For many people, picturing their dream home — maybe a two-story Cape Cod on the shores of a lake, or a small ranch overlooking the ocean — involves a stunning waterfront view. They dream of long summer days spent swimming, fishing, surfing, or just relaxing on the shore, all a short distance from their doorstep.
If you’re one of these people, you should be careful before taking the plunge into buying waterfront property. These properties come with a unique set of challenges you must prepare for. Here are six questions to ask yourself before buying any home on the water.
1. Do you need flood insurance?
Water is pretty to look at from the comfort of your front porch. It’s not quite as enjoyable when it’s swamping your basement or pouring into your backyard. Before you purchase that waterfront property, find out if your potential new home sits in a flood zone. And start investigating flood insurance.
Flood insurance, made available through the federal government’s National Flood Insurance Program, protects you if those lake or ocean waters flood your property. How much you’ll pay will vary, but you can expect to spend about $700 a year for this protection.
You might not like that extra expense. But a single flood can cause tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of damages to your home. (See also: Everything You Need to Know About Flood Insurance)
2. What can you build?
Part of the fun of owning waterfront property is, of course, enjoying all that water. You might want to build a pier, boathouse, or dock along your shoreline.
Be aware, though, that many municipalities impose a list of regulations that homeowners must follow before building out into the water.Before building that pier or dock, you’ll almost certainly need a permit. In some areas, you might not only have to follow regulations set up by the local municipality, but…
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