Life as a renter in the Lower Keys has a lamentable drawback: When your lease is up, the landlord often has other plans, even though you’re the sort of never-late (always early, in fact) tenant that seems to be hard to come by. It isn’t necessarily his (or her) fault: They have fancy new sewers to pay for (be they gravity or otherwise), and windstorm insurance premium increases as high as $40K per year, and they’d prefer to not be stuck holding all of that bill.

Thus has the Lower Keys rental market not only tightened unbelievably, but the upward price pressures are downright San Franciscan.

We made things worse on ourselves by vowing not to pay more than we already were. We even began making logistical plans to relocate to Levy County to live the acreage-and-a-trailer dream. We kept a large, continually-updated spreadsheet, charting the status of every rental opportunity from Key West to Marathon, as well as vacant land prospects in Levy. We silently cursed the renters who quickly defected to the higher, $2200-plus monthly rents instead of holding out for a better deal. Above all else, we were nervous, for not knowing where you’re going to be living in 60 days is somewhat unsettling.

Today, the giant spreadsheet is closed, as we’ve made a deal on a place we love, with rent to match. We’re remaining in the Lower Keys for the foreseeable future, even to the seven-years mark. And we’re returning to Bay Point.

I’m well aware of the navigational challenges of Lower Sugarloaf Sound, but I’m finally ready to tackle them, and the 17-foot Angler is coming along, although divestiture of the sailboat is almost certain. The new place is a bit smaller as well, but the rent is proportionally lower, in an area where we already know the people and the mailman, with no hollering vacation renters, and a few sandy islands we’ve missed for years.

We’re very excited to be back. More story soon.