Obviously, some places can make pay lakes profitable; but I have read that a lake can be made out of balance within days by heavy fishing pressure. The additional management expense / effort and liability insurance costs may or may not be worth it. Probably depends upon location and the rules you establish, value of your time (managing and monitoring it) too.

A huge factor is probably your personal situation. Do you have spare time and would enjoy visiting with the people coming to fish or would you have to hire someone to supervise it and constantly worry about your lake being out of balance?

When I built my lake (around 17 acres), I had several people encouraging me to build a cabin or two on my island (around 1 acre) and / or around the edges and rent them out. I considered it very briefly and I might have made some money; but I didn't build the lake as a revenue source. I built it as an escape from the demands and stresses of the real world and that is what I most need from it at this point in my life.

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