Whitby, Ont.-based couple Sharon Berman and Shael Risman both grew up attending sleepover camps in Ontario’s cottage country. After meeting at Haliburton, Ont.’s Camp Northland in the 1980s, marrying, and having a son and daughter in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the two thought about how nice it’d be to have a cottage of their own. “The hurdle was always the financial commitment,” says Sharon.
In early 2020, just before the pandemic, Sharon’s mother suffered a stroke and sadly passed away, leaving the duo with a sum of money. Now, they had the means to afford a cottage. While Sharon was busy handling her mother’s estate, Shael was tasked with taking charge of the cottage hunt.
The Berman-Rismans initially thought about buying in Kearney, Ont., since Shael’s brother and sister both had cottages there. But the nearly three-hour drive from their Whitby home felt too far. So, the couple set their sights just south of Kearney, around Huntsville and Bracebridge. “Also, I went to Camp Tamarack in Bracebridge, Ont., and have many great memories of being there,” Shael says. The couple hoped to find a move-in ready, four-season property with at least three bedrooms and two bathrooms to host their family, friends, and kids. Also on their list was a quiet waterfront and plenty of entertaining space. Their maximum budget, thanks to Sharon’s mother’s gift, was $850,000.
Shael and Sharon began visiting properties in April 2020, viewing about 20 in total. But it wasn’t until they visited a four-bed, three-bath, four-season cottage on the Muskoka River that they put in their first and only offer. “It was really nice and welcoming,” Sharon says. “There was a lovely garden out front and a deck on the main floor that looked out onto the river, which was really gorgeous.” The open living room and dining room on the main floor offered an ideal spot for guests to gather, and the cottage’s location—on a narrow part of the river—meant the waterfront was extremely quiet. There were some drawbacks: the roof, furnace, and outdoor deck were old and would need replacing soon. But the couple figured they could tackle the projects with additional savings they had set aside.
The cottage was listed at $745,000, but knowing about the roof and furnace work, they offered $725,000, which the sellers accepted. Thankfully, the Berman-Rismans purchased before the Covid cottage boom, which meant no bidding wars. The couple was thrilled about officially becoming cottage owners: “I think I bought all the furniture for the place within two days,” Shael says. “That’s how excited I was.” They replaced the furnace and roof soon after they took possession on July 31, 2020, and have since added a new dock, deck, bunkie, and a renovated trailer to house more overnight guests.
With their summers off (Shael is retired and Sharon is studying social work full-time at Trent University), they spend May to September at their cottage, sometimes hosting up to ten people at a time. “I love the drop-in factor of it, that people can just come by and we’ll probably have space for them,” Sharon says.
Ultimately, the purchase wouldn’t have been possible without Sharon’s mother’s help. “She would be happy we got a place where the family can get together,” Shael says. “We’re incredibly grateful.”
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