The family lake house app. Whose week, who paid, who closes up.
Every summer week on one calendar, the dock and the propane split evenly with who paid, the check-out list every family follows on the way out, and the report from whoever checks the place while it sits empty. On every phone that holds a key.
How to manage a shared lake house with family.
Write down who decides.
Whose names are on the deed, who can say yes to a $4,000 repair, and what happens when one of you wants out. The family cabin agreement is a free one to start from.
Settle the summer first.
Put every week from Saturday to Saturday on one sheet, and move the Fourth down the list each year. The free calendar has all of 2027.
Agree on the costs you can see coming.
The taxes, the insurance, the dock and lift in and out, the lake association, the propane. Agree on the shares before the first bill, then keep one list of who paid.
Put the close-up on a list.
The lift up, the kayaks in, the water off. Whoever leaves last follows the list, and someone looks in after a storm. The winterize checklist has the rest.
Every week on one calendar, booked from anywhere.
Maya books the Fourth of July week from her phone, and it’s on everyone’s calendar the minute she does, with how many are coming. Tell House Matters the house sleeps ten, and Book a stay won’t take more people than there are beds free those nights. Nobody pulls in to find another family’s car in the drive.
The dock, the taxes, the propane, without the spreadsheet.
Linda pays the marina to put the dock and lift in. Erik pays the lake association. Each cost goes in once with who paid, and it splits evenly: one share for the home’s owners, and one for each other person who holds a key. The app keeps the tab of who owes whom, and when it’s paid back, by Venmo, a check or cash on the porch, you mark it settled and the tab clears.
The lift goes up every time someone leaves.
Put “Raise the boat lift” on the check-out list once, and it’s on the list for every family that leaves. Turn on the reminder, and whoever the stay is for gets it the morning they go. A loose dock ladder gets a photo and goes on the caretaker’s list. And if someone checks the house while it sits empty, their report and photos land on the lake house’s record, the same one the family sees.
Free to run the lake house.
$10 a month to invite family and track bills and costs.
Free: the calendar, the check-in and check-out lists, what’s low, the upkeep, and your caretaker’s reports.
$10 a month for the household: keys for everyone beyond your spouse or partner, the bills, and every cost with who paid and who owes. It covers every key and every home, with no trial, and no card until you add a family key, a bill or a cost.
Pick the app that runs the way your family does.
OurSharedPlace can send every stay for approval, run the summer as rounds where each owner picks in turn, and put the stays in Google Calendar. It was $99 a year per property on October 28, 2026. The Vacation Calendar has approvals and a calendar feed too. House Matters has none of those. It is built for a lake house someone checks on between stays: the caretaker and the family on the same record.
Plain answers about sharing a lake house.
What families ask before they set up the lake house.
How do you manage a shared lake house with family?
Write down who decides, settle the summer before anyone books, agree on the costs you can see coming, and put the close-up on a list. Then have someone look in while the house sits empty. House Matters keeps the last four in one place for everyone who holds a key; the first is the family agreement.
Is there an app for a family lake house?
Yes, House Matters. Free on the App Store and Google Play. Works in your browser too. Everyone in the family signs in with their email or mobile number, with no password to remember.
Is it free?
To start, yes. Running the home is free: your stays, what’s in it, the upkeep, and everything your caretaker does. Keys for the family beyond your spouse or partner, the bills and the home’s ledger are $10 a month. Logging a cost, splitting it and settling up are part of the ledger. The $10 covers everyone who holds a key and every home the family shares.
How are the dock, the taxes and the propane split?
Evenly: one share for the home’s owners, and one for each other person who holds a key. Log a cost with who paid, and the app keeps a running tab of who owes whom. It does not split by nights used or by who owns how much. House Matters never moves money: pay it back by Venmo, check or cash, then mark it settled.
Can it remind the family to close up for the winter?
Not by date. A reminder in House Matters rides a stay: put a task on the check-out list, turn on the reminder, and whoever the stay is for gets it the morning they leave. Nothing goes off on October 15 by itself. Add the close-up as a one-time check-out task while the season’s last family is there, or put it on your caretaker’s next visit.
Can everyone book their own weeks?
Yes. Anyone who holds a key books a stay, and it goes straight onto the calendar for everyone to see. There is no request to approve and no rotation, draft or nights quota. Families who run one write it down and book what they agreed; the fair scheduling guide has three that work.
Does it keep track of the boat?
Only as costs and tasks. The lift going in, the gas and the winter storage go in as costs with who paid, and “Raise the boat lift” can sit on the check-out list. There is no boat schedule and no log of engine hours.
Does it sync with Google Calendar?
No. The stays live in House Matters, on every phone that holds a key. There is no feed to Google, Apple or Outlook calendars.
Someone checks on the lake house while it sits empty. Are they in it too?
Yes, on their own side of the app. A home watcher or cleaner you invite files each visit with photos, and the report lands on the lake house’s record as they file it. What you ask them to look at goes on their list for the next visit. A cleaner who comes after each stay gets the turnover clean when the stay ends. One caretaker per home at a time.
A lake house to share? Start with the summer.
Free to run the lake house.
$10 a month to invite family and track bills and costs.
Free on the App Store and Google Play. Works in your browser too. Sign in with your email or mobile, no password to remember.
Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play
More for a shared home: the shared cabin app, a free calendar to print, the expense split calculator, cabin trust vs. LLC and the winterize checklist. Everything else for the home is on the homeowners page.