About Frances
My name is Frances Guthrie and I am excited to be licensed with Discovery Islands Realty Ltd, and partners with long-time island realtor® Vicki deBoer. Our website is a great site with island information and of course, our Cortes Listings. Discovery Islands Realty Ltd is a small company specializing in real estate on the Discovery Islands – which means I work from the home offices of both myself and Vicki, right here on Cortes.
Cortes has always been my home – my grandmother was born to early settlers in 1920, she tells us great stories about her parents, the home her father built and the orchards and gardens he planted in Seaford where three generations of us were raised. My father’s family arrived by Union Steamship to the Seaford government dock in 1940 when my father was 4 years old. His dad, my grandfather - drove the very first school bus on Cortes, a 1928 chev truck, with benches for the kids to sit on. I am a newly licensed realtor® and bring enthusiasm, energy and island knowledge to my work.
Living on Cortes has provided me with opportunities for unlimited skill development: I have worked in the seafood industry, cooked in restaurants, managed retail businesses, driven freight trucks, and worked in finance, accounting and office positions. When I was a little girl I pushed my wheel barrow around behind my dad, and with my very own hammer and saw I cut and nailed. From those early days as a carpenter in training I have progressed to fencing, roofing my barn and home, and last winter renovating my kitchen: Of course, I still rely on advice from my dad!
My island home is a simple little cabin on 11 acres of Cortes paradise – with orchard, garden and my small herd of gorgeous horses! I no longer gallop along the Gunflint Lake roadside by moonlight, nor trot thru the paths in the dark of night – but I do ride my horses, bareback on the forest trails and sometimes the beaches at every opportunity.
 My passion for horses has led me to build saddles, shoe horses, and become certified in natural hoof care – for seven years I travelled all of Vancouver Island, providing trimming and lameness rehabilitation to clients. In 2003 with my handsome and strong willed fjord horse ‘Sid’ I became one of the first five Canadians to achieve level 3 in the Parelli Natural Horsemanship program. For many years I have shared my love of horses with students, mostly young children teaching them about partnership, harmony and loving leadership. The lovely mare ‘Caramel’s Star’ and her brother ‘Star’n Slow Brandy’ both foals from Vicki’s beautiful buckskin mare ‘Blaze’ are two of the beautiful horses in my herd!
I am delighted to be working as a real estate agent on Cortes Island. At this time property prices and interest rates are both low – if you are looking for an investment, a first home, or it’s time to purchase a larger home or property – there are many listings to choose from, and I’d be delighted to book an appointment to show you the homes or properties that you are interested in. As a seller it is important to price your property to reflect current market values – ensuring your listing is competitive and appealing to buyers. A free comparative market analysis provides you with important information and helps determine a listing price when you place your property on the market.
Whether you are buying or selling, I will provide you with confidential, exceptional service. If buying or selling real estate is new to you, please don’t hesitate to ask questions! I remember buying our first home – it was exciting – but there was also a lot to learn too!
Please contact me at my home office:
Phone: 250 935 6782
Email: frances@cortesislandrealestate.com
|
I am licensed with 
rental van and a trailer. Our 'family' consisted of a large number of rabbits, goats, chickens, ducks, dogs, cats and earthworms. We subsistence farmed for the first year we were here and sold or traded farm products for other items we could not produce. Our property on Seavista Road had been recently logged and as it turned out our acreage had a very large slash pile which was a source of firewood for many years as well as a nursery for many litters of kittens and clutches of banty chicks and eventually became our home site. Our home for the first 13 years was the mobile home we brought with us. Building our dream home was a wonderful experience and we still marvel at how lucky we are to live in such a lovely home in an idyllic setting. Developing acreage from wilderness is a lot of hard work and a labour of love. Today we have a beautiful two-acre fenced garden surrounding our home and it is our oasis. The rest of our property is forest, which has grown back over the many years we have been here, and provides a haven for all sorts of local wildlife.
For many years I had the joy of racing my beautiful horse, Blaze Star, around the island. We explored many places off the beaten path as well as visited neighbours and friends. I had a 4:00 appointment every day and would be gone for 4 to 5 hours exploring or visiting. You could not miss us as Blaze had a tie dyed tail and I wear bright colourful clothes and we usually were going at a fast pace. Blaze has moved on to ‘greener’ pastures but not before she produced two beautiful foals that still live on the island. They are all grown up now and to anyone who knew Blaze they are a fond reminder of her.
