What's the general consensus out there...does an in-ground pool add value to a piece of property, or detract from it?

It's always been my uneducated understanding that these things become more of a hinderance than a help at selling time. That they can limit the pool (no pun intended) of prospective buyers. Anyone have a handle on the truth to that? Any agents or pro's out there?

Does it matter what part of the country? (I'm in the northeast, so the "season" wouldn't be the same as Arizona.) Does size of the lot play into this, as in the pool not dominating the lot?

We're deep in discussion about installing one. One of us sits on the "I wanna pool" side of the fence. The other sits on the "I'm not convinced it's a good thing" side of the fence.

What do you all think out there?

Oh, neither one of us will hold anyone here responsible for any good/stupid decision we might make based on your valuable input....:-)

[This message has been edited by treebeard (edited April 07, 2003).]

In-ground do not add any value to the house at all. They may make a home more attractive to a buyer, in an apples to apples world the in-ground pool home would probably win out but for the most part, from an appraisal point of view, they add nothing. In reality they are actually an added expense because homeowner's insurance usually cost more because of one.

I am going to have to disagree a little bit. They ad value to a certain audience in a real market. Appraisals it has neither heft nor lift in value. For example If the buyers have teenage children and entertain alot then a pool will be a great advantage to them, on the other hand if you have a person who say wants to run a day care or has small children then it is the exact opposite. So consider your ****** market when installing one if resale is a consideration. I have been a realtor for quite a bit now and have good experience with the industry and these are my findings.

HURT! I work with lots of people--young, older, single, married, with and without kids and it is extremely rare to find someone who actually wants a pool. In fact, if we do look at a house with a pool they usually talk about filling the pool in as part of the deal if they decide to buy.

I think what we have here is a matter of opinion,every house on my block has one of those blow up pools that are about 3-4 feet deep,I think if they could get one they all would.We were going to get one but seeing as we just bought 2 jetskis and a motorhome the $$ for budget on toys this year isn't there.There are buyers out their that would love to get a home with one,but where im from it is pretty high priced to purchase a home with one.
I look at it this way if i could of bought my exact same house with or without a pool for the same price and interest rate.I'd be enjoying a dip right now seeing it's 85 and sunny
You can get all the opinions you wnat but the end decision is yours,do you want it or not?
Pretty tough choice,good luck

Alot of pros and cons on this subject. Consider will the homeowner be doing the maintenance? I personally do all my own, but i'm sure pool companies are not cheap. Add the price of chlorine, algaecide, PH uppers,and most important the electric bill to run the pump. If I had my way, my pool would be in the history book. But the wife is wearing the pants, and I have my swim trunks on..LOL

My tendency is to say, "don't do it." Unless you REALLY REALLY would use it a LOT. 3 reasons:

1. Liability. Not only insurance cost, but you have to fence, etc., keep others out. Heaven help you if kids ever'd sneak in and drown.....that would ruin your whole day.

2. You have to "muck with it" (OK, no pun intended!) Doesn't a home take ENOUGH time without adding on those kind of chores? So it's not just a matter of "does it add value." It's amazing how often a new possession becomes an albatross--it ends up owning YOU instead of the other way around!

3. I think it would limit your market. Someone coming in (prospective buyer) would have to actually WANT a pool in order to want to buy your home. Personally I would tell a realtor, don't even show me a house that has one. (Whereas if someone WANTS a pool REAL bad, they might still buy your house and put it in themselves--if your house has other attributes they like...)

So bottom line: only if you'd really want one. Otherwise sock away what you'd spend on the pool and use it for annual trips to the Carribean!

Well, thanks for the input. So far, "she" hasn't brought it up again as there have been just far too many "other" projects that have taken her (and my) attention. The up-side of that situation is that "the perfect spot" for said pool is slowly being reworked and landscaped into service as an entirely differnt use...by her own design. Perhaps she's forgotten all about it.

Care to guess which one of us did not want to pool?

It's great that the decision is kind of "making itself"...and better still that it appears to be going in your favor. Way to go!

In my most recent home search, the homes (in FL) that had the ammenities I wanted (an inside laundry room, a workshop, a 2 car garage) almost always had a pool. Those that did not have those special ammenities, with a large yard, did NOT have a pool. Sooooooo.... we have a very nice 18x36' pool and all the trimmings too )