Ah, lakefront homes.  The mere phrase draws up images of delightful vacations, long summer days spent lazing by the lakefront, swimming in the lake, the smell of trees and wood smoke, a relaxing, idyllic time.  And perhaps this image continues in your mind to encompass the lakefront home itself, a charming, rustic cottage, with simple furnishings within and an unassuming appearance on the outside.  On the other end of your mental image scale might be thoughts of the lakefront mansions that were built around the turn of the previous century in many parts of the country.  These were lakefront homes built as summer houses for wealthy city dwellers, and they were majestic and expensively outfitted.

Those images of waterfront property may well represent many people’s ideas of contemporary lakefront homes, but the current reality couldn’t be farther from the truth.  While today some of both mansions and cottages are being built, there is a definite trend toward a middle ground-large upscale lakefront homes that you might mistake for a primary residence.  Sometimes these lakefront homes are designed to be a primary residence, but more often they are meant to be vacation houses. Read the rest of this entry »