Buying on Lake LBJ — What to Verify Before You Close

1. Confirm the County — It Changes Everything

The Burnet-Llano county line runs through the lake. Before you make an offer on any Lake LBJ property, confirm which county it is in — Llano County runs approximately 0.75% effective property tax, Burnet County runs approximately 1.04%. On a $1.5 million home that is $4,350 per year. Do not assume county from the mailing address or the listing agent's description. Look up the parcel on burnet-cad.org or llanocad.net to confirm the county and all taxing entities before calculating your carrying costs.

2. Verify All LCRA Permits on Dock Structures

Every dock, boathouse, boat lift, and bulkhead on Lake LBJ requires an LCRA permit. Request copies of all current LCRA permits from the seller and compare the permitted structures and dimensions to what is actually in the water. Additions made after the original permit without an LCRA amendment — a roofed covering, an extended deck, a second lift, additional dock sections — are non-compliant and become your problem after closing. LCRA can require removal at owner expense, and non-compliant structures complicate your insurance and resale.

3. Understand the Riparian Rights for Your Parcel

Owning lakefront property in Texas does not automatically confer dock rights. You need to verify that your parcel owns the shoreline to the LCRA take-line (or has documented easement rights to the shoreline) and that the specific shoreline position supports dock construction under the LCRA Shoreline Management Program. Some older subdivisions have common dock arrangements, easements running through the shoreline area, or community mooring structures rather than individual dock rights. Confirm the specific rights attached to your parcel through a survey and title review before assuming individual dock rights exist.

4. Get the HOA/POA Full Disclosure Package

Lake LBJ communities — particularly Horseshoe Bay — have multi-layered HOA and POA structures with annual dues, capital improvement assessments, architectural review requirements, and community rules that govern dock design, exterior appearance, and use of common facilities. Request the complete CC&R documents, current assessment schedule, meeting minutes from the last two years, and any pending special assessments before you close. The Summit Rock section of Horseshoe Bay has an additional capital improvement assessment of approximately $42,000 per lot at closing — this is disclosed in the title process but sometimes surprises buyers who did not read the HOA documents carefully.

5. Inspect All Shoreline Structures

Bulkheads, seawalls, and retaining walls on Lake LBJ are exposed to wake action, storm events, and the intermittent fluctuation associated with scheduled LCRA lowerings. A bulkhead failure is not a minor repair — full replacement on a 100-foot lake frontage can run $100,000 to $250,000 depending on materials and site conditions. Have a structural engineer or contractor with LCRA compliance experience inspect the bulkhead specifically, not just the dock. The home inspection may or may not include this — confirm with your inspector exactly what waterfront structures they are evaluating.

6. Verify the Flood Zone

The "near-constant level" marketing language causes some buyers to skip the flood zone check. Do not skip it. Pull the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map for the specific parcel at msc.fema.gov. Zone AE properties — which exist on Lake LBJ, particularly in lower-elevation coves and along main channel frontage — require flood insurance on federally backed mortgages and carry genuine flood exposure during upstream flood events. Zone designation directly affects your insurance costs and lender requirements.

7. Understand the Zebra Mussel Compliance Obligation

Zebra mussels are established in Lake LBJ. Texas law requires that all watercraft, trailers, livewells, and equipment be cleaned, drained, and dried before leaving any infested water body. Transport of living zebra mussels is illegal. This affects every boat owner — it is not a choice or a preference, it is a legal requirement with enforcement consequences. If you are bringing a boat that you use on other waters, understand this is your ongoing compliance obligation as a Lake LBJ boat owner. If you plan to move the boat between Lake LBJ and any other non-infested water body, the clean-drain-dry protocol applies every time.

8. Check Submerged Land Ownership in the Deed

LCRA owns Lake LBJ and the submerged lands. The take-line marks where private property ends and LCRA property begins. Some Lake LBJ properties have deeds that describe the property to the water's edge at a specific elevation — others have different descriptions that may not grant the shoreline access you assume. A survey that specifically shows the LCRA take-line relative to the improvements on the property is valuable due diligence for any significant waterfront purchase. Title companies experienced in Lake LBJ closings know what to look for — use one.

9. Use a Local Agent Who Knows LCRA Specifically

Lake LBJ's ownership and regulatory complexity — LCRA permitting, the Burnet-Llano county split, the Highland Lakes Watershed Ordinance, HOA layering in Horseshoe Bay, riparian rights verification — requires an agent who has closed waterfront transactions on this specific lake. A DFW agent who occasionally shows Hill Country lake properties, or a general Kingsland agent who primarily sells non-waterfront property, is not the right fit for navigating these specific complexities. Ask any agent you are considering: how many LCRA-permitted waterfront closings have they done on Lake LBJ in the last two years, and have they encountered a dock compliance issue at closing? The answers reveal what you need to know.