4 Things to Check Before Buying on the Conway Chain of Lakes

Still comparing lakes? Read our Lake Jennie Jewel vs. Lake Conway homebuyer comparison before choosing which properties to tour.

This Lake Conway Chain of Lakes Buyer Guide covers what most Orlando lakefront buyers miss.

If you’ve never bought a lakefront home before, the Conway Chain of Lakes in Orlando can look like just another waterfront market. It isn’t. Selling rather than buying? Start with selling on Lake Conway.

After growing up on Lake Conway and years of selling lakefront homes here and on the surrounding lakes, I’ve learned something.

The gap between a great purchase and an expensive regret usually comes down to a few details most buyers don’t think about until closing.

Here are four things I tell every buyer to check before they make an offer on Lake Conway.

1. Location matters as much as being on the chain

A lot of buyers think the hardest part is finding a home on Lake Conway in the first place.

The real challenge starts after that.

Not every address is equal. The differences are big enough that I’ve seen buyers close on a home on Conway, live there a year, and then ask me to find them another one on a different part of the same chain.

There’s a pecking order on Conway.

The further north you go, the closer you are to downtown Orlando. That proximity shows up in the price per square foot, the resale velocity, and the mix of buyers you’re competing with.

South Conway is still highly desirable, but you’re paying for the lake, without as much of a premium for the location.

Other things that quietly change the value of a lakefront lot:

• Traffic patterns at peak hours. Some streets feed into bottlenecks, like Hoffner, that in some neighborhoods are unavoidable.

• School zone boundaries, which can shift by a single street.

• Distance to grocery, downtown, the airport, and the highway entrances you’ll actually use.

• Whether your dock faces open water or a narrow channel.

• Which direction is the house facing.

Everyone wants sunsets until they realize how hot the afternoon sun is coming through their windows.

This is why some buyers move from one home to another on the same chain of lakes after making a purchase.

They’re happy with the Conway.

They’re just not happy with the where they ended up Conway.

Lake Conway

2. What you’re actually buying

This one trips up almost every buyer who’s never owned lakefront.

Review the parcel records with the Orange County Property Appraiser, along with the deed and survey.

Riparian rights concern the use of water adjoining qualifying waterfront land. They are not the same as ownership of submerged land. Ask your closing professionals to review the rights for the specific property. See Florida’s statutory definition.

So the acreage shown on the listing and the tax records can include land that is actually underwater and unusable.

A proper survey will clearly show the dry, buildable portion versus the submerged portion.

The listing doesn’t show this or distinguish between dry usable land and the part of the property that’s in the lake. You often don’t get a survey until days before closing, after all your contingencies have already been lifted.

I’ve shown buyers two comparable listings on Conway.

Both were advertised at about an acre.

On one, the entire acre is dry, buildable land with the shoreline at the back.

On the other, half the acre is dry land.

The other half is underwater riparian area stretching into the lake.

Same acreage on paper.

One is sitting on a true acre.

The other is really half an acre.

Why acreage can be misleading

The same trap shows up when you’re looking at comparable sales.

You can’t just trust the listed acreage on the comp.

You have to cross-reference every sale against the property appraiser’s map.

This is how you see how much actual land each sold home had.

On Lake Conway, the difference between half an acre and a full acre can be significant.

It can be over half a million dollars in land value alone.

Before you make an offer, ask for the survey.

Look at the breakdown of upland (dry, buildable) versus submerged.

If a survey isn’t available yet, the map on the property appraiser’s site will give you a pretty accurate look.

How much actual dry land a lakefront home is sitting on makes an enormous difference in what it’s worth.

Considering a home with access through Lake Conway Estates? Read our Lake Conway Estates membership and boat-access guide for the association’s joining process, fees and questions to confirm before buying.

3. What you can actually do with the waterfront

Four things to verify before you go under contract:

Water depth at the dock

Water depth at the dock. A dock’s only as useful as the water under it.

Some Conway properties have shallow approaches.

This can limit you to small boats or jet skis, even though the listing photos make the dock look great.

The dock might also look great when the lake is full.

But it can become a problem every time the water drops.

You may not be able to get your boat out without constant dredging.

If you want a pontoon, a wakeboard boat, or any fishing boat with real draft, get a depth reading at low water.

Not high water.

Sellers will quote the deep summer number.

Ask for the dry-season number.

How far out you can build

Ask the permitting authority to confirm the dock dimensions and setbacks allowed for your property. Do not use neighboring docks alone to establish what you may build.

Review the survey and proposed design before relying on a dock extension in your purchase plans. Also check any applicable association restrictions.

Easements and setbacks

Easements and setbacks. Lakefront lots almost always have shoreline easements.

These can be county, drainage district, or utility easements.

They limit what you can build close to the water.

Setbacks for primary structures and accessory structures like pools, boathouses, and additions can really change what’s feasible on the lot.

Here’s the part most buyers miss.

Setbacks are measured from the high water mark, not the waterline you see when you tour.

The high water mark can sit significantly further inland than the visible shoreline.

This is especially true in a dry year or low-water season.

Do not use irrigation equipment or electrical boxes to estimate a legal boundary. Ask a qualified surveyor to identify the applicable water boundary and have the permitting authority confirm required setbacks.

I’ve walked buyers around lots where there was clearly room between the house and the water.

They were already mentally placing the pool.

Then they realized the legal setback ate up almost all of that space.

The high water mark sat much closer to the house than what they were looking at.

Get the survey.

Get the easement map.

Have your agent or a local surveyor walk you through where the high water mark actually falls before you start planning anything.

Dock permits and timelines

Dock permits, and where you actually pull them.

This trips up almost every first-time lakefront buyer in Orlando.

You don’t pull a Conway dock permit through regular Orange County building permitting.

At least not as the first step.

Conway falls under the Lake Conway Water and Navigation Control District.

This is a special district that controls construction in and over the water.

The dock construction permit application is processed by the Orange County Environmental Protection Division.

Once that’s issued, you still need a separate Orange County building permit before you can build.

Two layers. Two timelines.

Permit pulls on Conway can take weeks to months.

This depends on the season, what you’re building, and whether the district requires public notice.

If your purchase plan depends on having a new or expanded dock by a specific date, factor that in before you close.

I’ve had buyers assume a few weeks.

They ended up four to six months out before a shovel moved.

4. Check insurance before committing to a purchase

Get a property-specific insurance quote early in your home search. Ask a licensed insurance agent about available coverage, exclusions, deductibles and the cost for the home you are considering.

Check the property’s flood zone and ask about separate flood coverage. Standard homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage.

Ask the insurer which inspections and documents it requires. For an older home, it may request a four-point inspection. A wind mitigation inspection can help establish eligibility for premium credits. Requirements vary by insurer and property.

Review the Florida DFS homeowners insurance overview and confirm coverage requirements and deadlines with your lender before closing.

Get in Touch

Frequently asked questions

Where do you pull a dock permit for Lake Conway?

Dock construction on Conway falls under the Lake Conway Water and Navigation Control District.

The permit application is processed by the Orange County Environmental Protection Division.

Once it’s issued, you still need a separate Orange County building permit before construction can start.

How far can my dock extend on Lake Conway?

Ask the permitting authority to confirm the dimensions and setbacks for your property and proposed design. Neighboring docks alone do not establish your permitted dock length. Review the survey and any applicable association restrictions before planning construction.

What are riparian rights on Lake Conway?

Riparian rights concern the use of water adjoining qualifying waterfront land. They are not the same as ownership of submerged land. Ask your closing professionals to review the deed, survey and applicable rights for the property.

What extra checks does a waterfront purchase involve?

Review the survey, water access, dock permits and seasonal water depth. Check property-specific insurance options as well. These questions supplement the inspections and document review you would arrange for any home purchase.

When should I check insurance for a Lake Conway home?

Seek a property-specific quote early. Ask the insurer about required inspections, exclusions, deductibles and any separate flood coverage. Confirm your lender’s coverage requirements and deadlines before closing.

What questions should I ask before buying a Lake Conway home?

At minimum, ask these:

• Which specific lake the property fronts and whether it’s on the chain
• How much of the listed acreage is actually upland versus underwater
• The dock depth at low water
• The maximum dock projection allowed
• The high water mark setback
• What an insurance quote looks like for that specific address

Your buyer’s agent should be able to help you get answers to all of these before you go under contract.

The bottom line

Lake Conway is one of the best waterfront markets in Central Florida if you go in with the right information.

Most lakefront sales go smoothly when buyers and their agents do the homework.

The ones that don’t usually come from skipping one of these four checks.

Our Young and Younger Real Estate Team has sold over $824 million in real estate.

We’ve spent a lot of that time on Conway.

If you’re looking at a specific property on Conway or any of the connected lakes, I’m happy to walk you through what to verify before you make an offer.

Reach me at brad@youngandyounger.com or 407-315-3060.

You can also learn more about our Conway specialty on our website.

Schedule a free Lake Conway buyer consultation