Escape artist leaves island paradise up for grabs

An idyllic island paradise is on offer for anyone looking for a new lease of life. Long Island, near Schull, off the West Cork coast, has been home to John Abbott for the last 20 years. However, the reclusive artist, who is now 60, says he has to give up his peaceful existence and return to Manchester to care for his ailing mother.

Abbott – who needs to make the move as quickly as possible – has decided not to sell his home conventionally, but swap it for the right residence in the North West of England, and he’s turned to EasyHouseExchange.com to help him.

Abbott has put his two-bedroom fisherman’s cottage, priced in the region of £300,000 – complete with panoramic sea views and eleven acres of land – onto the website in the hope of finding someone with a property of a similar value to swap with in or around Manchester.

“It will be a wrench to leave Long Island,” says Abbott, “but I need to return home to look after my mother. So if anybody wants to swap a house in the Manchester area, here’s their chance of a life changing experience.”

“Living out here has been incredible,” says Abbott, “it’s so remote and peaceful and so removed from the hustle and bustle of the world. I can work here and enjoy the surroundings. I am a true escape artist!”

“But I’m getting older now, my health is going sideways and my mother needs me to look after her, so it’s time to pass the legacy on to someone else.”

Abbott has opted to use EasyHouseExchange.com, a communal online space for homeowners to meet potential swappers and negotiate a deal in order to exchange homes.

This would roughly equate to a four-bedroom detached property in Cheadle, or a two-bedroom apartment in Deansgate, but Abbott is open to offers.

“I’ve been pretty self-sufficient out here,” says Abbott. “I have a well for my water and a wind turbine for my energy – there’s no shortage of water or electricity on the island but it’s certainly helped me save the pennies.”

Anyone interested in making an exchange should go to EasyHouseExchange.com.