I’ve spent my life in the Iowa Great Lakes, and I’ve been fortunate enough to call West Lake, East Lake and Center Lake home. If you’re thinking about buying or selling here, I’d be glad to help you figure out what makes sense for you and your family.
I’ve seen that happen over and over again.
Someone grows up spending summers here. They remember fishing with Grandpa, learning to ski, piling into a cabin with cousins, going to Arnolds Park, listening to music at the Roof Garden, or watching fireworks from the boat.
Then life moves along. Eventually they’re back with children of their own, looking for a place where their family can have some of those same experiences.
That’s one of the things I enjoy about real estate here. I’m not trying to convince people that Okoboji is special. Most of the time, they already know. My job is helping them figure out where they belong here.
I’m a third-generation real estate professional, and my family’s connection to real estate in the Iowa Great Lakes goes back more than 65 years.
But the part that’s probably more useful to you is that I’ve actually lived the lake life people come here looking for. Over the years I’ve lived on West Lake, East Lake and Center Lake. I’ve raised my family here, watched the area change and spent a lifetime getting to know the differences between these lakes and communities.
When you’re looking at a property, I want to know more than whether you like the kitchen. I want to know where you plan to boat, who’s going to be staying with you, whether you like being close to the action, what kind of shoreline you’re hoping for and what you picture an ordinary summer weekend looking like.
Once I understand that, I can do a much better job helping you find the right place—or helping you understand what makes the place you’re selling valuable to the next family.
You may already know you want West Lake. You may find that East gives you more of the home you’re looking for. You may want to walk into Arnolds Park at night, or you may want somewhere quieter when you come off the water. Those are the conversations I like to have before we get too far into listings.
I’m Thinking About BuyingLake property can be difficult to understand from numbers on a screen. I want to see the shoreline, the view, the dock, the improvements you’ve made and the things about the property that have mattered to your family. Those details can matter to the next buyer too.
Request a Free Home ValuationYou don’t need to have everything figured out. If you’re thinking about buying, selling, wondering what your home might be worth or just have a question about Okoboji real estate, send me a little information below and we’ll start there.
When someone tells me they’re looking for a place in Okoboji, one of the first things I want to know is how they spend their time here. Where do you boat? Where are your friends or family? Do you want to walk to dinner and music, or would you rather come home to somewhere quiet? Those answers start narrowing things down pretty quickly.
If walking to the park, grabbing something to eat, hearing music and being around the summer activity sounds like your kind of place, being close to Arnolds Park can be a big part of the appeal. Other people love all of that—and still want to go home somewhere quieter afterward.
Explore Arnolds Park real estate →West and East are connected, but they’re not the same ownership experience. Which one I’d encourage you to look at depends on what you value, what you want to spend and how you plan to use the lake.
West is the deep, spring-fed lake with the clear water a lot of longtime Okoboji people love. You’ll find old cabins and properties that have been part of families for generations, along with substantial lake homes and some very desirable stretches of shoreline.
For some buyers, West is simply where they want to be. They grew up boating there, their friends are there, or it’s the version of Okoboji they’ve pictured owning for years. If that’s you, that emotional connection is worth acknowledging.
Explore West Lake →East tends to have more newer homes and cabins, and it can give buyers a different set of options for their money. Depending on what you’re looking for, you may find that the house and shoreline fit your family better there.
I do tell buyers to think about their boating habits. If you plan to spend a lot of time on West, you’ll be going under the bridge to get there, and busy days can mean waiting your turn. That may matter a lot to you—or hardly at all.
Explore East Lake →That’s where a lot of the things you can’t understand from listing photos become obvious. Two houses can look pretty similar online and feel completely different once you’re standing at the shoreline.
Read my lakefront buying guide →
How usable is it? What’s the view like from where you’ll actually sit? How does it feel when you’re standing there rather than looking at it through a wide-angle listing photo?
What kind of boat do you have? How will the hoist work? Is the water where you want it? Can children, grandparents and guests get down there comfortably?
You can remodel a kitchen. You can’t move the property to a different stretch of shoreline. Sometimes an older house in the right place is a much better buy than a newer house in the wrong place.
Where are you going to boat? Where will you eat? Who’s coming over? Do you want activity around you or quiet at the end of the day? That’s real estate information too.
Bedrooms, bathrooms and recent sales matter, but they don’t tell me everything I want to know about an Okoboji property.
I want to understand the shoreline, the view, how the dock works, what you’ve improved and where the property sits on the lake. Those are things buyers notice too.
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That’s meaningful to me because I see the same generational connection in the families I work with.
I’ve watched kids who grew up spending summers here come back years later wanting a place for their own children. I’ve also seen how difficult it can be when the time comes to sell a family lake home that’s been part of everyone’s life for years.
I understand both sides of that. I grew up here, raised my family here and continue a Carlson real estate tradition that now spans generations.
Read more about my family and me →Start with the homes that interest you, and then let’s talk about the things a listing can’t tell you. I can help you compare lakes, locations and properties based on how you actually want to live here.
Start Your Okoboji Home SearchLive Okoboji listing searches will be connected here when the approved IDX search links are added.
There isn’t one right answer for every buyer or seller. That’s especially true with lake property.
I’ve lived on both, and I wouldn’t make that decision for you without knowing how you plan to use the place. West has the deep, clear water and the old Okoboji character a lot of people are specifically looking for. East tends to offer more newer homes and cabins and can give you different options for your money. If you’re going to spend most of your boating time on West, I’d also want you to think about going under the bridge from East and what that means on busy days. The better lake is the one that fits the way your family wants to be here.
I wouldn’t rule one out because of its age. Some older Okoboji cabins sit in wonderful locations and have the kind of character people come here hoping to find. I’d want to understand its condition, what’s been updated, the shoreline, utilities and what you’re comfortable taking on. If the location is right, a house can often be improved. The location can’t.
I want to see how the whole lake side of the property works. What’s the shoreline like? How is the dock set up? What does the water look like where the boat will sit? Where are people going to gather? What’s the view from the deck or patio? Those are the things you may end up caring about every weekend, so I don’t want them to be an afterthought.
Because you’re not just buying the house. You’re buying where it sits, the shoreline, the view, the water and access that come with it. Then we have to consider the home’s condition and improvements. That’s why I don’t like treating an automated estimate as the final word on an Okoboji lake property.
Tell me about the Okoboji you already know. Where did your family spend its time? Where do you boat now? Are your friends or relatives on a particular lake? What have you always pictured owning? Then we’ll put the practical pieces around that—budget, timing, property type, lake access and how much work you want to take on. That’s usually a much better starting point than opening a map and looking at everything for sale.
Tell me what’s on your mind. Sometimes the best place to start isn’t with a listing or a home value report. It’s simply talking through what you’re trying to do.