Actually, the Island getaway house is pretty large but that's just my opinion. Also, many features go into the price of a house, not just the size. Sarai Thunderstrider Journeyman
This is just my humble opinion, but I too was surprised at how small the Island Getaway house is. I was excited when it came out and was going to get it, but after I did the pre-tour before purchasing it, I changed my mind. There are very few rooms, the house is small, and there are no special little surprises to make up for the small size, so I ended up passing on this house. Too bad. I had some great ideas for it, but the size was too much of a disappointment.
I personally rather like the charm of this particular house and am thinking of buying it for my wizard. True, the house itself is quite small. However, the grounds are huge (promising!). I disagree with Autumn Rain in that it has no 'special little surprises'. There is a cave behind the waterfall that is quite large for a cave, and I really like the hidden temple-like structure that adds a whole other room to the house. If you really did do the pre-tour like you say, you must not have been interested enough to search for these other features, or if you did find them, they must not have added to your overall opinion. I do agree with purrfectgirl, though, that the price should be lowered. Even for a modest house that is from another Spiral world, the price is a tad extravagant.