There are waterfront homes, and then there is owning the water itself. At 1 Honeymoon Island in Hammond, New York, a quarter-acre private island in the Thousand Islands region of the St. Lawrence River carries a fully turn-key contemporary cottage, a 400-foot native stone seawall and views of passing freighters from every single window. Listed at $798,500, this is one of the rare properties where the address is not a street, but an island.
A Private Island in Chippewa Bay
The property sits in the prestigious Chippewa Bay area of the Thousand Islands, one of the most recognizable stretches of the St. Lawrence River and a boating destination that has drawn families back for generations. The island measures 0.25 acres with lot dimensions of 110 by 120 feet, and the home occupies it with room to breathe on all sides.
What makes this listing unusual among island properties is accessibility. Many private islands in the region require long open-water crossings, seasonal-only access and complicated logistics for every grocery run. This one is described as offering easy access even for mainland purchasers, which changes the property from a remote retreat into something a family can realistically use across a full season.
The Cottage: 1,800 Square Feet, Built New in 2003
The home is a custom contemporary cottage with 3 bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms across 1,800 square feet. Two of the bedrooms and both bathrooms sit on the main level, with a sleeping loft adding flexible space above. The open floor plan runs under vaulted pine tongue and groove ceilings, and Pergo flooring carries throughout.
Every window frames water. That is not marketing language on a quarter-acre island, it is simply geometry. The listing notes views of the water and surrounding nature from every window, including distant views of the freighters that move through the Seaway shipping channel, a sight that remains one of the defining experiences of living on this stretch of river.
Inside the Kitchen
The kitchen was built to a standard well above typical seasonal cottage construction. It features stainless steel appliances, custom-made hickory cabinetry, leather-finished granite countertops and a portable butcher block island. Appliances include a convection oven, dishwasher, electric cooktop, electric range, freezer, microwave, refrigerator, plus a washer and dryer with laundry located on the main level.
The kitchen opens into the family and dining area, with sliding glass doors connecting the interior to the deck. For a house where the entire point is the water outside, that indoor-outdoor flow matters more than square footage.
The Bathrooms
Both baths are described as spacious with granite vanities. The master bath includes a walk-in ceramic tiled shower. In a market where island cottages often carry dated fixtures and undersized bathrooms, finished stone and tile work signal a build that was never treated as a temporary structure.
Fully Furnished and Genuinely Turn-Key
The property is being offered fully turn-key, including all new high-end furniture. The listing is explicit that no work or repairs remain to be completed. For an island property, that phrase carries real financial weight.
Every renovation dollar spent on an island is more expensive than the same dollar spent on the mainland, because materials, tools and labor all have to arrive by boat. Contractors charge for transit time. Deliveries require coordination. A buyer purchasing a fixer-upper island property is signing up for a cost structure that routinely runs thirty to fifty percent above comparable mainland work. Buying a completed, furnished property eliminates that exposure entirely.
The Infrastructure That Actually Matters
On an island, the systems matter more than the finishes. This is where the property separates itself from most listings in the category.
- A new 400-foot native stone seawall surrounds the entire island, protecting against erosion and ice damage
- A new high-capacity, state-of-the-art designed septic system
- A standing seam metal roof, the most durable choice for harsh winter exposure
- Marvin windows, along with thermal and storm windows in wood frames
- Maintenance-free CertainTeed siding
- PEX plumbing throughout
- Pillar, post and pier foundation with a sump pump
- High speed internet available
The seawall alone deserves attention. Shoreline stabilization on the St. Lawrence is a permitted, engineered and expensive undertaking, and a failing seawall is one of the fastest ways an island property loses value. A newly completed native stone wall running the full perimeter removes what is typically the single largest deferred expense on a property like this.
Water Access, Boating and Fishing
The property includes dock access, river access and 400 feet of frontage on the Saint Lawrence Seaway. Chippewa Bay is widely regarded as one of the finest fishing and boating areas in the Northeast, with smallmouth bass, northern pike and muskellunge drawing anglers from across the country.
Prospective buyers should note that the property has no garage and no driveway, which is exactly what one expects on an island. Practical ownership means budgeting for a boat, mainland dock or marina slip, and off-island vehicle parking. These are ongoing seasonal costs that belong in any honest ownership calculation.
The Financial Picture
The asking price is $798,500, which works out to $444 per square foot. The tax assessed value sits at $220,000 with an annual property tax amount of $5,816. The property has been on the market for an extended period, listed since March 2024, which in a specialty niche like private islands is not unusual. The buyer pool for island real estate is small by definition, and properties in this category commonly sit far longer than mainland equivalents before finding the right owner.
That extended market time is worth understanding rather than fearing. A long listing period in a thin market frequently creates negotiating room that would never exist on a conventional lakefront home.
Property Snapshot
- Address: 1 Honeymoon Island, Hammond, NY 13646
- List price: $798,500
- Bedrooms: 3
- Bathrooms: 1.5
- Interior area: 1,800 square feet
- Lot size: 0.25 acres, 110 x 120
- Year built: 2003
- Architectural style: Cottage
- Roof: Standing seam metal
- Water frontage: 400 feet on the Saint Lawrence Seaway
- Sewer: Septic tank
- Water source: River
- Furnished: Yes
- Annual property tax: $5,816
- Price per square foot: $444
Financing an Island Property
This is the part most buyers underestimate. The listing terms specify cash or conventional financing, and that wording is deliberate. Government-backed programs generally do not work here.
An FHA loan requires the property to serve as a primary residence and to meet minimum property standards that a seasonal island cottage with no year-round road access will typically fail. A VA loan carries a similar owner-occupancy requirement, meaning eligible veterans would need to genuinely reside on the island full time. A USDA rural development loan, despite the rural setting, also requires primary residence status and imposes income limits.
That leaves conventional financing, and buyers should expect it to look different from a standard mortgage. Lenders classify island properties as second homes or non-warrantable, and many require twenty-five to thirty percent down. Appraisals are challenging because comparable sales are scarce, which is why buyers often work with regional portfolio lenders and credit unions that hold loans on their own books rather than selling them to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Local lenders in the Thousand Islands region understand this asset class in a way that national online lenders typically do not.
Insurance Considerations
Homeowners insurance on an island property requires specialty underwriting. Carriers evaluate distance from the nearest fire department, response time by water, and exposure to ice, wind and flooding. The metal roof, thermal windows and new construction date all work in the buyer’s favor here.
Flood insurance must be quoted separately, since standard homeowners policies never cover flood damage. On a waterfront property with a full-perimeter seawall, buyers should request the flood zone determination early and obtain written quotes before the inspection contingency expires. Boat coverage, dock coverage and seasonal vacancy provisions should all be discussed with an agent experienced in waterfront risk.
Using Home Equity to Buy It
Because conventional financing on island property is restrictive, many buyers in this category fund the purchase differently. A home equity line of credit against a primary residence, commonly called a HELOC, allows an owner to draw cash for a second-home purchase and often closes faster and with fewer property-level conditions than a mortgage on the island itself.
A cash-out refinance on an existing primary residence is the alternative, replacing the current mortgage with a larger one and delivering the difference in cash. Which route makes more sense depends on the gap between current mortgage rates and the rate on the existing loan. When rates today sit above an existing locked-in rate, a HELOC almost always preserves more value than resetting the whole balance.
Rental Potential
A furnished three-bedroom private island in the Thousand Islands sits in a category with almost no direct competition on short-term rental platforms. Peak season in the region runs roughly from late May through early October, and unique waterfront properties in that window command significant nightly rates.
Any buyer considering this should verify short-term rental rules with the Town of Hammond and St. Lawrence County before purchase, confirm that their insurance policy permits rental use, and speak with a tax professional about how rental income affects the mortgage interest and property tax treatment on a second home.
Final Thoughts
Private islands with turn-key homes on them are a genuinely finite asset. There are only so many in the Thousand Islands, and only a fraction come to market in any given year with new construction, a new seawall, a new septic system and furniture already in place. At $798,500 for 1,800 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 400 feet of St. Lawrence frontage and a quarter acre that belongs entirely to one owner, 1 Honeymoon Island is the kind of listing that answers a very specific dream. No work, no repairs, and nothing between the front porch and the river.
Listed on Zillow.
