Metro Lake Home - On Lake vs. Dock Across The Street? (Lake Elmo: for sale, houses)

[cuthberto]

Hello! My wife and I are considering moving to a North Metro lake. There are a few homes for sale that we like, but the home we like best is one that has a small city road between the house and the lake. The home comes with a small amount of property across the road - enough room for a dock, gazebo, deck, etc.

My question is this - how big of a deal is it to have a house that has the street between it and the lake? I realize it would be ideal to have your back yard butt right up to the lake, but we haven't found a home we really like (and in our price range) that fits that description. I'm open to the idea of a home with the street between it and the lake, but I'm just not sure if its a bigger pain in the butt than I can picture right now (i.e. things get stolen, you inherently use the lake less, lack of privacy is a big issue, etc.).

Any help from someone who has experienced living in a house like this would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

[snofarmer]

Are you empty nesters or are you planing on a family?

How is the traffic?

Are you going to have kids. dog or cat?

Traffic can be a big consideration and the lack of privacy would all be concerns for me.

For me it would be a deal breaker, in this market there has to be a lot of lake homes for sale, keep looking.
JMO

[iNviNciBL3]

I have a friend who has a home like that in Lake Elmo. The road wasn't that busy though. The only thing you have to worry about is crossing the street to get to the lake. there really isnt any problems other than that unless if its a really busy road

[cuthberto]

Good points. We aren't empty nesters - we actually have 2 small boys.

The point about the traffic is a good one, as is the privacy issue - they all seem like drawbacks to me as well. Hopefully someone that lives in a house across the street from the dock/lake (or used to) can provide some insight - perhaps these kinds of issues actually are deal breakers, or perhaps they don't matter too much once you move in and get used to it.

[snofarmer]

I think it's when you get use to it the proublem will arise.

Like excited kids not looking before running to the lake. The dog chasing the kids or see the kids playing and runs across the street.
Even on the quietest streets accidents can happen.

[demtion35]

Originally Posted by cuthberto

Hello! My wife and I are considering moving to a North Metro lake. There are a few homes for sale that we like, but the home we like best is one that has a small city road between the house and the lake. The home comes with a small amount of property across the road - enough room for a dock, gazebo, deck, etc.

My question is this - how big of a deal is it to have a house that has the street between it and the lake? I realize it would be ideal to have your back yard butt right up to the lake, but we haven't found a home we really like (and in our price range) that fits that description. I'm open to the idea of a home with the street between it and the lake, but I'm just not sure if its a bigger pain in the butt than I can picture right now (i.e. things get stolen, you inherently use the lake less, lack of privacy is a big issue, etc.).

Any help from someone who has experienced living in a house like this would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

I dont know where you are located but the best and most beautiful example showing what you are looking for is take a drive over to Dowling Lake, Amnacon Lake area, South of Superior WI, and this is the area that will clearly show you what you are talking about.

The houses / cabins are all on one side of the road, while the docks and boats are on the other side of the road.

Its a mixture of hardwood trees, white pines, spruces with some hills thrown in absolutely beautiful area one of my favorite places actually to drive around in especially in the fall.

But this area would be an excellent hands on example for you so if you are near it would be worth taking the short drive over there, AND for another incentive Corbins Bar is an excellent place for food, fantastic, quiet and peaceful out in the woods sort of place, and the Bar across the road is the Amnicon Bar another excellent choice for food.

I dont know how far a drive it would be from the metro area Im guessing maybe come up WS 35 maybe 3 hours I dont know how far it is though

[golfgal]

I think in some ways having the house across the street from the lake with small kids is a good thing, especially if you can put a fence in the back yard of the house. The kids can play out there without worry of them going for a swim unsupervised. Maybe go spend some time on that road, check for traffic levels, etc. If it is just residential traffic you probably won't have any issues. If people from the area use that as a cut-through street, I wouldn't buy that house.

[Glenfield]

I think that you will come to see this for the major safety issue that it is. Ask yourself this: would I want my kids to repeatedly cross the street we live on now, all the while focused intently on what it on the other side of the street rather than looking for cars? That's what will happen (fence or no), so if the to this question is yes, then by all means go for it. If you hesitate, then wait a little while for the right place. There's no shortage of lakefront property, so you'll find what you want. BTW, if your kids a not proficient swimmers already, get them into swim lessons. It's a critical safety issue here. Foss Swim Schools do an excellent job.

[Govie]

Lake Gervais, by any chance? I drive around it all the time because I like the area so much. I know exactly what you mean. Are the taxes any different with the road being there, or not? It would kind of suck but at the same time that lake the cars don't drive like nutters around it as far as I can tell.

[Sonata36]

So, across the street, you would own the property that actually touches the lake? Would everyone else know this? I mean, if you put up a gazebo, will everyone know it is yours and not belonging to the city?