How Waterfront Decisions Reveal Themselves Over Time
This book is a place-based interpretive work focused on how waterfront ownership actually unfolds over time in and around Northport, Michigan.
It does not offer advice, recommendations, or rankings.
It does not attempt to define a “best” property, location, or lifestyle.
Each chapter addresses a single long-horizon question that tends to surface only after years of ownership. Together, they form a reference for understanding how different waterfront conditions shape daily life, expectations, and satisfaction as novelty fades and habits form.
The chapters are written to stand alone. They can be read sequentially or consulted individually as questions arise.
ORIENTATION NOTE
This book can be read straight through or approached by chapter. Each chapter addresses a single question and does not depend on the others. There is no required order beyond the reader’s interest.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
The perspective in this book comes from having lived on and with the water for a long time.
I grew up splitting my time between a waterfront home off Waukazoo Street in Northport and my grandparents’ place on Stony Point in Suttons Bay, and I spent time with friends whose homes fronted Lake Michigan. Those experiences shaped how I understand waterfront ownership long before I worked in real estate. I watched how the same water could feel entirely different depending on access, season, use, and expectation, and how those differences became clearer over years rather than days.
This book is an attempt to put language to patterns I first noticed growing up and have continued to observe across decades of ownership in and around Northport.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 — What Are You Actually Buying When You Buy Waterfront in Northport?
Chapter 2 — Protected Water and Big Water Are Different Commitments
Chapter 3 — View and Access Are Not the Same Choice
Chapter 4 — The Season That Tells the Truth
Chapter 5 — Maintenance Is a Weight, Not a Cost
Chapter 6 — Density Shapes the Experience as Much as Water
Chapter 7 — Boats Tell the Truth
Chapter 8 — How Attachment Forms
Chapter 9 — The Adaptation Fallacy
Chapter 10 — Choosing the Right Future