SEGUIN, Texas — A lifetime of hard work and careful planning is channeled into a dream home.
For retired teacher Richard Little, that dream will soon be a mirage.
"This was our retirement. This is where we chose to spend the rest of our years," Little said.
He and his wife bought a home on Lake Placid four years ago. However, the price they paid back then is much different from what their home's value will be in a few months...after he says it will plummet.
"I'm looking at losing about 50% of our value," Little said.
That calculation comes after the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority's controversial decision to drain Lake Placid, along with three other lakes along the Guadalupe River, after Labor Day. The decision was made in the months following the collapse of the Lake Dunlap dam, which has changed the way of life for residents for the time being.
Little said the same would happen in his community.
"They're fixing to change a way of life for many people who have been out here for a number of years," he said.
Little said he is just one of many people who have put savings into buying and renovating a waterfront property.
"We probably spent about $150,000 out of pocket from our retirement," he said.
RELATED: Town Hall provides little clarity, reassurance for community members following Lake Dunlap Dam break
As investments disappear, neighbors like Brenda Sue Carver said a purchase this pricey should have come with a warning.
"I've cried my eyes out. This is all I have. Now it's worthless," Carver said. "No one told me that since the '60s our flood gates were bad. I don't understand why no one told us. They let us buy property here."
The reality of losing their property value has led to the realization that this is one bad dream there's no waking up from.
"If I could sell the house for what I've got in, I'd pack up and move," Little said. "But I can't take a 50% loss to go anywhere."
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