Smith Lake (Birmingham: house, to buy, prices)

[viverlibre]

What is the deal with Smith Lake? Many people from the Mississippi vacation there and give it rave reviews, but Birmingham radio has constant "developer gone bust" ads with "rock bottom prices." What gives?

The wife and I are looking at lakes to buy retirement property on and Smith Lake is one of our prospects, but after hearing all these commercials, I'm getting cold feet. Any thoughs from those in the know?

[Keeper]

The biggest problem around Smith Lake vacant properties are they are on a steep slope which would require a lot of work to be able to build a house or even get down to the lake.

You might try doing a search on Smith Lake. IIRC several years ago the lake was pretty shallow.

[Southlander]

It's a marketing ploy. Check out the properties for yourself.
Smith Lake is an artificial lake behind a dam owned by Alabama Power, which controls the water level. In the fall and winter, anticipating heavy rains, the lake level is often drawn down, leaving some docks dry. If you want to use your dock year-round, make sure you have year-round water deep enough. It's a very hilly area. There are properties that slope gently, but many where you will have to build a very long staircase to get down to your dock.