Second Home Spotlight Series: Three Oaks, MI

Welcome to our new Second Home Spotlight Series! Over the past several months we have noticed tons of new trends emerge with regard to Chicagoland buyers and sellers, and one that pops up again and again is many Chicagoans’ desire for a second home. We of course want to be as helpful as possible with the research that goes into such a purchase, so we got to talking with our network. We found out that tons of our friends, colleagues and clients have second homes all over Michigan and Wisconsin! So, we will spend the never weeks/months sharing interviews with these fine folks about how they chose their community and all the best (and worst!) parts of the area. 

We are kicking off the series today with Leo Aubel, a friend and attorney at Howard & Howard. Leo and his husband have lived in Three Oaks, Michigan for 17 years, but Leo has been summering there for close to 40 years! Needless to say he has tons of great information to share, so let’s get started! 

A little backstory
Three Oaks is a small town about five miles west of Lake Michigan just north of the Indiana border. It is part of Harbor Country, which is a region made up of Michiana, Grand Beach, New Buffalo, Three Oaks, Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert, and Sawyer. About ten years ago these communities banded together to pool their marketing dollars and branded themselves as a top summer vacation spot for Chicagoans. 

Since then, the community’s goal of becoming a summertime destination has been achieved. Four Winds Casino opening created a boon for the local economies because of a revenue sharing agreement that resulted in millions paid to each community, much of which was used to improve schools and the local infrastructure. 

Today, each community is a unique place in terms of the general vibe, and how far money goes when it comes to real estate. Union Pier is some of the most expensive real estate in Michigan. Three Oaks is much more affordable, though prices are creeping up!

Three Oaks is great for...
Three Oaks is a great community for someone looking for land, space, privacy and beautiful scenery. Whereas along the shoreline homes go for $2M - $10M, in Three Oaks, which is five miles from the beach, you can find more moderately priced real estate and much bigger lots. According to Leo, Red Arrow Highway provides both a physical and psychological barrier where anything east of the highway is automatically more expensive (for less land) than anything west. In Three Oaks, three to five acre properties are very common. 

A typical weekend
Saturday: Leo will work in the yard, stop by the farmers market in the summer, have lunch at one of the local breweries/wineries/cafe, and stop by one of the commercial properties they own to work on improvements/upgrades. In the afternoon they will play tennis or go swimming, and then head to one of their favorite local restaurants for dinner. It is a very low key atmosphere. 

Sunday: For Leo, Sundays are totally relaxation-oriented. They will have friends with kids over to their pool, and then head to the local American Legion for a drink. 

Leo has found it extremely easy to meet other like-minded people. Three Oaks is filled with professionals with college graduates who run businesses and have high end lifestyles/expectations. He finds the same sophisticated level of friends he would find in the city. 

Downtown Three Oaks
If you live in the village of Three Oaks, walking downtown is easy and filled with quaint restaurants, entertainment and shopping. There is a high end grocery/bakery and butcher shop for foodies, and nice antique and clothing shops along with cafes and breweries that cater to their unique mix of clientele–Chicagoans and locals. There is also a movie theater that shows first run art files and a live theater. 

The commute from Chicago 
Easy! You are on the highway the whole time and it takes about 75 minutes. When Leo first bought his home, they would go up Friday afternoon, which then became Thursdays, which then became Wednesdays. Now Leo and his husband live in Three Oaks full time! 

Least favorite part
Leo says he feels like he is in the car a lot because the distance between attractions is greater and because there is no public transportation. But in Three Oaks if you drive 20 minutes, you can be 20 miles away. For big box-type stores you have to plan ahead because they are a drive away too. 

Thank you, Leo, for this great information! Tune in again soon to see where we “travel” to next! This is going to be fun!