Lake House Design Considerations

Buying or building a lake house for full or part-time living presents unique home design considerations.  Sometimes you do not realize what those design differences are until after the fact. My wife and I are at our lake house this weekend. As we spend more time here by ourselves, we contemplate the years ahead as we age. Our hope and plan is that this lake house will be a part-time home in retirement. We also want our family members to be able to enjoy using it as a vacation home. Thus, we have been thinking about its present design and how we might improve it for the long term. These are some of the design considerations that we have discussed. Read more

Using a Vacation Home for a Vacation

A new word added to our recession vocabulary is “staycation” which translates to “taking a vacation at home.” The word may be new but the concept isn’t. Vacation home owners have been taking staycations for years. Isn’t that the purposes of owning a second home? There is nothing disappointing or less fun about a vacation home staycation if done right. Read more

Finding Deals in Affordable Vacation Homes

Now is a great time to be buying an inexpensive vacation home. They are more affordable than ever and money is cheap. If you can use a pre-retirement vacation home as place to ultimately downsize, it can make a lot of sense to buy it and enjoy it now. That’s what we have done. Read more

Lake House Spring Maintenance

Some of you who are interested in a lake house for a vacation home or for retirement might be wondering what it’s like to maintain a home on a lake. As nice as it is to live on the water, there are maintenance and upkeep issues that must be considered. I have been looking at some of these the past two weekends so I thought I would share them with readers. Read more

Lake Property Vacation Homes in Kentucky

When it comes to owning lake front property for retirement or as a vacation home, Kentucky is a hidden gem.  I say this based on our personal experience.  We have owned our lake house in Kentucky for six years and are very happy with the decision that we made.  I thought I would write a little more about it, thinking that it might help other baby boomers who are considering buying a lakefront home. Read more

Lake House Living in Winter

We use our lake house as a week-end retreat all year long.  It is close enough (90 minutes) that we just want to be there as often as possible, no matter what the weather.  We enjoy our pre-retirement vacation home that much. Read more

Best Waterfront Living and Property: Lake or Ocean?

Many baby boomers dream of owning waterfront property to use as a vacation homeor as a place to live full or part-time in retirement.  Mrs. GoTo and I purchased a lake house six years ago as a pre-retirement vacation home so we know something about the advantages and disadvantages of living on a lake. Read more

New Rules for Capital Gains Taxation of Second Homes

The IRS has targeted vacation homes, second homes, and even rental homes with new rules that govern taxation of capital gains. These new rules go into effect January 1, 2009.  Because ownership (or desire of ownership) of vacation homes is most common among baby boomers, it is an important issue to consider. Read more

Finding Property for a Vacation Home, Second Home, or to Retire

Although we already have a lake house as a second home that we are also likely to use in retirement, I am always looking around at other vacation home property to discuss with Mrs. GoTo and to share with family and friends.  If you are like me, it is fun to explore and sometimes fantasize about other places to live, some exotic and some just off-the-chart luxurious.   Periodically, I even look at retirement property for sale in other countries but that will have to wait for another post on another day. Read more

Selecting a Lake House as a Vacation Home

Mrs. GoTo and I purchased a vacation home for our 25th wedding anniversary.  We were blessed with the resources to fulfill a dream of owning a home on the water.  To be honest, I never imagined that I would be able to do something like own a lake house while I was still young enough to enjoy it.  (The photo to the left is an evening view looking across the bay from our dock.  That’s what I call stress relief for baby boomers!) Read more

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