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Old 04-03-2009, 06:29 PM
 
Location: Charlotte, NC
2,193 posts, read 5,037,791 times
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I think it's better to save up the cash for it then purchase it since you plan on being there for a while. Is there a community pool near your home that you can use in the meanwhile?
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Old 04-03-2009, 09:36 PM
 
3,191 posts, read 9,162,782 times
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Having had a pool at homes in FL and GA, I can say they are fun, in a twisted way, LOL. One had a liner, the other marcite ( i think it was called) Luckily I had the maintenance down to a T and never had any horrible problems with water quality. But it was always something. the Kreeply Krawley would get stuck, or the vac hose would screw up. Always having to rescue frogs, once a rat and a snake. Storms always had debris landing in the pool. Adding water, taking water out. Cleaning the snad filter, or washign the bejezus out of the cartridge.
IMHO And contrary to some folks belief, they do not add actual value to a home.
You always have to worry if someone will get in your yard, in spite of proper fencing, and drown...or even a 'friends' child drown or get hurt. Homeowners ins. will increase.
Personally I would not build one.

HAve you checked into YMCA's? Some of them have very nice facilities. Also, some apt/condo, or Home associations will allow a non member or owner to 'buy' a membership. There are even hotels that do that!
There are several other options, you have to seek them out. Get friendly with a neighbor that has one and offer to help foot the maintenance expenses and offer to sign a waiver of responsibility, in exchange to swimming privleages ( an elderly person might appreciate it)

But if you do build one, have fun and a great time working on your tan while you are cleaning it lol
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Old 04-03-2009, 10:05 PM
 
Location: Elkhart, IN
311 posts, read 913,744 times
Reputation: 269
Quote:
Originally Posted by sueinge View Post
but no one ever knows what could happen. I guess we would only move if something drastic happened. We can afford the payments of a pool but I don't know if we can "afford" to upgrade a house in the falling market. Does anyone have any opinions on this?
Heres what I would do...put in a nice above ground pool. Try it out for a few years...if you find you use it enough and dont find the upkeep/cost too much of time/money eater, then you can always go ahead and put in an inground pool(in the meantime, the cost of above ground is so much less, you will have extra $ to save towards the inground, should you decide to do it).
Remember too, inground pool will increase your costs of property taxes, whereas an above ground will not.

When I lived in FL, we had this discussion and in the end, we bought a Hot Springs Hot tub and put up a NICE screened porch and never regretted it one moment. Another option, unless you have kids, is to put just an exercise style pool in, smaller, less expense, less maintenance, etc. Like Painter said, they usually dont add value and can slow the sale of your home (lots of people dont want them), so if you want it, realize you may not recoup the cost of it when you go to sell.

Last edited by jodyrose; 04-03-2009 at 10:08 PM.. Reason: to add additional thoughts
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Old 04-03-2009, 10:34 PM
 
Location: Central FL
1,683 posts, read 8,191,428 times
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I love my pool in Florida. There is no way I would not have a pool unless I could not afford to pay for it. If you can afford it - go for it! With modern technology - maintenance/cleaning is almost nothing.
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Old 04-04-2009, 08:37 AM
 
Location: Halfway between Number 4 Privet Drive and Forks, WA
1,516 posts, read 4,581,766 times
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My mom has a pool and we enjoy it, however, I would never want one for myself because of the upkeep. Instead we moved into a neighborhood that has a pool. Our HOA fees are only $350/yr. which is not really bad and there's only about 70 homes in our development.

However, I think pools are almost expected in Florida. I would seem to think they do much better on resale there than here in GA.
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Old 04-04-2009, 08:59 AM
 
Location: Where I want to be!
6,196 posts, read 5,432,567 times
Reputation: 2578
Oh another thought- check out your homeowners insurance, when I purchased here several would not insure because of the pool. And the one company told me to take out the diving board and they would. You may have to find a different insurance company than the one you have and your premium will be higher.
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Old 04-04-2009, 09:39 AM
 
Location: Barrington
63,919 posts, read 46,487,374 times
Reputation: 20674
Quote:
Originally Posted by sueinge View Post
We bought a house in FL with the intention of putting a pool in at some point. We probably over paid (last Aug 08) considering the property values in FL have gone lower and lower. Assuming we could even get a pool loan (or if the appraisal would allow) would it be totally stupid to put in a pool right now?

We can afford the payments of a pool but I don't know if we can "afford" to upgrade a house in the falling market.
It sounds like you need to borrow funds to install a pool which does not strike me as prudent move, all things considered, assuming there is a bank willing to do so, under the circumstances.
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Old 04-04-2009, 10:14 PM
 
4,284 posts, read 10,727,346 times
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if you want a pool and can afford it, get the pool. you only live once.

and nothing beats a pool if you like to have people over your house frequently.
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Old 04-05-2009, 02:45 PM
 
384 posts, read 2,216,400 times
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Thanks everyone for your input!!!
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Old 04-06-2009, 10:28 AM
 
982 posts, read 1,094,551 times
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Here's something I've personally learned and take it or leave it. It's not always about money. Just prioritize. We've had pools and personally I thought it was a huge pain in the butt but the kids loved it and used it and had friends over all the time. I wouldn't trade those days for all the money in the world. We could afford it and we could afford a pool guy, so for me it was worth it. It brought a lot of joy to our family and friends. We were the house to be at, and I wouldn't have had it any other way. I always knew where my kids were. We put an outside refrigerator on the patio, stocked it with sodas, and let them enjoy themselves. The pictures still adorn my hallway wall! Don't make your whole life about money. You'll have more regrets that way.
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