Should I rent a house with a pool?

[PoppySead]

Originally Posted by Zippyman

If you're the landlord, your responsible for everything, no matter what your contract says. Best bet is to hire a pool service to maintain the pool & build the fees into the rent - you can't depend on a tenant maintaining the pool properly.

A lot of rentals come with pool upkeep from the property owner. You will love having a pool out here and it's a plus if your electricity ever goes out! You can sit in the pool to cool off while waiting the outage out or waiting for the repair guy. I have one, wouldn't be happy without it. Think about it, whats nicer in the desert than a big hole in your yard with clear water in it? Nothin!

[MGotcha]

A rental with a pool is a great way to find out if a pool is a "must" on any possible future home purchases.

[JewelChick01]

I'm looking to rent, and need to find out exactly what is meant by "pool maintenance is included in rent." My husband and I have a pool now, and he takes care of it and hates it. He says NEVER AGAIN. But we're going to rent before we buy in Phoenix, so I figure, if the maintenance is included, why not have a pool while we rent? He's afraid that he's still going to get stuck dealing with something, though.

So, for example, when there is a dust storm, and the pool is a wreck as a result, does the landlord take care of it? If the landlord will only pay for pool cleaning every two weeks, but that's not often enough, will we get billed for any resulting damage?

[pbenjamin]

Why don't you ask the landlord what service is going to be supplied?

[jdahunt]

Originally Posted by ralawieh

I am renting my property with a pool and was wondering how to handle repairs should the need arise. I don't know if I want to be liable for someone else misusing the filter or not maintaining it properly. Is there wording I could use that would fit my situation?

If I was renting out a house that had a pool I would add the cost of the service in with the house and set up the maintenance with my own guys....you don't want people to learn about a pool system on your dime.

With that said I would not have a house in Phoenix without a pool....and as far as maintaining them its a piece of cake.....I pay the monthly bill and the guy does the work....

[stevek64]

When we were in the renting house game, from a landlord's perspective, I steered clear of homes with pools for the simple liability issue. Not a good business decision strictly on a risk/reward basis in my view. And based on my experience, I think there are just as many renters looking to avoid a pool as there are renters looking for one. Even if I had proper alarms on doors, windows, had a security fence around it, I'd be willing to bet my odds of getting sued would be high if an adult or especially a kid drowned. And even with decent liability insurance coverage, if a kid fell in the pool and drowned and I did everything I could do as a landlord, I bet I'd have decent potential of being responsible for a very rich payout given I feel we live in a litigious society.

[DK1974]

Pools require work and upkeep - can you be bothered?:

*You need to add chlorine regularly and check the chlorine and PH levels (there a kits to do this);
* You need to clean the filters about 3-4 times per year
* Does it come with an automatic cleaner to vacuum the surfaces or will you need to buy one (costly). Non-automated versions are cheaper but more elbow grease from you. This is not just to remove tree leaves and dust, but pools get slimy and need regular, thorough cleaning;
* Is other equipment there - skimmer for leaves, etc?

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by eastcoastlady

I'm moving to Phoenix from Massachusetts and I'm looking for a rental home. I think I want a pool- something I could never have here. I wonder about a few things though:
I'm sure there are costs and annoyances involved, but I don't know what they are- any pointers?
How much of the year do you use your pool? Is it warm enough in the winter?
Thanks in advance!

Just pay a pool service to take care of it. It's not worth the hassle to do it yourself and it's not that expensive to hire someone. You can get basic pool service for 60-80 per month and that includes chemicals, sweeping etc. Theyll come once a week and take care of it. Done

[smoochaz]

Eastcoastlady -

Your solution is probably renting a patio home instead of a single family home with a pool - with a patio home you still have the privacy of detached style living with a small patio/backyard - but not the maintenance nightmare and conflicts/costs with a private pool in a single family home.

We have great communities and you can see some of them if you go on apartments.com - with garden style living - but ... when we moved back here and rented into higher end apt community - we still had the garbage to deal with loud obnoxious etc living in what we deemed our personal space. Patio homes are the best of both worlds - I'm going to PM you some listings for ideas....

Maha -