Smith Lake Real Estate Guidelines

The search for Lewis Smith Lake real estate is an exciting endeavor. The thought of moving to the lake and living in a water front home lingers in many of our minds. Until one day, we decide to pursue this heart felt dream. Some of us will buy a lake home, while others will purchase the perfect lot on which to build their new dream house. Before you dive in head first, there are many things that you should consider in order to secure your long time happiness on Smith Lake. Following price, the number one concern of which you should be aware is whether or not your chosen property is located on seasonal or year round water frontage. Smith Lake is designed to normally fluctuate about fourteen feet between full pool and winter pool. Full pool is identified by the elevation of 510 feet above sea level. This means that if you purchase a property that has a depth of only 10 feet at your dock, then your dock will probably have no water under it during the winter draw down period.To insure year round use of your Smith Lake property, I would recommend you find a property that is at least 20 feet deep at the shallowest part of your dock when the lake is at full pool. This will provide you with uninterrupted use of your Smith Lake get away. If you are only interested in using your dock during the warmer months, then you might consider the purchase of real estate with seasonal water frontage. You might think that the only elevation that is important is that of full pool. You also need to be aware that Alabama Power owns a flood easement on your property all the way to the 522 feet elevation. In the last few years, FEMA has also gotten involved with flooding concerns in the Smith Lake area, and now you will have to have flood insurance if your home is not strategically positioned above the 524 feet elevation mark. The flood easement is not the only easement that can affect your property. You need to research whether the property has an access easement, and if the property offers easements to others such as ingress/egress easements, power company easements, and water company easements. You need to research the property of interest and find out if there are any additional building set backs, restrictions, or HOAs that will affect your use of the property. Many subdivisions require minimum set backs, minimum square footage, and some even require construction with specific architectural design. It is very important for you to be aware of these covenants and the fees associated with them before you commit to the purchase of any real estate on Smith Lake. A little extra homework prior to your purchase will add a substantial amount of happiness after the sale. Some other issues that many people forget are to make sure power and water are readily available at the site in question. If not, you need to determine the costs associated with the installation of such services. You also need to determine if the property has city water or well water. If it has well water, collect a water sample and send it to the health department for examination and look into available filtration systems. Please make sure you obtain a recent survey for any real estate that you purchase. There is nothing worse than starting your Smith Lake adventure with a property dispute or finding out you did not buy what you thought you were buying. If you are buying land, have the surveyor do a perc test to insure that you will be able to have a septic system for your new home. If you are buying an existing house, have the septic system inspected to make sure you are not buying a problem. Obvously this is not a problem you want to have. If the property already has a boat dock, check with Alabama Power about transferring the dock permit and to make sure that the dock is in compliance with their rules. If your property does not have a dock, contact Alabama Power to make sure that it can be permitted. You will be greatly disappointed if you discover later that your new home can not have a dock for some unforeseen reason. Also, observe the boat traffic in the area that interests you. Sometimes being on the main body of the lake is both an advantage and a disadvantage. I just wanted to share these ideas regarding the selection of real estate on Smith Lake. I hope it helps you to make an informed decision. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to help you! Lee McKibben LeeMcKibben@gmail.com www.housesonsmithlake.com 256-590-7306   https://plus.google.com/107639473266998169573?rel=author https://plus.google.com/107639473266998169573?rel=author