Before You Sign a Lakefront Contract
Buying lakefront real estate or designing an expensive stationary boat dock requires understanding the historical extremes of the waterbody.
This worked guide demonstrates how our Lake Level Risk Report reveals how often specific elevations have been submerged by flood surcharge or left high and dry by drought over 50+ years of official records.
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1. Establishing Critical Elevation Thresholds
When evaluating a waterfront property, identify two critical physical benchmark numbers:
1. Critical Low Elevation: The lowest point of your dock cradle, slip floor, or boat ramp.
2. Critical High Elevation: The finished deck of your boathouse, electrical service panel, or top of your seawall.
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2. Interpreting the Output
Enter your chosen elevations into the tool. The engine calculates:
- Average Days Per Year at Risk: Shows the statistical probability of inaccessibility or submersion.
- Worst Recorded Year: Demonstrates how the property performed during benchmark historical droughts (such as 2011) or historic floods (such as 2019).
- Monthly Risk Heatmap: Reveals which seasons present the highest exposure risk.