It's 9:28 in the evening. It's 103 degrees outside, cooling off nicely from today's high of 109 (officially, my thermometer hit 112).
Yep, it's summertime in Phoenix, and that means swimming pools are the subject of many conversations. Maintenance, cleaning, equipment, chemical balance, water temperature, black algae, all this and more become a part of every day conversation.
Invariably we get various questions from Phoenix real estate buyers, sellers and investors about swimming pools. This morning the question via email was:
My husband and I are actually moving out of Power Ranch and interested in talking to someone about our property. . . .
(insert property details here, time lines there, yada yada)
I am not seeing many homes with a pool for sale - would this work in our favor?
. . .
Great question! And not a simple answer. Lots of homes in the Phoenix area have private swimming pools. There are a few "rules" to remember when it comes to selling (or buying for that matter) a home with a pool:
- You will likely NOT recover the cost of building and maintaining your pool. If you have two homes identical in every way except one has a $25,000 pool and the other doesn't, the home with a pool is not worth $25,000 more. It may be worth $5,000 more, it may not be worth anything more — in terms of raw value.
- Remember that some buyers insist on having a private pool. Many other buyers however want nothing to do with a pool. In our experience, it's about a 50 - 50 split between people wanting a pool and those that don't. It may be slightly tilted toward those who prefer a pool. Slightly. A pool can be built in many yards, however removing an existing pool is expensive. If you are buying an investment property, you'll eliminate a lot of liability and have a larger block of potential buyers if you avoid a home with an existing pool.
- Condition counts. Pools have to be maintained. Nothing will turn off a potential buyer faster than a poorly maintained pool.
Good: Bad:
- If you live in a development with good access to a community pool(s), your private pool is less desirable to many.
- Many people fear the amount of work required to maintain a pool (though it's not as bad as most people think). Consider offering one year of pool service to potential buyers to alleviate such fears. It's a nice incentive and a small price to pay. Be willing to absorb the (minimal) additional home warranty cost for the pool equipment.
- Make sure your pool barrier meets local code before putting your home on the market. Barrier regulations can vary wildly from one city to the next, and can also be dependent on when the pool was constructed.
- Like home upgrades, it is possible to have too much pool for the home. A negative edge, cascading waterfall, custom mosaic tiled pool may look nice, but if it's too "over the top" for the yard and home, it will look out of place to most buyers.
Having a private pool can be a wonderful experience, especially in an area like Phoenix where you can enjoy it almost year round. Knowing and understanding how potential buyers see private pools can help you sell your home when you are ready to make a move.
Some good swimming pool sites: PoolCenter.com, CheapPoolProducts.com, Swimming pool safety.
Technorati Tags: Phoenix swimming pools, swimming pool maintenance
Thanks for reading! We value your thoughts and opinions, so please feel free to leave a comment. Contact us if you have any questions or need help. You can also get automatic updates for this blog free via:
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to this blog via email or RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
{ 3 trackbacks }
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Norm Fisher 06.16.07 at 7:18 pm
I would have thought a pool would almost be standard equipment in Phoenix. They’re not real big in my part of the world.
Keith Jeppson 06.16.07 at 9:01 pm
I’m surprised at the nominal increase in value. That is very similar to the Salt Lake market. The pool will not really increase the value but will make it much easier to sell to the sector of the market that wants pools. That is a much smaller buying pool in our market.
Some great suggestions for those considering a pool.
Jay - The Phoenix Real Estate Guy 06.16.07 at 10:37 pm
It would be interesting to know the percentage of homes in Phoenix that have private pools. I don’t know any way of determining that, but if someone does, shout it out!
*I* couldn’t live without a pool here. But I know a lot of folks that thought they had to have one and after the first summer or two they rarely get their feet wet.
Me, I’m a big fan of floating in the pool, with beer in hand.
Norm and Keith, I’d think in both your parts of the world, the swimming season would be pretty short…
Kristal Kraft 06.17.07 at 2:41 pm
Jay ~ Interesting reasonings. I too was surprised to learn that a pool wasn’t a requirement in Phoenix. In Colorado it is usually the reason a home will NOT sell.
Jim Cosgrove 06.17.07 at 5:35 pm
Jay, We find that skating rinks, which can be used as swimming pools for a month or two in the summer actually add value to a home. Much easier to maintain when frozen, also!
It’s ungodly hot here now, up in the 70’s almost every day.
Chris Butterworth 06.20.07 at 11:02 am
Great summary of the “pool as an investment” in Phoenix. We try to advise our clients that putting a pool in is almost 100% for your own entertainment - you have to think of it as spending a couple of thousand dollars per summer for the ability to swim in your own home, whenever you want, as much or as little as you like.. Sort of like an annual pass to your own amusement park.
I would add #8: Make sure your yard is large enough for a pool. I have seen several listings where the backyard is basically nothing more than a swimming pool, where you literally open the back door onto the pool decking. Buyers who don’t want a pool won’t buy this house, and buyers who do want a pool will realize they also want some yard &/or aesthetics to go along with it!
And the reverse of #7 is true, too. I’ve seen a few beautiful homes with large yards, where the expectation is to see a lush, oasis-type pool in the backyard. But instead the owner “cheaped out” and put in a basic, entry-level play pool. Buyers look at that as a very expensive “fix”.
Marcus Follio 07.31.07 at 2:39 am
Treat your family to the luxury of Swimming Pools
Fridays have this uncanny ability to make me feel sleepy and lethargic. But the reason why I am feeling very sleepy (it’s a Friday) and not to mention lethargic is because I did not sleep properly last night. This is slowly becoming a routine, not getting sleep properly at night. My friend is a doctor, so I had a talk with him about this, and he says that I am not the only one facing this insomnia problem and this is turning out to be rampant. Swimming pools are one means that I can try out for inducing relaxing sleep at night, he said. Now I was stumped, swimming pool and sleep what connection is there? Apparently there was a medical study conducted by doctors and it was found that sitting in hot tubs and swimming pools at the end of tiring day can induce sound sleep.
Now the best way to sit, lounge and relax in a swimming pool or hot tub is to get one installed in the privacy of your own house. Blue World Pool is one of the reputed swimming pool dealers operating across several cities in the United States. The advantages and benefits of installing a swimming pool at your place is many and unless you actually get one installed you will not come to know the full utility and benefit of a pool. The first and the most obvious benefit for a swimming pool owner is undoubtedly rest and relaxation for him, his family and close friends. Other then inducing sound sleep, exercising in swimming pools has been found to be medically beneficial in many other ways as well. There are several health conditions such as pain in the joints and arthritis that can be effectively cured by doing hydrotherapy i.e. exercise in water.
Hydrotherapy is increasingly being used by leading athletes from all over the world, to rest and get rid of muscle tensions and enhance their performance levels. A swimming pool installed from blue world pools is just ideal for people who are recovering from any physical injuries. The cool waters in the swimming pool can actually relax and ease out the tension in parts of the body where the person is experiencing pain and discomfort. Kids love to play with waters and if you allow them to play to their heart’s content in the blue water of the swimming pool, you will be the most loved person around. You can relax and hang out in the swimming pool with your family and teach your children to swim. Teaching them to swim at such an early age will surely be beneficial for them in the long run.
Swimming pool safety is another factor that you must keep in mind if you have young kids at home. Never leave them unattended in the pool side even for a few seconds; you never know when an accident can happen, so it’s better to be cautious. It is not that, you can enjoy different fun activities in the swimming pool only during the summer season. During the winter season you can use a water heater and enjoy the same amount of fun and relaxation in the swimming pool.
Source: http://www.easyswimmingpoolfinancing.com/