Can rental income pay for a lake house?

I get a lot of calls from prospective lake home owners wanting to know whether they can put a home on our rental program and it pay for itself.   The short answer is NO!   The rental income will definitely help but it will not pay the expenses of the house AND the mortgage.   You want to own a lake house and all the enjoyment that goes with it and look to the rental income to help reduce the total cost of ownership.

From an investment point of view, look to appreciation to provide this.   Barring another downturn and assuming you purchase a desirable property….values will only go up.