house hunting - I hate pools

[suzyjazz]

OK, I already ranted about house selling, so let me now rant about house hunting. This house in <secret location> for an OK price (price I am willing to pay for "perfection") looks SOOOO cute. I love it. What is the problem, you may ask, aside from no activity on the house I need to sell? The problem is that it has a pool! Bah. I know a pool is "valuable", but I wouldn't particularly use one, and I DO NOT want to maintain one, and I'd like some grass in the yard for my dog, you know? How much does it cost to un-do a pool?

*sob*

Hey, at least now from the looks of this place I know exactly whta color I want to paint my kitchen. At least until my husband vetoes the idea.

[Steelsun]

Not too much - rent a jackhammer to crack the bottom in alot of places (for drainage - big holes a plus), and reduce the side down 12-24 inches (I reccomend 24).
Then a dumptruck load of fill (actually go with gravel first for the bottom half, and then soil above that).

Of course the hit you take on your property value is where it will hurt - you'll need to get your property reappraised for insurance and possibly even mortage. And then protest your property taxes to get it lowered. All that might hurt your $$$ alot.

[LoungeLizard]

Pool maintenance is extremely over estimated. Couple of hundred a year in electricity, about $200 in chemicals, and that's about it.

Of course, it's not for everyone.

[suzyjazz]

Brian - interesting. You are right that it doesn't make a lot of sense to pay a premium (however much, maybe it's not a lot) for a pool and then to wipe it out.

Brad - But what about cleaning it? I'm not much good at maintaining anything outdoors. Lazy. I generally don't like being outside except when I am taking photos!

The biggest problem is that I simply want grass there instead.

[chloew]

I went to a real estate seminar in Austin a few many years back, and back then they told us that a pool does not increase the resale value of a house. It's okay if a house has one and the new owner wants one, but on average people do not pay more for a house because of the pool. I agree I prefer a yard and to avoid the hassles of pool maintenance. I'm about to remove a hottub on my house that came with the house for the same reason.

[David_3]

I had a pool for 6 1/2 years (in Florida), and I found it to be a total pain-in-the-butt. The cost of maintenance wasn't the problem, but rather the time involved to maintain it. It sounds easy.....just a few minutes each week to sweep down the sides and add the chemicals. And cleaning the filter is no problem.....yeah right! I wish I had all of the hours back that I spent cleaning and maintaining that pool for 6+ years.

I guess if you really use a pool a lot, then it would be worth it. But I didn't use it that much, and I hated cleaning the pool about as much as I hated cutting the grass. They are both lost causes. No matter how much time and effort you put into them, a week later you have to do it again.

The realtors I have talked to say that adding a $30,000 pool to your house will only increase the resale value of your house by about $10,000.

You really have to want it.

[Shane]

Wow, we use our pool at least 4-5 nights a week and just pay for the maintenance/cleaning.

In Texas, I can not imagine living without one in the backyard. Many times, I will come in after work, swim with the kids for a while and then after they go to sleep, go sit in the hottub for 30 mins to just relax.

It was a must-have when we were looking at homes as adding one costs way more than just getting a resale with one already added.

[Wendy]

Okay, Suzy. I'll trade you the grass in the backyard of the house we're building, for the pool. Sound like a deal?

Seriously, we're currently building and the biggest drawback to building for us was not being able to afford to put a pool in right away. In looking at existing homes before we signed the contract on our house, we would only consider homes with pools. Unfortunately, it came down to either buying an older home with a pool or building a new home and doing without a pool, and we elected to build. So, no pool for us. That's okay. I'm still getting my dream kitchen.

[Ray]

Have a saltwater system installed.

[Bill]

Find another house. You are not close to having found perfection.

Fill settles. Unless you duplicate the surrounding terrain, the chances are that settling will not occur in the same way or rate as the rest of your yard. If it is higher than the rest, it will be drier and barren, like a desert, also.(note exaggeration) If it sinks, it will breed mosquitoes in the pit, the one people stumble over when it is dry.

Leave the pool? Not worth it when some kid dies in it. Or you have to seal it over to prevent that. Sealing is not a plastic cover. Welded steel.

Don't fall for the Fallacy of the One-and-Only House.

This cheerless post is for Suzy, based on her likes and dislikes, not for fans of pools. I do not propose banning pools.

Bill

[CincoJoe]

Hmmm, lets see...mow the lawn....or clean the pool and swim when you want. No brainer.

[suzyjazz]

Thanks for the replies. My husband doesn't even like the house, anyway! My bigger rant will be about moving twice, when someone finally DOES offer on our house and we can't get another one fast enough to move into. Grrrr. I do not like that. Right now I would just like to get some darn feedback from the whole 2 people that have been through.

Oh, and I'm just about the most impatient person in the world, so this is fun!

[Wendy]

It's a slowwww process, Suzy. We looked for two years before finally settling on the house we're now building. Ultimately, we built because we couldn't find that perfect house. Sooner or later, you'll find exactly what you want and your house will sell. Hang in there!

[Glen_A]

Suzy get labrador retreivers...........they love water lol.

[suzyjazz]

Originally Posted by Wendy

It's a slowwww process, Suzy. We looked for two years before finally settling on the house we're now building. Ultimately, we built because we couldn't find that perfect house. Sooner or later, you'll find exactly what you want and your house will sell. Hang in there!

We should have spent 2 years , then maybe we wouldn't have built the perfect house in the wrong location, and we'd just be moving once. That's what everyone is doing now -- building. I never want to do it again, but I only feel that way because I "have to" walk away from it.

Originally Posted by Glen_A

Suzy get labrador retreivers...........they love water lol.

Hehe, good idea! I keep saying I am going to buy a little plastic kiddie pool to see if Jazz will lay in it.