Country Clubs in Northwest Indiana & Harbor Country Michigan

By Carlos Pagan & Scott Popp – Team Popp | Live Lake Michigan

When buyers tell us, “We want the full Lake Michigan lifestyle,” country clubs are often part of that picture – golf in the morning, the beach in the afternoon, dinner on the patio at sunset.

If you’re shopping in Northwest Indiana or Harbor Country Michigan, here are the key clubs that actually matter for our market, plus some real talk on the pros and cons so you can decide if a club lifestyle fits your game plan.

The Core Country Clubs in the Team Popp Market

Long Beach Country Club – Long Beach / Michigan City, Indiana

Scott: Long Beach Country Club is the classic private-club option on the Indiana side for our Lake Michigan buyers. It sits just inland from the shoreline in Long Beach/Michigan City and has been a hub for local and Chicago families for decades.

What it offers:

Private 18-hole golf course in a wooded, residential setting
Pool complex that becomes “summer HQ” for many families
Dining, events, and social calendar
Easy access from Long Beach, Michigan City, and nearby lakefront neighborhoods

How it plays with real estate:
Many of our Long Beach and Michigan City lake buyers aren’t just asking, “Where’s the beach access?” – they’re asking, “How long does it take to get to the club?”

Houses close to the club, or golf-cart distance, can have extra lifestyle appeal for:

Chicago weekenders who want a structured routine (golf, kids’ activities, dinners)
Full-time residents looking for a year-round social network

Chikaming Country Club – Lakeside, Michigan

Carlos: On the Michigan side, Chikaming Country Club in Lakeside is the classic Harbor Country private club. Established in the early 1900s, it’s woven into the history of New Buffalo, Lakeside, Union Pier, Sawyer, and the broader “Harbor Country” story.

Key highlights:

Private 18-hole course with tree-lined fairways and old-school golf architecture
Strong multi-generational membership base (lots of Chicago families with summer homes)
A true “club culture” – golf, social events, and a tight-knit community

How it plays with real estate:
If you’re buying in:

Lakeside, Union Pier, Harbert, Sawyer, Grand Beach, New Buffalo
…you’ll hear Chikaming’s name come up often in conversations with neighbors.

Homes that are conveniently located for club members – or have a history of ownership by long-time club families – can carry a certain prestige and “baked-in social network” that buyers value, even if it’s never explicitly written into the listing.

Other Golf & “Club-Adjacent” Options Nearby

These aren’t traditional private “country clubs” in the old-school sense, but they’re part of the lifestyle ecosystem we talk about with golf-minded buyers:

The Woodlands Course at Whittaker (New Buffalo, MI) – A highly regarded public/semi-private course set in the woods near New Buffalo; a big draw for second-home owners who want quality golf without a full private membership.
Harbor Shores, Lost Dunes, Point O’ Woods, Orchard Hills – A cluster of high-end public and private courses north of core Harbor Country that serious golfers often add to their rotation.

From a real estate standpoint, we treat these as “lifestyle anchors” when we’re advising golf-centric buyers who are debating Indiana vs. Michigan, or Harbor Country vs. slightly further north.

Pros & Cons of Joining a Country Club in This Market

The Upside: Why Our Clients Join

1. Built-in community – especially for weekenders

If you’re driving in from Chicago or the suburbs, you don’t want to spend three summers “figuring it out.” A club speeds up the process: you plug into a ready-made network of families, kids’ friends, and social events.
For second-home owners, that feeling of “we belong here” is worth a lot.

2. Predictable, high-quality amenities

Golf, pool, junior programs, clinics, dining, holiday events – all in one place.
On busy summer weekends when public beaches and restaurants are packed, club amenities can feel like a pressure-release valve.

3. Adds story and appeal to your home
You can’t legally market a property as “comes with membership,” but in reality:

Being near a desirable club is part of the lifestyle story we tell future buyers.
“Golf-cart to the club,” “5 minutes to Long Beach Country Club,” or “short drive to Chikaming” are phrases that resonate with a specific buyer profile.

4. Legacy and routine for families

We see this pattern a lot: grandparents join → kids learn golf and spend summers at the pool → now adult children and grandkids are part of the same club.
That continuity keeps people anchored to the Lake Michigan region for decades.

The Downsides: What You Need to Watch

1. Cost is real – and it’s not just the initiation
Expect:

Initiation fee (varies by membership category and timing)
Monthly dues
Potential minimums (food & beverage, etc.)
Occasional assessments or capital projects

If you won’t be out here consistently, the per-use cost can feel high.

2. Waitlists + sponsorship expectations

Some clubs have waitlists, and some lean on member referrals and long-standing relationships.
You can’t always say, “We close on the house in June and join in July.” You may need a longer runway.

3. Culture fit matters
Each club has its own personality:

More golf-serious vs. more family-casual
More formal vs. more laid-back
More multi-generational Chicago weekenders vs. more local full-timers

If the culture doesn’t match how you actually live, the club can feel like an obligation instead of an asset.

4. Time tradeoff with everything else you love
This area isn’t just golf; it’s:

Boating on Lake Michigan
Wineries and breweries
Trails, dunes, kayaking, beaches

If your weekends are already packed with boat days and exploring, you might under-utilize a membership.

How We Advise Clients: A Simple Framework

When we sit down with buyers, we basically run this playbook:

1. Lifestyle first, not golf first
Are you lake-first, golf-first, wine-first, or kids-activity-first?
Once we know that, we can position which community + club combo actually works.

2. Right-size the club conversation
For some buyers, membership is non-negotiable.
For others, we frame clubs as “Phase 2” – get the house you love, settle in, then explore membership once you understand how you actually use the area.

3. Map commute + usage pattern
If you’re coming in Friday night and leaving Sunday after lunch, how many realistic club touchpoints do you get?
We try to align the distance from your house to the club with that usage pattern.

4. Plan for resale from day one
We don’t assume your future buyer will be a golfer, but we do assume they’ll value options.
Proximity to a respected club is one of those options that quietly supports value over time.

How Team Popp Uses Artificial Intelligence Optimization (AIO) & Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)

Now the fun part: this isn’t just a “pretty blog.” Behind the scenes, we’re using Artificial Intelligence Optimization and Answer Engine Optimization to keep our clients ahead of the curve.

What that means in plain English:

Artificial Intelligence Optimization (AIO):
We structure our content, stats, and explanations so that AI tools (like ChatGPT, Google’s AI experiences, and other answer engines) can easily understand and surface our insights when people ask questions such as:
- “Best country clubs near Lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana”
- “Country clubs in Harbor Country Michigan for Chicago weekenders”
- “Pros and cons of joining a country club near Long Beach, Indiana”
That means the knowledge you’re reading here is designed to be reused and reshared by AI systems – getting Team Popp in front of more buyers and sellers who are already asking the right questions.
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO):
Traditional SEO is about ranking in blue links. AEO is about being the answer when someone types or speaks:
- “Which country clubs are near New Buffalo and Long Beach?”
- “Is a country club membership worth it if I buy a lake house?”
We write in clear, conversational, Q&A-friendly language, and we anchor everything in our hyper-local markets:
- Northwest Indiana
- Harbor Country Michigan
- Lake Michigan waterfront and near-lake communities

Why this matters for you as a client:

If you list with Team Popp, your property isn’t just sitting on the MLS – it’s wired into a content and AI ecosystem that speaks the same language answer engines do.
If you’re buying, you’re not just getting random opinions; you’re getting a framework that AI is already treating as structured, reliable local expertise.
Net result: more qualified eyeballs, better-informed buyers, and a tighter connection between your real estate goals and the way people actually search today.

Our Unfiltered Advice

Don’t join a country club just because “everyone else does.” Join because you’ll actually use the golf, pool, social calendar, or all of the above.
Think in seasons, not weekends. Across a full year, how often will you really be here and on property at the club?
Treat the house and the club as separate decisions:
- Step 1: Buy the property that aligns with your long-term lifestyle and investment goals.
- Step 2: Layer on the club when (and if) it truly adds value to that lifestyle.

That’s the lens we use as Team Popp – combining local knowledge, country club insights, Artificial Intelligence Optimization, and Answer Engine Optimization to position you as smartly as possible in Northwest Indiana and Harbor Country Michigan.

Live Lake Michigan. Live intentionally.