Amy and Buck Beasley, ARRE’s latest happy clients, are the proud new owners of their island dream home, Casa Loco, in Milton Bight. They are originally from Kemah, Texas, on Galveston Bay, half way between Houston and Galveston.

Amy is a Certified Public Accountant. She owns her own practice and has been practicing for 23 years. Buck’s company, Professional Yacht Management, repairs and restores yachts.

“What brought you to Roatan in the first place?” I asked the couple.

“We discovered Roatan after traveling to the neighboring island of Utila for Thanksgiving, on a lark. We longed to be somewhere warm immediately, after freezing half to death at a friend’s Halloween party. We felt that Utila, with a boat-access only lifestyle, was just a little too far off the beaten path for us and began to research other Central American retirement options,” said Amy.

“Did you consider any other locations than Central America?” I asked.

“We are both big fans of Micronesia,” Buck told me. “However, a 22-hour flight to the other side of the planet was a deal breaker for us. The proximity of Roatan to our family and friends in our home state of Texas held a strong appeal. The ease of traveling from Houston to the island and back moved Roatan to the top of our list of choices.”

“Did you consider any other locations than Central America?” I asked.

“We are both big fans of Micronesia,” Buck told me. “However, a 22-hour flight to the other side of the planet was a deal breaker for us. The proximity of Roatan to our family and friends in our home state of Texas held a strong appeal. The ease of traveling from Houston to the island and back moved Roatan to the top of our list of choices.”

“Did you view houses on other parts of the island as well as Milton Bight?” I asked.

“In the beginning, we really set no boundaries,” Amy told me. “We looked at properties everywhere it seemed – from the Honduran mainland to the sister islands of Utila and Guanaja. We didn’t want a boat-access only property, nor did we want to be at the busy, touristy west end of the island. We were looking for a nice sized property that wasn’t too far from the airport or French Harbour, the commercial center of the island. After numerous trips to the hardware store, we are thankful we did not buy WAY out east.

Milton Bight met our criteria of out of the way and yet convenient! We have enjoyed meeting our Milton neighbors and the villagers of Milton Bight, where Sunday football competition is fierce. Last, but not least, we are located close to Cal’s Temporary Cantina, one of the best restaurants on the island.”

“A major factor in our choice of location was that it be an easy resale if we decide down the road that Roatan isn’t our best fit or if we want to go move further east or to a boat only access property. However, we don’t see anything changing in the next 5-7 years”

“Did you know Alex or Marci before coming to the island, and if not, how did you find out about About Roatan Real Estate?” I asked.

“We did not know Marci or Alex before we began our search,” said Buck. “We discovered About Roatan Real Estate during an online search and had browsed their website extensively before traveling to the island. We met Alex in September of this year when we arrived in Roatan to film an episode for the second season of the HGTV show, Caribbean Life.

“We were filmed as we viewed three different properties. Later in the week, while the crew continued filming around the island, Alex showed us several homes that had not made it to HGTV’s short list. After five days on the island, we made an offer on an ocean view home. Our offer was accepted the same day.”

“How much of the year do you plan to spend here?” I asked the couple.

“We currently have a son still in high school so we are limited to spending all of our holidays and vacations here for now,” Amy said. “We hope to be full time residents and productive members of the Roatan community by the end of 2017. The best answer is as much time as possible and the rest of the time counting days until we head south again.”

“We recently received the official plans for additions and upgrades to Casa Loco. The drawings capture our vision of what will really make it our island dream home.”

We love the slow the pace of life we have discovered in Roatan.