Ever since I was a child my family has spent July 4th on Lake McQueeney. This tradition I still continue today over 20 years later. In fact, it was on July 4th at Lake McQueeney six years ago when I met my wife, and we continue to look forward to the excitement of this annual event year to year.
Most people would agree that July 4th on Lake McQueeney is one of the most popular holidays of the year. It is a social event that includes a boat parade, barbeques, fireworks, water balloons, and a whole lot of fun. Nearly every other house has a band, DJ, or at least music playing with friends and family hanging out by the lake watching all the action on the water. So don’t expect a calm ski run on July 4th. My recommendation is to watch from shore or cruise in a pontoon boat to catch all the excitement, unless you do not like water balloons.
The Boat parade is not officially put on by any person or organization (that I know of). The decorated boats usually meet around Las Brisas at about 2pm. Anyone is welcome to join the parade, but don’t be surprised if you get hit by a few water balloons from the many gatherings at various lake houses. I also have heard that there are similar parades on Lake Placid and Lake Dunlap as well.
Don’t miss the firework display in front of the Lake Breeze Ski Lodge (A private club). The firework show starts around 9-9:15. The best view of the show is from the shores of the Ski Lodge or from within a boat nearby. The show gets better and better every year.
Last year I showed a few lake houses and lake properties over the July 4th weekend on Lake McQueeney. Some of the buyers were concerned by the social events going on next to the houses we looked at. However, this is not a normal occurrence for weekends on Lake McQueeney.
If you have not made it to a July 4th on Lake McQueeney, I highly encourage you to check it out this year. Regardless of where you spend your July 4th holiday please be safe and have fun.
I recently received an email with a question about being able to Waterski on Lake McQueeney:
Question:
I was looking at a few of the houses on Lake McQueeny. Can you tell me how big that lake is? Is it bigger or smaller than Somerville? Do people water ski on that lake? Or is it more of a river that people fish on?
Answer:
Lake McQueeney and the other area lakes (Lake Dunlap, Lake Placid, Meadow Lake) are very waterski friendly. In fact, Lake McQueeney has been referred to as the “Waterski Capital of Texas”. These chain of lakes are all sections of the Guadalupe River which makes them “River Like” which is very good for keeping the water calm for several reasons.
On a windy day Canyon Lake or Somerville get “blown out” making skiing and boating difficult and definitely not as fun. The central Texas Lakes (Lake McQueeney, Lake Dunlap, Lake Placid, and Meadow Lake) are winding lakes that will have at least one straightaway that the trees block the wind (even on the windiest days).
River like lakes force boats to drive the same line. Even on a calm day at a lake like Somerville you always have the few boats that love to pull their tubes right where everyone is skiing. In a river like lake most tubers will stay in the wide parts of the lake (typically downriver) for the safety of their tuber. Even if the tubers are not out in the big lakes, uneducated boat drives tend to drive their skier all over the lake instead of sharing the same line which makes the lake calmer for everyone. Think about it for a second. If everyone shares the same line then all the boats wakes go in the same direction. Boats that drive in all different directions also send their waves in all different directions which makes the lake rough for everyone.
Descriptions of each lake which can also on found on to home page of my website, www.LakeHouses4Sale.net. There you will also find links to Lake Maps and much more. Scroll through my older blogs and you will also find a Video Tour of Meadow Lake and Lake McQueeney.
Beginning Sunday April19, 2009 Lake McQueeney level will be lowered approximately 12 to 18 inches below normal so that Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) hydroelectric crews can perform routine maintenance to the dam.
GBRA officials are advising that these scheduled operations may be completed before May 22, 2009, or may need to be extended for an additional period of time. Operations also may be adjusted or canceled in the event of adverse weather conditions. GBRA officials advise anyone using Lake McQueeney for recreational purposes during this time to exercise caution. Lower lake levels may expose debris and other potential hazards that are normally underwater. For questions about Lake McQueeney levels during maintenance, please call GBRA (830) 379-5822 ext. 241.
There has never been a better time to purchase a lake house/waterfront property.
Interest rates are at 30 year lows (see graph below..) You can now afford more for less.
Lakefront real estate on these small lakes is limited (Lake Dunlap, Lake McQueeney, Lake Placid, & Meadow Lake). Supply and Demand: When there is little supply the demand for Lakefront Real Estate will rise causing prices to rise.
Sellers are negotiating: The economy had made it tough on some sellers and some of them need out, which means great deals for buyers.
The way I see it:
Put your money in the stock market and pray the stock market goes up all while getting no enjoyment out of your investment. OR:
Buy a lake house and actually enjoy your investment as you watch the lakefront market appreciate.
While other states are being hit hard by the recent economic downtown, Texas is look up. If you watch any national news program you will hear doom and gloom stories about more layoffs. However Texas, more specifically San Antonio is hiring. Several area employers, including Methodist Health Care, Wachovia, Home Depot and the U.S. Census Bureau will be accepting job applications this Wednesday (3/11/2009). The job fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the St. Mary’s Family Resource and Learning Center at 3141 Culebra Road. The jobs bring in more people which creates a demand for Real Estate/Home Sales in Texas. Just Remember Real Estate is local. Do not pay attention to the nationwide statistics.
The video below is a Texas specific Housing and economic forecast of sorts. This very informative video needs to be watched by every Texan. See why the Texas Real Estatemarket is one of the strongest in the nation. Visit www.TexaPlex.com for more information.
I was watching Good Morning America (GMA) when a segment on Real Estate Video Tours came on. According to the report, people stay at a Real Estate website 78% longer if there is a video. Video Tours are the real estate marketing tool of the future currently be used by very few agents. Click play below to see a video tour I recently produced which helped me get this Lake Placid lake house under contract in less than a week. As I have always said in listing appointments, “If a picture is worth a 1000 words then a video is worth 10,000.” Take a look at the link below for the full story.
The Real Estate market is different, today, as most folks would agree. When the topic of real estate comes up in a conversation, people seem to put too much trust in the news media. Once people find out that my profession is in the real estate industry, they tend to have a pity look on their face. I have to convince them to not feel sorry for me, especially since I am having record-breaking production months right now! The waterfront market is moving and moving quickly for several reasons:
With interest rates at a 30+/- year low, people are able to afford more of a house for less money.
Banks are lending to people with good credit and with 2 year job/income history
Sellers are negotiating. I represent many buyers (and Sellers). What has happened in the past and is still happening currently is that sellers would list their Lake House above market value (sometime several hundred thousand above market value). Their hopes are that someone will fall in love with their house and be willing to pay anything for it. There are a lot of lake houses on the market. (36 on Lake McQueeney, 18 on Lake Dunlap, and 10 on Lake Placid) as of 2/3/09 in the Central Texas MLS. Last year at this time, there were about half as many listings on the market. The houses that are currently selling are typically listed at a sellable price. If the price is not saleable, then the sellers are receiving some offers, as much as 6 digits under their list price (or no offers/showings at all). Buyers may or may not be afraid to low ball. If you look at the lakefront property that has sold through the Central Texas MLS in the past few months you will see that the houses that have sold are typically the result of the sellers taking 10-20+% off their list price. Examples Below:
Home in Long Creek on Lake McQueeney- Original list price $678,500 – sold price $590,000 after seller’s concessions – 13% off of the list price.
Home in Woodlake on Lake McQueeney – List Price $725,000 – Sold Price $525,000 on– nearly 28% less than list price.
A GOOD RECOMMENDATION TO SELLERS:
Sellers of Lake Houses on Lake Dunlap, Lake McQueeney, Lake Placid, and Meadow Lake need to use extreme caution when listing their homes based on the list price of their neighbor’s house. If you are about to list a waterfront property, pay attention to the following analogy. If you list your house above market value, it is like chasing a toy slinky down a staircase. Every time you get close to the slinky, it moves one step lower and eventually you will tumble down the stairs. How do you beat the slinky? Get beneath it. Translated by the following example: You list your house on Lake McQueeney for $100,000 over market value at $600,000. Two months later (after no activity) you reduce it to $575,000. Two more months later, you reduce it again to $550,000, and so on. By the time you talk yourself into listing your house at the real market value, your house has now become “stale on the market”. The next reductions will be downward to $475,000 or $450,000 to get any activity. If the seller would have listed the house initially at $499,000 (a realistic value), then they would have sold their house faster AND for more money AND for less hassle.
Some of you have heard the rumors and others have seen the construction along IH35. The Courtyard Marriot is adding a hotel and retail center/restaurants on Lake Dunlap (a section of the Guadalupe River).I contacted a representative from the Courtyard Marriot to find out what the plans are. They stated that nothing was set in stone but the picture below will give you the current rough plans for the project.
This addition will bring much more attention to Lake Dunlap just as the Lake Breeze Ski Lodge has brought attention to Lake McQueeney (also a section of the Guadalupe River).Soon people on Lake Dunlap will have the luxury of grabbing a bite to eat with friends and family on the lake without the hassle of putting the boat up since the project should include guest docks.The Courtyard Marriott Hotel on the lake will be a great escape for the many avid boaters around Texas.These chain of lakes (Lake McQueeney, Lake Dunlap, Lake Placid, Meadow Lake, Canyon Lake) have been a popular destination spot for many years for people all over Texas.This future hotel/retail center will only add yet another reason why this location in Central Texas has so much to offer. This new addition along with the great weather, clean water, and the many other attractions such as Schlitterbahn, floating the Guadalupe/Comal River, The Outlet Malls, Wurstfest, and much more is what makes Central Texas such a great place to reside.
Click the image below for a larger image:
The Hotel/retail center will be across the river from the corner baseball diamond (the green one) in the link below (where all the trees are).
It is finally here! The Meadow Lake Video tour! Enjoy the tour from the bottom dam to the furthest “ski-able” point (about 4 miles).
Most people have heard of the popular waterskiing lakes including Lake McQueeney, Lake Placid, and Lake Dunlap. But most people have never heard of Meadow Lake (Lake Nolte). If they have, they usually think that you cannot ski on it. That is why I produced this video.
Wakeboarders in the video (in the order they appear) are: Hunter Croan, Ian, and Calyton Caraway. Enjoy the Video.
I have had a lot of people ask me lately about Meadow Lake, so here is another question and answer Blog:
Question:
Hunter this doesn’t look very wide. Can you run a boat, ski and fish on Meadow Lake? How long or how big is it?
Answer:
Meadow Lake (also known as Lake Nolte) is smaller than the other area lakes (Lake McQueeney, Lake Dunlap, and Lake Placid) but not by much. For example, Lake Placid has a capacity of 2624 acre-feet and the pond area is 248 acres and Meadow Lake has a capacity of 1550 acre-feet and the pond area is 153 acres. I know that is hard to visualize so I went and took a few photos of the lake from the waterfront of my house, see below (sorry it was raining at the time). This lake does get narrow in spots but there is hardly ever anyone on the lake to get in your way. This past 4th of July there was 5 boats on the lake including my boat and the Game Warden. The reason I live on Meadow Lake is because the lake is so calm. I am a competitive wakeboarder (2003 Colligate Wakeboard National Champion) and I am really picky about my water conditions. Regardless of what holiday or weekend, you will always find calm water on Meadow Lake. The fisherman love this lake! This calm low traffic lake has been an attraction to fisherman for years. The lake might be narrow but it does have plenty of depth (up to 35′). I would say the average depth is around 20′ deep. Compare that to Lake McQueeney which has several areas (including the middle of the lake and the main channel) that are less than 5′ deep. Visit my website soon, I will be updating my blog soon with a Video Tour of Meadow Lake.
