Downsizing in the Bahamas

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Downsizing in the Bahamas

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Quail By Mail

Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 295
Location: Brixham, South Devon

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 4:03 pm Post subject: Downsizing in the Bahamas

In the late 90s my husband and I bought matching plots on Great Exuma, one of the Family Islands in the Bahamas. About 3/4 of an acre for about 6,000USD each, we even, bizarrely, had a loan through Coutts. About 5 of our friends had bought plots, then we did then another 2 friends bought their plots. We've even taken trips out to visit the building plots as soon as all of us got the deeds. Fab! Especially fab since we were visiting at the same time Bill Gates was lunching at one of Georgetown's bistros.

The only problem with our plots is not the building, the planning, or hydro, water etc. It's getting the building materials to Exuma. Obviously there are towns and developments nearby (ie civilisation!) and we all chose elevated plots which are now less than 1/2mile away to the new Four Seasons Hotel and Greg Norman golf course, so building is not entirely impossible. One of us is now researching how to go about importing supplies from Florida. The reason for posting this on Downsizer is that several people are in the same boat and wanting to build on Exuma and you never know if other Exuma homebuilders might see this post!

One of our bunch is studying agriculture and mentioned that Great Exuma would be an ideal place in which to have a small commercial veg farm, considering that all the hotels and markets import masses of fresh produce from abroad!

Anybody building a house on Great Exuma, or have finished a house there?

boisdevie1

Joined: 11 Aug 2006
Posts: 3897
Location: Lancaster

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 4:14 pm Post subject: Re: Downsizing in the Bahamas

Quail By Mail wrote:

We've even taken trips out to visit the building plots as soon as all of us got the deeds.

Excellent. Have you found any other ways to increase your carbon footprint?

Bebo

Joined: 21 May 2007
Posts: 12590
Location: East Sussex

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 5:01 pm Post subject: Re: Downsizing in the Bahamas

boisdevie1 wrote:

Quail By Mail wrote:

We've even taken trips out to visit the building plots as soon as all of us got the deeds.

Excellent. Have you found any other ways to increase your carbon footprint?

At least she will have had a good time up until the great apocalypse. The way you go on the only time you'll actually be happy is when it happens, when you can gleefully tell everyone 'told you so, it's all your fault'.

I flew to Barbados and back last year nah nah nah nah nah

Quail By Mail

Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 295
Location: Brixham, South Devon

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 6:27 pm Post subject:

Two of the guys in 'the owners group' operate a father and son yacht charter (they don't own a house--just in case readers think it is an undeserving thing to have a boat). They will sail across taking anyone who can stand the journey and then base themselves there for trips around the Carribean. So the next time I visit I might not have a carbon footprint. I thought I'd get to the Canaries and then decide.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 7:23 pm Post subject:
Perhaps the rights and wrongs of carbon footprints should be in another thread. What I'm curious about is the importing of building materials. Why? What's locally used and what's wrong with using that?

Quail By Mail

Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 295
Location: Brixham, South Devon

Posted: Sun Sep 21, 08 10:53 pm Post subject:

Treacodactyl wrote:

What I'm curious about is the importing of building materials. Why? What's locally used and what's wrong with using that?

Good question. We knew the island was small and remote (everywhere is off the beaten track once your off New Providence Island (Nassau). There is very little industry of any kind, though there is a wood mill there (logs imported from the Everglades) and a couple bulldozers and one road grader. Building materials like brick or stone, glazing, electrics is pretty limited or non existant. The largest town has about 800 people in it, the island is about 6miles wide and 25miles long with scrub trees and shrubs mostly. What's used locally varies from clapboard homes on cement foundations to what looks like your average UK bungalow. We're keen to self build and interested in something simple like this:
https://static.flickr.com/84/252574368_32dbff7fff.jpg Apparently fresh water is easily got ahold of so a well and pipework would be added to the list.

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