Lake lots are different. We build for them.
A custom home on your lot at Lake Keowee or Lake Hartwell, from your plans or ours. Slope, rock, the foundation, and the shoreline rules are what make a lake build hard, and site work is what our family's crews do every week.
Lake Keowee and Lake Hartwell
Walkout foundations and retaining walls
Site work by our family's clearing crews
Fixed price, rock priced in writing
What makes a lake lot its own kind of build
Slope and the foundation
Many lake lots fall toward the water, some of them steeply. The grade decides the foundation, usually a walkout, plus any retaining walls and where the house can sit, so we start there, not with the floor plan.
Rock
Upstate lake country can hide shallow rock, and nobody knows for sure until the digging starts. We probe on the walk, pull the soil survey, and price what nobody can see at written unit rates before you sign.
Tight access
Narrow lots, steep drives, and neighbors close on both sides limit where trucks and equipment can go. We plan the driveway cut, staging, and deliveries before the first tree comes down.
Erosion control by the water
Bare dirt on a slope above a lake moves fast in a hard rain. Silt fence, a stabilized entrance, and seeding go in first and get kept up for the whole build.
Septic or sewer
South Carolina keeps a standard septic system at least 75 feet from a lake's high water line, and some system types need 125 feet on large lakes. On a narrow lot that can decide where the house goes, so we confirm the septic area or the sewer tap before design.
Docks and the shoreline
Duke Energy manages the shoreline on Keowee and the Corps of Engineers on Hartwell. Docks, clearing near the water, and shoreline work need their approval, and not every lot can have a dock.
How we build on a lake lot
- 1
Walk the lot with you
Before you buy or before you design. Grade, signs of rock, access, the septic area or sewer, and where the shoreline boundary sits. The walk is free.
- 2
Fit the house to the slope
A walkout-ready plan from our library, like The Keowee or The Jocassee, or your own plan set checked against the grade. We place the house, the driveway, and the septic area before anything is priced.
- 3
One fixed price
Site work, foundation, walls, and the house in one contract, quoted firm by our family's crews, with rock at unit prices you see before signing.
- 4
Build it carefully
Erosion control goes in first, and our crews work the slope with the equipment the access allows. Construction runs nine to twelve months, with photos from your lot every Friday.
Where we build on the water
Each lake is managed by a different owner with its own rules, and those rules decide what you can do between the house and the water.
Oconee and Pickens counties
Lake Keowee
Shoreline managed by Duke Energy · About 17,660 acres and 388 miles of shoreline at full pond
Deep coves and wooded, often steep lots. On a sloped Keowee lot, the foundation and the driveway are the first design decisions, not the last.
- Duke Energy owns the land inside the project boundary, which on Keowee sits somewhere between the 800 and 810 foot elevation depending on the tract.
- No part of a house, septic system, deck, patio, or driveway can go inside that line, and the land there has to stay wooded. Duke can approve a view corridor once the home is built.
- Docks, shoreline stabilization, and excavation each need a Duke Energy lake use permit. Duke does not pre-approve them for buyers, so if a dock matters, the seller should get Duke's approval before closing.
Anderson, Oconee, and Pickens counties
Lake Hartwell
Shoreline managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers · About 962 miles of shoreline across South Carolina and Georgia
The Upstate's biggest lake, and its value lake, with homes listing well below Keowee waterfront. The Corps of Engineers manages the shoreline, and its rules decide what you can do at the water.
- The Corps owns a strip of land around the lake, so most lots that look lakefront border government property rather than the water itself.
- A private dock is only possible where the shoreline is allocated Limited Development, about half of Hartwell's shoreline. Protected shoreline does not allow private docks.
- A dock, or clearing brush on Corps land, takes a Corps Shoreline Use Permit. An existing dock's permit does not automatically pass to a new owner.
Oconee and Pickens counties
Lake Jocassee
Shoreline managed by Duke Energy · About 7,980 acres and 92 miles of shoreline at full pond
Most of Jocassee's shoreline is conserved public land, so private lake lots are rare. If you own one, we build on it under the same kind of Duke Energy rules as Keowee.
- Duke Energy owns the land inside the project boundary, which on Jocassee sits between the 1,110 and 1,120 foot elevation.
- Building, clearing, and shoreline work inside the boundary follow Duke's Keowee-Toxaway shoreline guidelines, the same document that governs Keowee.
Shoreline rules change and vary lot by lot. We confirm the specifics for your lot with Duke Energy Lake Services or the Corps of Engineers before design, and nothing here replaces their written approval.
What we check on a lake lot
- Where the Duke Energy project boundary or the Corps property line falls on the plat, and how much of the lot is really yours to build on
- Whether the shoreline in front of the lot can take a dock, and whether an existing dock's permit is current and in the seller's name
- The grade from the road to the water, and whether the house wants a walkout
- Signs of shallow rock, and what the soil survey says
- Room for a septic system at the state's setback from the water, or a sewer tap
- County lake buffer rules, since Oconee and Pickens each have their own, plus any HOA rules
- Driveway grade and room for trucks and equipment
One lot or three
We walk one lot with you free. Weighing a few? Our Land Due Diligence covers up to three lots in 90 days and tells you in writing what you can build on each and what it will cost.
$2,000 flat
Credited toward your build if you sign a construction contract within 12 months.
How land due diligence worksQuestions about building on the lake
Do you build on Lake Keowee and Lake Hartwell?
Yes. Keowee sits in Oconee and Pickens counties, and Hartwell's South Carolina side runs through Anderson, Oconee, and Pickens, all inside the four counties we build in. We build on a lake lot you own or one you are about to buy, from your plans or ours.
Can you build a walkout basement on a sloped lake lot?
Yes, and on a lot that falls toward the water it is usually the natural fit. The Keowee and The Jocassee both have a walkout basement option, and we can fit your own plans to the grade. The walkout, any retaining walls, and the drainage are priced in the fixed contract.
How much does it cost to build on a lake lot?
Our plans run $185 to $235 per heated square foot by spec tier, the same as anywhere we build. What changes is the site work: a sloped lake lot often needs a walkout foundation, retaining walls, more erosion control, and sometimes rock work. We quote that firm after walking the lot, so the total is in writing before you sign.
Can I clear trees for a view of the lake?
On your own land, within county buffer rules and any HOA rules, yes, and we plan the clearing with the house. On Keowee, Duke Energy land inside the project boundary has to stay wooded, though Duke can approve a view corridor once the home is built. On Hartwell, clearing brush on Corps property takes a Corps permit.
Will my lot be able to have a dock?
That depends on the shoreline in front of the lot, not on the neighbors. On Keowee, Duke Energy decides through its lake use permit and does not pre-approve docks for buyers, so if a dock matters, have the seller get Duke's approval before closing. On Hartwell, only shoreline allocated Limited Development can have a private dock, and it takes a Corps permit. We look into it before you buy.
Septic or sewer on a lake lot?
Whichever the lot has. Some lake neighborhoods have sewer or a community system, and many lots use septic. South Carolina's standard setback keeps a septic system at least 75 feet from the lake's high water line, and on Keowee, Duke Energy does not allow septic inside its project boundary. We confirm the septic area or the tap before design.
Tell us about your lake lot
Send your name and number and we will set up a time to walk the lot with you, whether you own it yet or not.
Have plans already, or want ours?
Bring a plan set you love and we fit it to the slope, or start from one of our twelve, with the base price printed on every one.