Tennessee National vs Lake Keowee: How Do They Compare?

Lake Keowee and Tennessee National land on the same shortlist for a reason. Both offer gated lake and golf living within reach of the mountains.

The difference is the lake, the state and how many choices you have. Lake Keowee is a Duke Energy lake in upstate South Carolina with several private communities around it. Tennessee National is one private, gated community on Watts Bar Lake in Loudon, Tennessee, about 30 minutes from Knoxville.

How is Lake Keowee different from Tennessee National?

Lake Keowee is a lake with several gated communities, and Tennessee National is a single community. Each Keowee community has its own setup, so each one gives you a different set of answers. Tennessee National has one golf course, one marina and one set of answers.

Details about Lake Keowee communities change. Confirm current fees, rules and listings with each community, and ask Duke Energy about the lake itself.

What questions should you ask every community?

Ask each community the same questions and compare the written answers. That includes us. A good list:

1. What is built and open today, and what is only planned?
2. How does golf membership work? Get the fees in writing.
3. Is there a deadline to build after you buy?
4. What does design review require?
5. Where will the boat live, and what does that cost?
6. What does the HOA fee cover?
7. What happens there on an ordinary week in January?

Our guide on how to vet a master-planned community goes deeper on each one.

How does Tennessee National answer those questions?

Here is where Tennessee National stands today on the ones a blog post can answer.

• Inside the gates today: the Greg Norman Signature course, a full-service marina with 140+ boat slips, a clubhouse with Kendall's restaurant, a pool, a fitness center, pickleball, tennis, walking trails and a lakefront boardwalk in the Marina District. Ask the land consultant what is planned beyond that.
• Deadline to build: none after you buy a homesite.
• Design review: yes. Homes are custom built and go through design review.
• Golf membership: ask the club. The golf page is the place to start.
• The boat: ask the marina what is open now. If a private dock matters to you, ask what is possible on a specific waterfront homesite and what TVA requires.
• Life in the off-season: 22 social clubs and 180+ events a year. See social life.
• Pricing and fees: pricing is in the info pack.

Ask a Keowee community the same list and put the answers side by side.

How do the two lakes compare?

They are different kinds of water. Lake Keowee sits at the foot of the Blue Ridge. Duke Energy built the lake and manages it, including the shoreline. Ask Duke Energy how lake levels and dock permits work there.

Watts Bar Lake is a TVA reservoir on the Tennessee River, a 72-mile navigable reservoir with locks to the rest of the Tennessee River system. It has more than 39,000 acres of water and 722 miles of shoreline. The level changes about 5 to 6 feet between summer and winter, and TVA posts current levels on its lake level page.

Neither one is a stand-in for the other. Go stand on both shorelines.

Which city do you want nearby?

Lake Keowee looks to Greenville and Clemson. Tennessee National looks to Knoxville.

From the gate at Tennessee National, Knoxville is about 30 minutes, McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is about 35 minutes and I-75 is about 10 minutes. Farragut and the Turkey Creek shopping area are about 20 minutes. If family will fly in, compare real routes from their home airports into each region.

What drives the cost at each?

In any club community, the cost has layers: the home or homesite, the HOA, and the club. Ask for all three in writing, here and there.

At Tennessee National, the first layer depends on which of the five ways to own you choose: a wooded homesite in The Timbers, a lake homesite, a waterfront homesite, a Land & Home package or a townhome. Pricing is in the info pack.

State taxes differ too. Tennessee has no state income tax. South Carolina's rules are different. Ask a CPA to compare the two for your situation. Our guide to moving to Tennessee from South Carolina covers the basics.

Who should look at Lake Keowee?

Look at Lake Keowee if upstate South Carolina is where you want to be. For example:

• You want Greenville and Clemson close by.
• You want several club communities to compare on one lake.
• A lake at the foot of the Blue Ridge is first on your list.

Also weighing an open lake nearby? See Tennessee National vs Lake Hartwell.

Who should look at Tennessee National?

Look at Tennessee National if East Tennessee is where you want to be. For example:

• You want Knoxville, its airport and I-75 close by.
• You want a big river lake with locks to the rest of the Tennessee River.
• You want to buy a homesite now and build on your own schedule.
• You want one community where the course, marina and clubhouse are already open.

The honest trade-off

Lake Keowee gives you more communities to choose from. Tennessee National gives you one. That is a real limit: one course, one marina, one clubhouse. Some buyers want more variety than that. Others like knowing exactly what they are joining.

The only fair test is a visit to each. Bring the same list of questions to both and compare the answers on paper.

Facts about Tennessee National come from the community. Lake facts come from TVA. Rules, taxes, loans and insurance change, so confirm anything that affects a purchase with the right office or professional before you buy.