Is a pool really worth it? (2014, how much, houses)

[Harbor Hopper]

Originally Posted by SeaRay35

The only downside I was told is the salt system has a life of 5-7 years at $1200 a pop but seems to be worth it!

Incorrect. The salt cell is the only component that really wears out, not the entire system. Depending on brand, a replacement cell runs $300-500

[HarborRat]

I don't have one and don't want one. My GF does want one though, of course. But she doesn't swim...she just likes the looks. I like the looks too but it's not going to happen. I know for a fact we would rarely use it.

I have many friends here that have pools. Half of them use it all the time and the other half almost never use it. So it's different for everyone. If you don't think you'll use it you probably wont. If you love to swim you probably will.

[mr&mrssunshine]

you don't want one
your GF does

you are getting one, you just haven't accepted it yet :-)

[MartyGras]

Pools are like dining rooms most people don't use them all the time but they're nice to have when you want to.

So I say get a home with a pool but without a dining room the money you'll save on dining room furniture will more than pay for the maintenance of your pool.

Gary

[03bluecoupe]

Originally Posted by Harbor Hopper

Incorrect. The salt cell is the only component that really wears out, not the entire system. Depending on brand, a replacement cell runs $300-500

AH - I probably misinterpreted, thanks!

[Nancy in Nokomis]

For resale I would get a pool - I would not even look at a home that does not have one because they are so costly to build now. I use my pool everyday and one of my kids does too -husband maybe once a week. It is so hot here and so nice to be able to jump in a pool day or night - I love swimming at night - so relaxing. We do our own pool maintenance and it is not that hard. Thinking of converting to a salt system in the future. A pool feels great to jump into after I finish cutting the lawn.

[Restrain]

We opted for a hot tub instead of a pool. Use it every day, sometimes twice, but we deal with arthritis, etc.

[HarborRat]

Originally Posted by Fairfax Mom

For resale I would get a pool - I would not even look at a home that does not have one .....

Believe it or not there are also many people that would not look at a house that does have a pool, they don't want to deal with the costs or maintenance. That's why a pool adds less than $10k to the price of a used house....but you also paid less in the first place so I'd say the resale value is a moot point. Add in the cost of maintaining the pool over the time you spend in the house and you'll probably (almost certainly) end up losing money in the long run....if you plan to sell someday.

[Macgregorsailor51]

Re-word your post to address water front and or boats and the same might be true as well??????? But ask a realtor what retirees are looking to purchase.. thats The Next Market for most of us.. the next generation of retirees.. Right Now most retirees are looking water front with a pool.. Be it PG PGI or PC.. If Retirees didnt think pools were important there wouldnt be so many homes with them.. When the market was tight this last time around the houses that sold first had both a pool and water front.. The cost of up keep is minimal.. the work is almost nothing.. If you were talking the snow zone you would be right, but IMHO not in the land of 12 months of summer.. If your talking young working families I see your point but few of those are buying in this general price range.

Originally Posted by HarborRat

Believe it or not there are also many people that would not look at a house that does have a pool, they don't want to deal with the costs or maintenance. That's why a pool adds less than $10k to the price of a used house....but you also paid less in the first place so I'd say the resale value is a moot point. Add in the cost of maintaining the pool over the time you spend in the house and you'll probably (almost certainly) end up losing money in the long run....if you plan to sell someday.

[MikMal]

When we were looking for our house, we preferred ones with NO pool since we started out as snowbirds and didn't want the monthly expense of running a pool (pool service & electricity). As luck would have it, we ended up buying a house with a pool. Since we have it I use it several days a week in the "cooler" months and probably daily in the summer.
That being said, I think I could be just as happy with a hot tub. I just wouldn't heat it in the warmer months and when we head north for a month or sometimes longer we would just be able to drain it.