Little Ragged Island

Editorial profile. This island is not our listing. It is profiled from public record. Figures and status reflect the sources below at time of writing and may have changed. Sources: public listings.

Is Little Ragged Island for sale, and how much does it cost?

Little Ragged Island is a 712 acres undeveloped private island in Bahamas, Bahamas. It is understood to be available discreetly: Available discreetly · on application. Tenure is freehold. Foreign ownership is permitted subject to local approvals. This is an editorial profile drawn from public record, clearly attributed, not our listing.

Summary

Little Ragged Island is the scale play of the southern Bahamas: at roughly 712 acres it has been marketed as the largest privately held island in the country, and it sits at the quiet end of the archipelago where almost nothing else of this size trades. It came to market with an ambition near thirty-five million dollars, then passed through two widely publicised no-reserve auction cycles in 2021 and 2022 without a confirmed completion, and has since gone quiet. For a family office, that history reads less as distress than as a pricing discovery process on an asset with no true comparables. The island remains a genuine blank canvas with unusual natural advantages for the Bahamas, including reported freshwater and deep water on its eastern side.

Land & Waterfront

The island runs to rolling, forested hills — lignum vitae features in local accounts — over miles of white-sand beach, with bonefishing flats around it that guides in the Jumentos rate among the best in the country. Unusually for the low-lying Bahamas, it offers both elevation and reported natural freshwater ponds, two of the scarcest commodities in island development. The east side drops to deep water suitable for large yachts, while the lee side gives calmer small-boat access toward Duncan Town. Flamingos frequent the chain. There is no development footprint to remediate: no ruins, no legacy structures, no abandoned works. What a buyer acquires is topography, beach frontage and water depth in a district where the government has periodically discussed broader Ragged Island regeneration.

Access & Utilities

Access today is by boat only. The neighbouring settlement island, Ragged Island, has a private airstrip and the small community of Duncan Town, which provides the only nearby services; everything else is a provisioning run from Great Exuma or Long Island. There are no installed utilities — no power, no treated water, no dock infrastructure — so any programme starts with logistics: a landing craft route, temporary generation, desalination and fuel storage. The compensation is that the island's own freshwater sources and deep-water east shore reduce two of the usual cost drivers. Buyers should budget for a marine-led construction phase and confirm whether an on-island airstrip would be consentable, which would materially change the asset's utility.

Ownership & Use

The Bahamas allows foreigners to own freehold, with registration or a permit under the International Persons Landholding Act depending on scale and intended use; an island of this size with development plans will require the permit route and, for any resort concept, Heads of Agreement discussions with government. The obvious uses are a single private estate at exceptional scale, a low-density boutique resort, or a long-hold conservation and fishing asset. The price history — from an ambitious headline number to successive auction guides of $19.5 million and $14.5 million — gives an acquirer a defensible negotiating corridor. Diligence should establish who currently controls the island, the status of any post-auction contract, and the practical cost of the supply chain this far south.

Specification

Status	Quiet
Offering	For sale
Region	Caribbean · Bahamas
Country	Bahamas
Size	712 acres · 288 ha
Tenure	Freehold
Development	Undeveloped
Holding-cost band	Low — land only
Access	boat
Nearest airport	Private airstrip on neighbouring Ragged Island; no strip on the island itself
Power	none
Water	natural freshwater ponds and springs; no installed supply
Communications	limited mobile coverage from Duncan Town
Foreign ownership	Permitted (see notes)
Publicly marketed	since 2020

Price record

Documented public figures over time — asking prices, reported sales and reductions, each attributed. This record is maintained editorially and may lag the market.

From above: 2016 vs today

Legal & Ownership Notes

Bahamas International Persons Landholding Act — permit required for foreign buyers of undeveloped land over two acres or with development intent

• confirm current ownership and marketing status — two no-reserve auction cycles did not produce a recorded completion
• confirm title and access arrangements

Satellite reference: ESRI World Imagery / Google Earth — Little Ragged Island, Ragged Island chain, Bahamas.
Imagery shown is representative of the region, not the island itself.

Common questions

How much does Little Ragged Island cost?

Little Ragged Island is profiled at: Available discreetly · on application. Figures reflect public record at time of writing and may change; the profile keeps a dated price record.

What tenure does Little Ragged Island have?

Little Ragged Island is held on freehold tenure. Always confirm the exact instrument and any remaining term on the title.

Can a foreigner buy Little Ragged Island?

Foreign buyers may own property here subject to local approvals. Bahamas International Persons Landholding Act — permit required for foreign buyers of undeveloped land over two acres or with development intent

How do you get to Little Ragged Island?

Access is by boat. Nearest airport: Private airstrip on neighbouring Ragged Island; no strip on the island itself.

How big is Little Ragged Island?

Little Ragged Island is approximately 712 acres (288 hectares).