Welcome to our 2025 Seattle waterfront home buying guide! Written by Matt Goyer a waterfront real estate agent and the owner and managing broker of the real estate brokerage Urban Living, this guide is based on his 10 years living on a floating home and his years helping many first-time waterfront buyers. We wrote it to give you an overview of what it takes to buy on the water in the Greater Seattle Area. It will also give you a good sense of what it is like to work with us. Do you still have questions? Reach us at hello@lake-life-seattle.com.
Introduction
The Greater Seattle Area has so much waterfront! We have lakes, rivers and the Puget Sound. We also have a wide variety of housing types on or near the water giving buyers options at all price points.
Houseboats: Houseboats on Lake Union are the cheapest way to live on the water in the Greater Seattle Area with prices starting as low as a $100,000. But keep in mind, you’ll be living on something that looks a lot more like a boat than a home :). For more on houseboats, see our Seattle houseboat buying guide.
Floating homes: Floating homes on Lake Union are the most common type of “on-water residence” in the Greater Seattle Area. They look a feel a lot more like a home than a boat and enable you to live in-city, on the water, for typically much less than what you’d pay for a waterfront home. For more on floating homes, see our Seattle floating home buying guide.
Waterfront condos: You can find condos on nearly every body of water in the Greater Seattle Area. Condos offer a typically more affordable to live the waterfront lifestyle in a turnkey fashion. Many have dock space and some even have pools.
Waterfront homes: For those wanting their own slice of waterfront, it is hard to beat a waterfront home.
Lakes with waterfront homes
In the Greater Seattle Area there are several lakes with waterfront homes lining their shores.
Lake Washington
Lake Sammamish
Pine Lake
Beaver Lake
Lake Washington and Lake Union Water Levels
Lake Washington and Lake Union’s water level is controlled by the Ballard locks. it varies about 2 feet yearly, with the highest level in June, after which it is slowly lowered (about 1.5″ per week) until it reaches its lowest point around mid-October where it is maintained until midFebruary, when they start the process of refilling the Lake.
Waterfront Pros
Waterfront Cons
- Geese
Grandfathered features to look out for
These are things previously allowed, but no longer are, so if you find a waterfront home for sale with any of these, great!
- Large docks
- Boat lift with canopy: boat lifts can be permitted, but canopies are no longer allowed
- Boat houses
- Lakeside casita
- Detached dwelling unit