarily something you'd want to do with a 50K boat. Plus having two boats is really ideal, when one breaks you have an alternative way off the island.

Thanks for the feedback. Especially about the boats. Would perhaps a used 15 foot Boston whaler and a 22-24 pontoon be a good combo? I know a lot is personally preference...

[codeman671]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Thanks for the feedback. Especially about the boats. Would perhaps a used 15 foot Boston whaler and a 22-24 pontoon be a good combo? I know a lot is personally preference...

It all depends on where they are looking, but in many places on the lake that would be a decent combination. Do they have a particular island in mind?

If they were broad side of Rattlesnake that may not be the best options, but on Cow it would be good for example. Another part of it pertains to where they are calling "home port" on the mainland. If they were launching from Gilford, but boating across to Cow they may want something a bit more suited to rough water. Again, just using Cow as an example.

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by codeman671

It all depends on where they are looking, but in many places on the lake that would be a decent combination. Do they have a particular island in mind?

If they were broad side of Rattlesnake that may not be the best options, but on Cow it would be good for example. Another part of it pertains to where they are calling "home port" on the mainland. If they were launching from Gilford, but boating across to Cow they may want something a bit more suited to rough water. Again, just using Cow as an example.

Yes definitely agree on this one. Having a pontoon gives you a nice platform to haul big bulky items.... small boat really comes down to where you are and how much you plan to use it. I keep my big boat on the mooring in front of my place all season, use the little one to commute. Can't go wrong with a Whaler, those are great but can be pricey for what they are.

The broads side of Rattlesnake is sort of an exception, most other islands are not subject to the same type of conditions on a rough day.

[Pricestavern]

Another aspect that needs to be considered when buying a boat is the size of the dock at the cabin. That can be a limiting factor, especially if extending the dock is not an option.

[Winnisquamer]

Originally Posted by Pricestavern

Another aspect that needs to be considered when buying a boat is the size of the dock at the cabin. That can be a limiting factor, especially if extending the dock is not an option.

Also in my opinion whats more important then the actual length or size of the dock is the water depth at the dock. I personally have had a very long dock since back when Cigarette boats frequented Winnisquam. With out that long length I would not be able to pull my inboard in or out any time of the year, even at the end of the season I have to watch my depth or of course chew up a prop.

I am sure you know different boats need different depths. Keep an eye on what you buy or atleast keep it in mind.

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Thanks for the feedback. Especially about the boats. Would perhaps a used 15 foot Boston whaler and a 22-24 pontoon be a good combo? I know a lot is personally preference...

One other piece of advice, speaking from experience. If your friend is serious about purchasing property the best advice to give them is to employ the help of an experienced and knowledgeable real estate agent that is not just familiar with island property, but specializes in it. While it's helpful to seek out advice from a forum like this especially from those of us that are islanders, it's always good to have somebody that can help answer some of these questions and guide your friend through the process. It's not just about finding a piece of property but finding answers to who and where to go for financing, insurance, what each island has to offer or not, dealing with questions of main land logistics etc...

I highly recommend your friend contact Nancy and Doug Deporter of Keller Williams. Nancy was my agent when I bought my place and provided me with invaluable advice. They both are awesome to work with AND they are both islanders themselves. Visit her website at http://www.nancydeporter.com, or better yet have them give her a call. Several of us on this forum have employed their services and been very pleased as a result. They really are the best out there.

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Wow, too literal is right! I gave ballpark numbers for he purpose of the question . They would put AT LEAST 20% down. But with how low rates are, they will put as little down as allowed without having to deal with PMI.

A mortgage is "secured" by the appraised value of the property. As a rule of thumb you can get a mortgage for up to 90% of the property value without a lot of hassle, and assuming you have good credit.

For your numbers, you're talking a $300K mortgage and another 33% ($100K) in extras, that is very unlikely to happen.

Also, while mortgage rates may be relatively low right now, the smart money is still with putting as much of a downpayment as possible without totally depleting savings/emergency funds. From your posts it kinda sounds like your friend may be stretching things a little thin. I'd buy the property with a solid downpayment and get a cheaper boat to start. There are plenty of perfectly good boats to be had in the $15K range.

[codeman671]

Originally Posted by brk-lnt

A mortgage is "secured" by the appraised value of the property. As a rule of thumb you can get a mortgage for up to 90% of the property value without a lot of hassle, and assuming you have good credit.

For your numbers, you're talking a $300K mortgage and another 33% ($100K) in extras, that is very unlikely to happen.

Also, while mortgage rates may be relatively low right now, the smart money is still with putting as much of a downpayment as possible without totally depleting savings/emergency funds. From your posts it kinda sounds like your friend may be stretching things a little thin. I'd buy the property with a solid downpayment and get a cheaper boat to start. There are plenty of perfectly good boats to be had in the $15K range.

Islands are a bit different. The banks usually require 20-25% down as these are considered seasonal, second homes. They are also held in house (portfolio loan) instead of brokered.

[KPW]

Originally Posted by Leoskeys

Thanks for the feedback. Especially about the boats. Would perhaps a used 15 foot Boston whaler and a 22-24 pontoon be a good combo? I know a lot is personally preference...

I would go with a min 17 or 18 ft on the whaler.

[codeman671]

Originally Posted by KPW

I would go with a min 17 or 18 ft on the whaler.

I had a 16 dauntless that worked great. I would cross from Mark to Glendale in all conditions. It was perfect for running over to grab someone or store runs and was small enough that I never had a problem finding a place to park even when the docks were busy. Much easier than taking a 25' pontoon. I had a few Rage 14 and 15's as well but they were rather finicky with the OMC jet drive engines.

I did LOVE my 20 Dauntless with the 200 Verado though.

Again, this really all depends on where the property is located.