Building a lake is one of the best things that you can do on your property to increase its value and enjoy it year-round! If it isn't hunting season, it's fishing/swimming season. But how do you that the property that you are interested in or that you own can even hold water to build a lake?? You work with a Trophy Properties and Auction Land Specialist!

Our agents have the expertise and the connections to make sure that your property, or the property that you want to buy, will be able to have the lake of your dreams and save you a lot of headaches and money down the road.

It all starts with the real-estate contract...

A lot of real estate agents like to market that their land listing has a "Potential Lakesite" just based on the topographical map. Yes - looking at the surrounding slope and drainage is a good way to see if it topographically possible to build a lake, but a lot more goes into building a lake than just the property's topography.

As the buyer, it is on you and your agent to protect yourself and make sure that the "Potential Lakesite" is legit. You need to structure your offer in a way that gives you enough time to do your due diligence.

We recommend making your offer contingent on a "Lake Feasibility Study". This is the equivalent of hiring a home inspector for a residential real estate deal. The study will give you an accurate idea of what is there and enough information for you to make a decision if you want to move forward with the deal.

If the offer and contingency are accepted, you need to hire a geologist to come out to the property and conduct a soil sample to make sure that the property has the right type of soil and enough clay to hold the water. If the geologist gives their seal of approval and you are happy with the report, you can move forward with the deal.

Building the Lake

Once the deal has closed and you are the new owner of the property, it is time to start building the lake!

The geologist will work with a contractor and begin building the damn. This usually involves the use of large earth movers and scrapers to dig out the lake and move the dug-out soil to be a part of the damn. When the footprint of the lake is complete, it becomes a waiting game as the lake is filled with the natural water runoff that the damn is capturing. The amount of time it will take for your lake to fill depends on the size of the lake and the amount of water runoff in your area.

Stocking the Lake

If fishing is one of the reasons that you are building a lake, before you even break ground with the contractor, you should consult with a fishery. Different types of fish need different things - a trophy bass lake has different needs than a trophy crappie lake - and a fishery will be able to guide you through creating the best environment for what you want to catch and working with the contractor to devise a plan. They also will help you plan for things like structure for the fish, aerators, feeders, bait fish to support the predator fish, any chemicals needed to help limit algae, etc... The fishery is the one that creates, monitors, and adjusts this new ecosystem. They will be your long-term partners in making the lake what you want.

If you are looking to buy a property with a lake, or build your own dream lake, call us at Trophy Properties and Auction. We have the right partnerships in place to make your dream come true!

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