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In-Ground Pool: Bonus or Liability??

T

Total Refected Power

Diamond Member
My wife and I will be looking at a house this weekend that has an in-ground pool. While I like to swim we live in New England and it would probably only be useful for 3 months out of the year. Plus, I don't have the time to maintain it myself so it would cost extra $$$ to contract for it. Plus there is always the issue about safety and kids. We don't have any (yet) but it's probably not a kid-friendly accessory.

Pool owners? Any thoughts?

Parents? Any thoughts?

Village Idiot? Any thoughts?
 
Village Idiot here:

Buy a house without a pool and have a nice hot tub/spa installed. I have a feeling you'd get alot more use out of that. 😉 😉
 
It's not your kids you have to worry about. It's the "dumb fsck kid down the block who scales the 8 foot fence at 2:00 while drunk and drowns himself and his parents try to sue you for it" kid that you have to worry about.

Not worth the cost, maitanance, and liability if you ask me.
 
how big is the pool? i think my friend was buying a house with a pool in the basement but it was like big enough to swim .
 
We decided to purchase pool stock (Psycho's mom actually bought the stock for us 🙂 ). Its better and you don't have the liability and you don't have to clean it 🙂 However I still want one at my home. The annual fee is $125. The membership was $130. The pool membership at another pool in my area was $425. So either way, its not that much.

When we build we are going to have one put in. I may have it enclosed though (part of the house), which keeps the village idiot from scaling the fence 😉 I will probably opt for a movable ceiling too (expensive, but they make them).
 
i have a pool, but I live in San Diego, so we can use it alot. It's great, and swimming in a community pool is nothing like owning your own pool (and hot tub, since most people build both together). like others said make it big enough to swim. I'm not sure I'd build one if I lived in New England, i'd go for an indoor pool or swimspa w/ wave machine if I lived there. Maintenance aint cheap on it, and there are long-term costs such as resurfacing, etc. Nowadays pools can be made to look quite natural and really enhance your garden, while still being functional. our has a waterfall from the spa to the pool and a very natural look. don't get the lima bean style, those are useless, try to get at least two straight edges so you can do laps. also I recommend getting solar panels for your pool. it really keeps the pool warm most of the summer (if they face the sun and stuff) re: kids this is an issue, but IMO a very managable one for the benefits it will allow for kids. maybe you can get it covered, a friend of mine but a cover over it with a moving roof and such. humidity becomes a big problem with that, but then the safety issue is taken care of and you can use the pool year round.
 


<< My wife and I will be looking at a house this weekend that has an in-ground pool. While I like to swim we live in New England and it would probably only be useful for 3 months out of the year. Plus, I don't have the time to maintain it myself so it would cost extra $$$ to contract for it. Plus there is always the issue about safety and kids. We don't have any (yet) but it's probably not a kid-friendly accessory.

Pool owners? Any thoughts?

Parents? Any thoughts?

Village Idiot? Any thoughts? >>



We had one put in at my last house. Granted, we're in Florida and can get much more use out of it, but it can be expensive to maintain.
Constantly running pumps, chemicals, a lot of work.

We decided NOT to get one at our new house.
 
When it's new a pool is great. After a time you realize how much time and money it takes to keep up and wonder if it's worth it. I don't think New England is a good place to have one.
 
I don't know the size yet. 🙁 If it consumes most of the back yard I will be unhappy. To get it filled in costs around 10K I've read. That would have to come off the price of the house but I am getting ahead of myself.


WHAT DOES IT COST TO MAINTAIN A POOL?
 
I just heard a bit on the radio last week or so about the declining numbers of homeowners with pools. And they are very expensive if you choose to remove it, and you house insurance can be alot more expensive.
 
Chemicals - hundreds each year
Electricity - call the electric company and ask for the summer rates that were paid last year...tell them you are considering buying the house. They will gladly give them to you.

Resurfacing
Pump problems - vary according to whats wrong with it.

etc.
 
You ask for costs: it depends on the size. The ph level is controlled by chemicals that will need to be a percentage of the water. The pump size is also dependant on the number of gallons to be moved. It could be as little as $25-30/month for a small pool to more that $100/month.
 


<< WHAT DOES IT COST TO MAINTAIN A POOL? >>



resurfing is a few thousand, done every 15 years or so. big deal. problems w/ pump and equipment are rare and not really an expense. problems are rare enough they go in the same circle of risk of owning a home in general (risks and rewards of being a homewowner 😛) i spend $45/month and the pool guys comes and cleans the pool weekly and that includes all chemicals and such. like someone else said, maintenance costs depend on many factors including size. there are the electricity costs, which even in California aren't bad at all (at least for me) Having your own pool is awesome though, and worth it IMO (here in warm climate). Apparently there are also costs in New England for preparing the pool for the winter. I am unsure of these costs. To be honest, i'd agree w/ Woodie and it would seem to me that if money was an issue, it would be more trouble than it's worth in New England
 
Gosh, TRP, that's either a BIG pool or your water costs a lot!

We have a 15,500 gallon gunite pool and we use about 40-50,000 gallons of water a month in the summer and cost is about $34.00, so to fill our pool again would actually cost $10-11 bucks.

We have a black bottom pool that warms nicely without a solar cover but it must be swept 1-2 times a week or it stains.

1HP pump runs about $35-40/mo. Chemicals....

.....When you first get a new pool it is common to spend way too much on chemicals. After a few years it should settle down to $50-$75/mo depending if someone swam in the lake and then swam in your pool and you get black algae, then it could cost you $150/mo for the season (if you're lucky).

Until your kids get old enough to learn to swim, someone needs to be with them CONSTANTLY if they are near the pool. A real drag. When they're older, it is fun but many loose interest in their later teen years.

The only way I'd ever consider a pool in New England (with young children) is if it had a vented, glass atrium over it that could be locked. That would give you piece of mind and extend your swimming season almost all year.

Good Luck! 🙂



 
we've had pools since i've lived in florida and i've taken care of them that whole time. cost to maintain is not that great - depending on if you have automatic chlorination or not (i reccommend not - cheaper, fewer problems, just have that lil floaty chlorine thing around) but lets say you use it 3 months of the year
one big bucket of chlorine tabs = $50-60
a few gallons of muriatic acid $10-15
testing kit $10
other costs occur if you get mustard algae or black algae, and those chemicals are kinda expensive
the other 9 months of the year, buy a cover, keep it covered and don't worry about it till you're ready to use it. it will cost you a bit of money in chemicals to get it ready for the season, but its not really all that bad

the bigger question is - will you use it enough to enjoy it or will it just be a burden in the backyard?
 
Raspetwin:

resurfing is a few thousand, done every 15 years or so.

The house was built in 1994 so the pool is likely to be 7 yrs old or less.


ARUBA:

Gosh, TRP, that's either a BIG pool or your water costs a lot!

LOL! By filled in I met with dirt/removal!! Not water.

Thanks. Your comments were very useful.

Farbrio

the bigger question is - will you use it enough to enjoy it or will it just be a burden in the backyard?

That is the question. Sounds as if money wouldn't be an issue so it all comes down to the advantages/disadvanteges. I can see both sides. It will really depend on the house.

Thanks for all the comments so far. Really has helped a lot!!!!!! 🙂
 
werk knows wat he is talking bout


however, having a pool is nice if you like to throw get-together parties


Static911
 
when my parents were looking for a house last summer, they were told it actually lowers property value because of the risks and maintanence. That and it takes up a ton of space and robs you of a backyard
 
My family recently got an in-ground pool ( however we are in Oklahoma). Unless you have a willing-able son ( like me 😀 ) or have enough free time, I would not touch a pool. It requires a lot of time to maintain.... We recently added a heater which makes the pool worth a lot more in usefulness since you are able to swim in a broader range of seasons. Liability is a BIG concern, and my parents have always made sure I make sure my sisters friends and even my friends ( I'm 16) be careful , because they have explained to me the consequences of a lawsuit. I am a lifeguard, and enjoy our pool greatly, but it is up to you. In a small way a pool is like a child, because it will take time to care, but the rewards are wonderful 🙂.
 
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