Nothing lifts a heavy heart like the first few nice days in spring. The January blues sometimes last all through February, but as soon as the sunshine gets longer and signs of life start returning to your neighborhood, those blues start to dissipate. Tentative toes start stepping out onto the fresh grass, and spring heralds the arrival of more time outdoors. That brings many people to start dreaming of summer activities and vacations, and for some, it leads them to look into real estate on Lake Keowee. It’s pretty common for those hazy summer daydreams to include buying a lake house to really enjoy all that the outdoors have to offer. 

Lake Keowee homes start looking really nice right about now — dipping your toes into that pristine lakewater just steps from your door, taking afternoon excursions out on the lake, watching the sunset as you make s’mores around the fire — sounds pretty dreamy, huh?

Buying real estate on Lake Keowee can make those dreams a reality. However, if you’re looking at real estate on Lake Keowee in the spring months, there are some special considerations to keep in mind. 

Spike in Inventory

Lake homes tend to go up for sale in the spring and summer months more often than they do in the offseason. That means spring home shopping has more options for your dream home. If you wait to pull the trigger until the fall or winter months, you might be missing out on the perfect piece of real estate on Lake Keowee. Those great houses with all the amenities don’t stick around for long. 

However, that’s not to say there are no good properties on the market for the rest of the year. Many Lake Keowee homes go up for sale in the fall, as their owners decided to spend one last summer on the lake before moving on. There’s a general spike in the spring because that’s when many people are interested in buying homes, but that’s not always the time with the best inventory, so don’t give up hope if you can’t find exactly what you’re looking for.

Higher Competition

Of course, that spike in inventory comes along with a spike in buyers. There is going to be more competition for homes in the peak season in any lake market, including Lake Keowee homes. If you don’t move quickly, you might lose out on the lake house of your dreams. In the offseason, when there’s less competition, you’d have more time to sort through your options (although those options might be more limited). You also probably wouldn’t feel as much pressure to make decisions right away, and you’d have more time to get inspections done. The whole process tends to be just a little more relaxed in the offseason, which might make it more appealing to you.

This also means your real estate agent will be busier and therefore might have less time to answer your questions about all the Lake Keowee homes you’re seeing. If that guidance is important to you, keep the perils of the busy season in mind. 

To navigate this highly competitive environment, you’ll want to have a laser-focus on what you’re looking for so that you feel comfortable pulling the trigger when you’ve found the right real estate on Lake Keowee. You won’t have any time to hem and haw.

The aspects to focus on are generally the property and the location — you can always change the house itself, but you can never change what the water is like, how busy your area of the lake is, and how much sunlight you get. If you focus too much on Lake Keowee homes themselves, you might panic buy a cute cottage but then be disappointed to find out what the water access is like in that area. The increased competition might lead you to be too rash or too hesitant, but as long as your priorities are clearly defined, you should be able to navigate real estate on Lake Keowee.

Prices are higher than in the off season.

This is a big one if you’re on a budget. Real estate on Lake Keowee and on any lake is pricier when there’s more demand — basic economics. So, with all that busy peak season buying, the prices will climb. If you look for a lake house in, say, November, for example, and there are fewer buyers available, you’re more likely to get a better deal. Sellers who keep their lake homes listed in the winter also tend to be more motivated to sell, so you might get an even better deal out of them. It’s definitely a trade off to consider if you’ve got the flexibility to wait around for a lake house. 

However, that doesn’t mean you can never get a good deal on Lake Keowee homes in the springtime. It all depends on the specifics of what you’re looking for and what real estate on Lake Keowee happens to be available at the time. You can luck out on your perfect property at the perfect price any time of year.

Easier Travel

If you’ve got a ways to go to get to Lake Keowee homes, then you’re going to have an easier time of it when the weather is nice and the days are long. Of course, heavy spring rains might complicate things, but travel generally tends to be easier in those warmer months. 

You really have to see the real estate on Lake Keowee to get a good feel for it and all the amenities the area has to offer, so you’re going to want to make the trip to tour properties if you’re looking to buy. Spring might be the perfect time to make that happen.

You can see the activity on the lake before you buy.

Although the spring might not be the absolute peak for activity on the lake, there’s certainly more going on than in the dead of winter. If you’re not familiar with Lake Keowee homes and need to get a feel for the area, it’s probably better to do that when the temperatures facilitate being outdoors and taking part in all the activities the lake has to offer. Spring can be a great time to figure out which areas of the lake are busy and which areas are more peaceful.

Of course, there’s an argument to be made for checking out real estate on Lake Keowee in the offseason for a similar purpose. If you’re planning on using your lake home year-round, you’ll want to see what the environment is like when it’s not so ideal, too. How low does the lake get? How exposed are Lake Keowee homes when the trees lose all their leaves? Those are questions that are best answered in the cooler months. But if you’re mainly interested in spending the warm months at the lake, then those are the best times to survey the area.

There’s less time to prepare for lake season.

Think about when you would ideally like to start using your lake house, and then think about how much time it will take to prep for those intended uses. If you really want to be out enjoying the water by Memorial Day, that might not be realistic. Starting your Lake Keowee homes hunt in the spring could lead to a very long process, since it’s so competitive, not to mention any renovations you’d need to do to the house to get it summer-ready. Trying to buy real estate on Lake Keowee in the peak season and expecting to get to enjoy that peak season in your new home might be a bit much to ask, but the flip side is that you’ll get a whole year to dream up all the fun things you can do in and around your new home. 

Now that we’ve got the doom and gloom of the timeline out of the way, it’s also important to point out that sometimes the timing works just right, and you can find perfect Lake Keowee homes in the spring, buy one, and be ready to enjoy all that summer offers when it rolls around. Get started as soon as possible, and know where the pitfalls are. The timing of buying real estate on Lake Keowee might not work out exactly as you hope, but you can always take a shorter summer season as a practice run for next year. You don’t need to be in a rush to enjoy your lake house; there will be plenty of summer seasons in your future. What’s important is finding the right lake house for your purposes.

Consider what spring means for you.

Spring and summer tend to be busy times. Are you planning a big summer blowout? Do you have designs on renovating your current home? Maybe putting in a pool? If there’s a major warm weather expense coming your way, keep that in mind when shopping for real estate on Lake Keowee. 

Not only might your finances be tied up in other projects, but your attention might be as well. With all the competition for Lake Keowee homes, you’re going to need to focus on the house hunt. Touring properties, contacting your real estate agent, and trying to negotiate a deal will all take up a significant chunk of time. Spring might be too busy to commit to all of that.

On the flip side, your priorities could be different. Maybe you were planning on a big landscaping project at home, but you’d rather put that money toward a down payment on one of the beautiful Lake Keowee homes you’ve been scoping out. And when other people are deciding to forgo the lake house hunt for another season, you could swoop in and snag a perfect property. Laying everything out can help you decide what needs to happen this spring and what can wait for another time. As long as you don’t have too much on your plate, you can make the best of a spring search for real estate on Lake Keowee. 

Dependent on Area

We wrote this specifically about Lake Keowee homes, but most of this advice is general enough to apply to any lake you’re looking to live near. However, if you’re not looking for real estate on Lake Keowee, keep the specific qualities of your desired area in mind when you’re trying to determine the best time to buy. The climate will determine a lot of the specifics — when exactly peak season is and what that looks like will vary from place to place depending on when temperatures hit their peak. Of course, you should contact an expert for any area-specific questions you have about when is a good time to buy.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, the right time to start looking for Lake Keowee homes is right now. Spring lake home shopping has its own set of challenges, but they’re nothing you can’t handle. Just be aware of the increased competition and plan accordingly. Do your research, narrow down your priorities, and prepare to be decisive. Take care of any pressing issues at your current home before jumping into the hunt for real estate on Lake Keowee so that you can fully focus on the task at hand, and make sure you’ve got the finances to back up your seriousness. Planning and preparation will make the process that much smoother.

At the same time, don’t get too down about it! Spring home buying isn’t all setbacks and disappointments. Make sure to take advantage of all the little perks that come with looking for real estate on Lake Keowee this time of year — check out the activity on the lake, sift through the increased inventory, and make tentative plans for the summer. Enjoy scouting trips up to the lake, and always remember the idyllic daydreams of lake life that drove you to the house hunt to begin with. 

Shopping for real estate on Lake Keowee in the spring is no daydream, but as long as you know what you’re getting into, you’re golden.