Anyone own a lake house?

[pap]

We just bought our first boat - 2009 21V. We've rented a vacation house in the past and went boating maybe 2-4 days per year so we're excited about having our own boat.

We're not however excited about putting in, taking out, and the hassle in getting the boat into the garage at home which involves probably another 30+ min of work at the end of the day.

Having a house right on the lake with a dock to lift the boat out of the water sounds like a great idea....

I'm wondering if any here have owned a small lake home and what your experiences have been. I'm wary of the overall costs including high taxes and other expenses like heating a home all winter that I won't be using.

I'm also wondering if buying a more expensive home further away that might generate rental income would be a better idea than a cheaper home just an hour away that would be just ours.

Just wondering if anyone else would like to share experiences ("go for it, you and your teenage kids will love it..." or "run away, endless money pit awaits you...).

FWIW, I'm in Ohio so our local boating season is fairly short. We have a couple teen kids and their friends that would be our target audience.

[KG's Supra24]

It is something that, no doubt, your kids will love. We have always had one in the immediate family and I'm VERY thankful for it. It simplifies alot of hassle and creates a "get-away".

You mentioned you have teenagers, it may be a get-away for them some too . Coming from someone who knows ... Ha

Imo, a place without renting would be better due to the additional work managing would take as well as not having it on command. Everyone is going to be different in this respect, though. It is def a chance to create some cash flow if you rent it out and I'm sure you can find a management company to take care of the upkeep and bookings.

As far as the summer being short, if you are a lake lover, you will find yourself going to the house throughout the winter months as well as summer. Just to get that lake feeling.

Plan to stock the lakehouse with all the items you would have at home, that way you just throw some clothes in a bag and go. It can make life much easier.

Best of luck to you!

[Ptownkid]

Is Lake house American for cottage?

We bought one with my father last spring and it's the best thing in the world. What it really comes down to is this...if you can afford it, and you will use it, then go for it! We went practically every single weekend from june to the end of october, and this year we'll be able to start going in may.

There's no reason you have to heat it all winter, and you can keep costs down by being smart about what you do and use...we hardly use any electricity at ours.

It becomes a lifestyle that you can't get enough of.

[cadunkle]

I don't have a lake house, but my grandparents do and I pretty much grew up spending my summers on the lake. So I'll tell as best I know from their experiences. I still get up there for a week or two every summer and some shorter weekend trips. The whole family is an 8 hour drive away. If it was within a 2-3 drive or had a longer season it would be nice, it would be most weekends for me!

Boating is much nicer, no getting the boat ready and then putting it away, which easily can take a couple hours between the head and tail end. Don't have to get up at 5:00 and get the truck and all hooked up in the dark to get that morning butter, none of the BS. Just wake up, get in the boat, and ride.

Things you may not immediately think about keeping a boat on a lake... If you care about it you have to pull it out periodically and give it a good cleaning (unless you have a lift, we don't). Gas can be problematic. I refuse to pay an extra $50 to fill my tank on the lake. Going to town to get gas every couple days is what it is, it's either that or trailer it to the gas station. 40 gallons is a lot to carry.

Taxes are what they are. If you're not a resident they tax you more heavily. They see you as rich yuppies with money to spare. Our family is anything but rich. Due to the expense my grandparents have considered selling the property several times over the nearly 40 years they owned it. They bought it for a steal in the 70s when they couldn't really afford to but they knew it was a once in a lifetime chance to buy waterfront property.

They tried renting for regular prices for a while but weren't happy with how people they didn't know left the property. It wasn't worth the expense and aggravation, at such a long drive they couldn't go there every weekend to clean it up. They now rent out the time that family will not be there to close friends. They don't make much from it but it's easier to not deal with strangers who don't care about your property.

When the season ends the place is winterized, all the pipes drained and such. No heat, nothing. If you won't be there I don't see a reason to heat it. They pay a caretaker to pull the docks out and winterize the cabin at the end of the season but I predict within a few years I'll end up doing it as the caretaker is getting old. It's not that big a deal to winterize and get everything pulled out. If you can do this yourself no reason to pay someone for it.

Your kids will love it spending summers at the lake. Two generations of our family have grown up on the lake and it's been great for all of us. That's why even with the expense my grandparents won't sell the place, too many great memories and kids growing up spending summers there. If you can afford it, by all means do it. Don't fool yourself into thinking it'll be a money maker though.

It might be worth considering buying a place a little farther away but farther south, to get a longer season out of it. We get 4 months at best out of ours, and the water in cold at the beginning and end (Maine). In NJ my season is 6 months at best, too short for my tastes. I'm always keeping my eye out for deals on waterfront property farther south. I can't afford a vacation home but if I found something I could afford on waterfront I would relocate in a heartbeat to live on the water and have a longer season. But for a vacation house it depends on how often you want to use it and how long of a drive you can do to get there as often as you'd like.

[jmpotter]

I have a house on Lake Hartwell in South Carolina. It's about 2.5 hours from my home in Georgia so it's not too bad of drive but much longer than the nearest boat ramp.

I can honestly say that it is a tough decision! Would I do it again? Maybe not. During the summer it is great to have...friends come up for the weekend, my daughter has a place to play on the water, my boat is at the dock, etc. The costs though are crazy! If you break down the cost of the second house by the number of hours that you actually use it, a monthly 3 day weekend vacation to the Bahamas, Virgin islands, Mexico, etc. would be cheaper. Then, since you have the house, you want to use it as much as possible so you skip out on all of those other vacation spots.

It might be worth finding someone who already has a lakehouse and doesn't mind you leaving your boat there for the summer and you split the costs with them.

[Ptownkid]

Except that the lake house appreciates in value if you live in a good market...

[jmpotter]

Except that the lake house appreciates in value if you live in a good market...

Big IF.

And IF you can pay cash. Otherwise you have a mortgage and then your first 10-15 years is nearly straight interest and nothing against the principle. So your home value must increase at the same value as your monthly payment plus the realtor and closing fee costs plus utilities and maintenance.

[Matt Laird]

I was in your same place last year. I ended up buying a place 25 min from home on a smaller lake. I dont regret it one bit, our second choice was almost 3 hrs away. Several days a week, (in the warmer months) After work and school we end up out there. during the winter we spent atleast one weekend a month out there... If we had the place on Texoma, 3hrs away, we may of spent 2 weeks down there during the summer & maybe gone down once before the winter & closed it up till the next summer, not to mention dragging the boat home to use when we couldnt drive all the way down..

[pap]

That's kinda my dilemma. We have a few small local lakes, and would be nice to drive an hour and be there. Our garage doesn't fit our boat at home without 30+ min of work to get it in, and due to a very long drive, just getting it put away at the end of the day will be a hassle.

OTOH the taxes and ongoing expense of owning another home just seems a bit crazy given the current economy. It's a very hard decision to make!

I have a fear that the gov't will start jacking up all taxes due to the out of control spending. Not trying to be political, but I don't want to get stuck paying huge taxes on two properties, that's part of my worry.

[cadunkle]

This would be a big decision, but alternatively you could sell your house and live on the lake. One of our neighbors at our lake house sold their smaller cabin and their home that was an hour and change away and bought a larger house on the same lake that was insulated and suitable for living in year round. I know a couple others who live on the lake year round and don't regret making the plunge...

It just depends on how long of a commute you can stand to get to work, or if you could find a job close to wherever you move. Personally for a while I was doing a 170 mile round trip commute to work, not living on the water or anything, it was just what I could find that paid decent. Did that for a year and didn't mind it. I now work about 5 minutes from home but wouldn't hesitate to do a long commute again if it meant I could live on the water.