So, you've decided you want to buy a lighthouse

So, you’ve decided you want buy a lighthouse. And why not? They’re terribly romantic, easy to point out to admiring former neighbours and they are guaranteed to come with water views.

But – of course – just as there is a shortage of desirable housing stock in our major cities, there are not many (okay, any, really) lighthouses on the market in Australia.

Luckily the USA, specifically the GSA (General Services Administration), is in the habit of auctioning off any they happen to have spare. And at the moment there are several on the market, including three in Lake Michigan – one of the five great lakes – in the north of the country.

The GSA offers the lighthouses up for an online auction, although efforts are also made to give them away to educational bodies or non-profit groups. International bidders can participate in the auctions, according to their FAQ, provided they have either a US social security number or a Business Entity’s Employer Identification number, and a valid credit card.

Sadly it doesn’t appear they’re zoned for residential use, but that commute looks like a bit of hassle, so perhaps it’s for the best.

The money made from the sales are used for the US Coast Guard’s aid to navigation fund – to pay for equipment and maintenance of the lighthouses still in operation.

The lights themselves still serve as an “active aid to navigation” and will remain the property of the Coast Guard. And hopefully you’re after a fixer-upper, as several of these could use some work. This is the list:

White Shoal Light: A major engineering achievement when it was built in 1910. The current bid is $US15,000 ($19,000).

Gray’s Reef Light: Built in 1936, it’s 24-metres-tall and the pictures from inside show it’s in a state of disrepair. Currently at $US10,000 ($13,000), with no bids. 

Grays Reef Light, in Michigan, was built in 1936. Photo: realestatesales.gov

North Manitou Shoal Light: Built in 1935, it comes with a two-storey steel building that contains a living space, and a 19-metre steel tower. Also at $US10,000 ($13,000), with one bid.

Southwest Ledge Lighthouse: This auction is closing on August 22, so you might have to get your skates on. It’s a three-storey, cast iron structure sitting on a cylindrical tower. It’s registered on the National Register of Historic Places, and you can only get there by water.  The current highest bid is $50,000 ($65,000).

Greens Ledge Light: Described as being in “fair” condition. The current highest bid is $25,000 ($32,000).

North Manitou Offshore Lighthouse, in Michigan. Photo: realestatesales.gov

Penfield Reef Lighthouse: Here’s your top-end buy. Sitting with a current bid of $250,000 ($326,000), its also on the National Register of Historic Places and photos of the interior suggest it’s pretty run-down. But – as 6sqft points out – it could potentially be transformed into a home. 

Heading further afield, there is a decommissioned lighthouse on the market in Cork, Ireland, which is listed at €130,000 ($191,000) and comes with “genuinely stunning, unobstructed sea views across the surrounding coastline”.

And if you’re not keen on rolling up your sleeves and shooing away the seagulls – and you’re happy to spend over $300,000 –  perhaps consider this Connecticut mansion, which comes with co-ownership of a lighthouse, or this $18 million Washington property. If nothing else, they also come with road access.

The property at 102 A Sequassen Ave comes with co-ownership of a lighthouse. Photo: Sothebys