Looking for an island house 'caretaker'...

[DowIsland Girl]

Hi there,

I'm wondering if anyone has had a 'caretaker' for their island property or knows of anyone who may be interested in being one for my place on Dow.

A bit of background: My family built our cottage over a period of about 12 years. In 1995, my father passed away, leaving the place to 9 family members. Since that time, other priorities, etc. have whittled away at the list of family who visit/help with upkeep etc. Today, my sister and I are the only 'owners' left and do not live nearby (DC and Seattle)

This summer's visit was tough, the place really needs some TLC and we had the privledge of putting up several chipmunks during the winter. My sister's inclination is just to sell the property, but I'm trying to hold on!!

My plan is to try and find a very responsible person who would be willing to do some basic 'caretaking' things (like replacing rotting stairs of the back deck, keeping the house open, etc.) as soon as possible in exchange for the use of the place (and our boat slip at Harilla).

Then I'm going to trying to get the place to a point where it would be rentable and therefore, less expensive to maintain (I've just started to research this possibility).

Any words of wisdom, suggestions, etc. would be very much appreciated! My family has been coming up to the Lake since the early 1900's and I know I'll be "ok" if I ultimately need to sell the place.. But also know that if I don't try my hardest to keep it, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.

Thanks for listening and if you're up at the lake now, please have some extra fun for me! :)

DowIsland Girl

[chipj29]

Hello,
If you have not received any offers yet, maybe I could help you out. I am a 30-something (almost 40 YO) guy with a family and a full-time job. I am not a professional carpenter or anything like that, but I do have experience in fixer-uppers. I bought my house 8 years ago for real cheap, as it was in rough shape. I did 90% of the work myself, and have learned tons along the way. I have built a 10x32 deck for my house, an 8x16 deck for a neighbor. I have also put in built in shelves in my bathroom, 2 bedrooms, and just completed built in bookshelves and entertainment unit in my living room. I also have a friend/next door neighbor who is very handy, and would also love to help out.
So there are my qualifications. Now the disclaimer. I don't live on the lake, in fact I am about 45 mins away in Concord. I don't own a boat but do own a jet ski. I could get there in summer/fall, and in winter I could get there by snowmobile no problem.

Anyway, to avoid making this a 3 hour post, I will just say that if you are interested, feel free to contact me here, or you could email me at chipj29@aol.com

Thanks!

[DREAMS]

Hi Dow Island Girl,

We could be of assistance for your caretaker services and maintenance and assisting with rentals. Local residents specializing in helping other locals.
PLease contact island@fcgnetworks.net with your e-mail to allow us further detail discussions.

[Jonnyross]

Hi Dow Island Girl!

My buddy owns a camp on Dow Island and I am there most weekends all summer and winter once the ice is in. I have met several of the neighbors on the side facing the bridge. Maybe I met you! I would have fun taking care of your camp and getting away from my buddy's place when all of his family hits. I grew up in Maine taking care of our family camp every summer.

I'm heading for Dow tomorrow. If I knew which camp was yours I would check on it.

[DowIsland Girl]

Howdy,

Just wanted to post a brief update + thank you to everyone who read/responded to my "looking for an island house caretaker'" post. I have found a close friend of my next-door-neighbor's on the lake who I'm currently talking through an agreement with for caretaking help as of ice-out!

Getting responses and suggestions from this forum was just... clutch. Thank you and hope to see you on the lake next summah!

DowIsland Girl

[island support]

Hi there,

I'm wondering if anyone has had a 'caretaker' for their island property or knows of anyone who may be interested in being one for my place on Dow.

A bit of background: My family built our cottage over a period of about 12 years. In 1995, my father passed away, leaving the place to 9 family members. Since that time, other priorities, etc. have whittled away at the list of family who visit/help with upkeep etc. Today, my sister and I are the only 'owners' left and do not live nearby (DC and Seattle)

This summer's visit was tough, the place really needs some TLC and we had the privledge of putting up several chipmunks during the winter. My sister's inclination is just to sell the property, but I'm trying to hold on!!

My plan is to try and find a very responsible person who would be willing to do some basic 'caretaking' things (like replacing rotting stairs of the back deck, keeping the house open, etc.) as soon as possible in exchange for the use of the place (and our boat slip at Harilla).

Then I'm going to trying to get the place to a point where it would be rentable and therefore, less expensive to maintain (I've just started to research this possibility).

Any words of wisdom, suggestions, etc. would be very much appreciated! My family has been coming up to the Lake since the early 1900's and I know I'll be "ok" if I ultimately need to sell the place.. But also know that if I don't try my hardest to keep it, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.

Thanks for listening and if you're up at the lake now, please have some extra fun for me! :)

DowIsland GirlIslans Support Service