[Grant]

Our family had the same place for nearly 70 years in Tuftonboro, and we were forced to sell when one of the second-gen owners demanded to be bought out. At the time (2012), I had 3 kids in college, and my brother is a school teacher. So coughing up half the price of a place with 200 feet of shoreline, a boathouse, and 3+ acres was out of the question.

So it sold.

I could see this coming, and although it didn't lessen the pain, it helped me put it in perspective. My four kids, who, like me, grew up there and always considered it a constant, were devastated. Personally, I still grieve the loss. And I know it was a contributing factor in my dad's demise. He'd been there all his life. It was central to his being.

Fast-forward, and after a few years of renting here and there, camping, and learning how very different life on the Lake can be without owned waterfront, or a boat, we've found a wonderful spot that we rent for 2-3 weeks between July and September. The pros: we don't pay the taxes, don't need to do the maintenance, and don't lie awake in January wondering if that big old oak tree is going to smash the main beam of the house during an ice storm. The cons: no guaranteed home base. The loss of the family gathering spot. Sunsets on the dock. Scheduling the annual "opening up" long weekend in early May, and the closing in the fall. The tenuous nature of renting...not knowing if the new place you've grown to love will be sold, developed, etc. The heartache of knowing that my kids' kids will not know the same privilege (that I think we often took for granted).

One other "pro" -- and a big one, which was not foreseen: Proceeds from the sale enabled my mother to spend her final few years in the continuing care/assisted living facility that she *wanted* to be in. It was very nice and afforded a quality of life that just wouldn't have been possible without those funds.

So...personal experience says keep it all costs. The practical side says you never know what the future holds, and sometime those tough choices just can't be avoided.

But we're still here, and always will be!!

Good luck.