How to decide which lake and home combination is right.

[ScarletArrow]

Ballers -

 

Seriously looking at purchasing a home in central Florida (or elsewhere) on a lake with a course and would like your advice. Yes, I know it's a sellers market and supply is low - but I'm preparing myself for when the right one appears.

 

I've had conversations with a realtor (who is a skier) about which lakes have courses (definitely want open water), their activity level and culture. I ask as many people as I am able about other lakes - but my network is only so big. I have managed to ski on a few lakes through the years.

 

Here's my dilemma - last weekend I looked at a home that appeared to check all the boxes - good part of town, right price, established course, etc. - but my wife and I were hesitant to make an offer. As we reflected on it, we realized two things - 1) the course was way over on the other side of the lake (~1/4 mile) and we could only see a portion of it, and 2) we knew nothing about the lake itself (our realtor didn't know much either), it's activity level and culture.

 

If I were buying a home on a ski ditch I could probably ski the lake and get more familiar with it. Not so with a conventional lake house (many lakes don't have public access). So after spending an hour onsite I need to make a decision if this is where I want to invest a significant amount of money without being able to investigate one of the primary reasons why I am purchasing.

 

Here's my question - for those of you who have gone down this road before, how did you know that the lake you chose was the going to be a good fit? Did you manage to find a way to get on the water first? Did you talk to neighbors? Did you just go with it?

 

Thanks in advance for your comments and insights.

[BrennanKMN]

I am very curious to learn more about this from those that have lived it as well.

 

I have a baller friend who recently moved to a home with deeded access to a private lake that he was told has a course on it. He chatted with a few of the skiers on the lake, but never got really into the details. It is now June and the course still isn't in and getting the skiers on the lake moving is proving to be a challenge. The location was considered due to it being private and having an established course.

 

From what I can see as a 3rd party friend, the situation is less than ideal. I would sure hate to move to a lake with a course to only find out the course is never used and the 'skiers' on the lake are difficult to work with. Similarly, I would really struggle to move somewhere on the water before securing some type of course permit or something allowing a course in the future.

[jpwhit]

Not in Florida, but my wife and I bought a house on a lake in October of 2019. Pure luck that we happened to buy before the Pandemic..... It was a godsend to have the lake house to weather the Pandemic and it was before prices skyrocketed. Also bought a wake and ski boat at the same time, so again fortunate timing on those purchases as well.

 

We ended up in an ideal situation. We considered a lot of lakes, but ended up buying on a lake I've gone to since I was 6 years old for the very reason that I knew the lake like the back of my hand. But the truth is there was still a good bit of luck involved in having it work out as well as it has. All our neighbors are simply fantastic. The ski community here is much more vibrant then even I knew after being on the lake nearly all my life. Turns out there are 3 different course on the lake, I only knew about 1. It a very large lake but also far enough from any big cities not to be crowded. I'm also still a member of ski club with a course on a private lake, and ironically the conditions at the big lake are as good or better than the private lake much of the time. And I don't ski at the crack of dawn or anything like that....

 

Net, what you're asking is a hard problem IMO. And I would say on one hand you can't do too much research, but on the other hand at some point I think you have no choice but to pull the trigger and hope for the best, otherwise you'll just never make the move.

[dave2ball]

@ScarletArrow first you have to trust your realtor. I’m sure you already have given them your wish list. I would spend a couple of days down here and really look to what suit you best. And just be ready to pull the trigger. Ask your agent if they have any relationship with any of the neighbors on the lake you are looking to buy on to.

Sometimes you may have to take a shot n the dark. The market to so hot right now as you know.

[TEL]

I bought a home 4 years ago in Orlando on a lake. My requirements were simple lake with no public access, established ski course, that I could watch Skiing from the dock. I also wanted to be on the east side of Orlando, access to a toll road because I have an office in Jacksonville I travel to once a week. The house itself was not a major concern but needed to be at least a 3/2 block home due to hurricanes and termites in Florida. I should also add I grew up here in Central Florida about 40 minutes from Orlando. My family owned a lot on a lake where we had a boat house and dock but the course was on the opposite side of the lake. Not much fun you couldn’t see the skiing action from the dock.I do have to say I scored with the house right price functioning dock with Lift and boat ramp. I did not get to ski on the lake before I bought but if there is a course it’s skiable. If you have any questions feel free to ask

[RAWSki]

Great house with 2 lakes - courses just came on the market at Whitestone Lake Estates. Good views.

 

http://tour.remax-georgia.com/video/549b797760b9fac7eb122

 

[DW]

When eyeballing my current residence, I scanned for a ski boat on a lift knocked on the door and chatted about the lake. Decades later, we ski together pretty much every day, that approach worked great for me. Thinking about culture, if you knock on the door of a resident with a ski boat, I would certainly hope they would be open, willing to share the details about the lake, etc. That alone should tell you about the culture of the lake. If you knocked on my door, hopefully you would have your ski handy and be ready to drive a set after you got wet.

[Wish]

Be bold and find a way to get on the lake and tour it. Be even bolder and when you see a ski boat on a lift, find a way to speak with the owner. You’ll get a feel for the lake culture based on their welcoming or not so welcoming demeanor. I was able to do this and have been happy for 26yrs in FL. But, I think every lake has that guy. The one tough to get along with. Realtors are interested in making money so while they say a lake is great, do they really know?? Those that live on the lake know best. Ask around for long term owners.

[ScottScott]

If you see a slalom course on a lake, there's a good chance someone that lives there is on this site....just ask about that lake. Even if there isn't a resident here, one of us from the C Fl area will know about it. Some of that input could end up moved to messaging....but the conversation can certainly start here.....

[lpskier]

Look at the buoys. If they are properly adjusted, it’s probably a good ski scene. If buoys are missing or are high and rough looking, it’s probably an amateur operation.

[markn]

My buoys may be high and rough looking, but it is no amateur operation....at least in my opinion!! ha

[2Valve]

I'm on a private lake and we have a course. Problem is that it can only be "up" for a few hours each weekend per the deed restrictions. Coupled with it's location in the main area of the lake (determined by the State DNR and Lake association), UN-predictable weather, most skier's being weekenders and the main guy off in California, it's rarely used.

[BraceMaker]

Have you checked to see if anyone does airbnb or vrbo on the lakes in question?

 

Would give you a chance to sort of hang around it, even if you can only toss a kayak on and paddle around you'd get a feel for the water.

 

 

 

 

[MDB1056]

Lake or no lake, don't buy without complete confidence or go in eyes wide open knowing the risks. Agree with @Wish - find a way onto the water to survey the lake. Trusting your realtor -??- I don't put a lot of weight there. They have a clear agenda. I've churned through 3-4 in a single location before finding one I felt was competent, but "trust" isn't earned that quickly. Rely on yourself. I stumbled into lake nirvana 16 years ago with a little house on an amazing lake that is a well kept secret. The bad news is I'm the ONLY skier on the lake! So finding ski partners and drivers is a constant chore. As to a course - I don't have a permanent one, and don't want one as the hassle factor would be a lot to keep it up plus getting a permit challenge etc. I run a portable course that I can toss in in 30 minutes, run til you drop, and then take out. Off a pontoon boat it's a breeze. No permits needed, ski whenever you'd like Good luck in your endeavors.

[Andre]

Change realtor.

So many,many ex pros are experts on the Florida ski scene...

Drew,Jennifer,Thibault and many more...