Cost to get/maintain a pool

TomE8 (North Carolina)
Posts: 10

Posted:

Our HOA has 150 members and we're wondering if it would make sense to have a pool, approximate cost to build and maintain, etc. One home owner mentioned that you can save a lot on initial cost by buying a prefabricated pool that goes into the ground. Any input/words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Tom

DonA2 (Arizona)
Posts: 170

Posted:

Approximate cost to build is going to depend a lot on design; i.e. how big, how deep, any special features, etc.

I don't know what a pool service company costs in your area, but we have a budget of almost $5k annually for our pool service. Also you have to figure into your reserves pool pumps and other equipment. And we are getting ready to resurface our pool and pool decking and will probably end up spending close to $20K when it's all said and done. And resurfacing is something that needs to be done probably every 10 years or so, depending on usage.

TimB4 (Tennessee)
Posts: 21,059

Posted:

You also need to figure restroom facilities, if you will or will not have life guards, what the local ordinances require (signage, fencing, etc.) for pools, access and controlling access (how will it be done - security, FOBs, hard keys, etc.), hours of operation, and lighting (just to name a few).

JonD1
Posts: 2,350

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By TomE8 on 09/09/2015 4:20 AM
Our HOA has 150 members and we're wondering if it would make sense to have a pool, approximate cost to build and maintain, etc. One home owner mentioned that you can save a lot on initial cost by buying a prefabricated pool that goes into the ground. Any input/words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Tom

Tom

Over time in my view pools can become money pits. We just removed our pool to cut costs and control spending.

As for new installation I would suggest you contact the local health department that might oversee the operation of any pool.
Here our pool came under their control which added to the cost.

Yes, you have prefabricated shells that can be installed, concrete, or vinyl lined pools to choose from. Each had its own set of issues and costs.

Cost wise:
Insurance
Chemicals
Lifeguards
Maintenance
Permits
Utilities
Pool furniture
Fencing
Lighting
Passes or badges

These costs are yearly on top of the cost of construction.

As you are located in a state with seasonal use these costs cover maybe 3-4 months of use?
The contractor who removed our pool structure told me his business now sees more removals than installations. Due to increased cost and declining use.
I would carefully consider going down this road because long term it can be quite costly and provide few real benefits.

Here we decided there were far more important things to be done with the funds being used for the pool.

BillH10 (Texas)
Posts: 1,217

Posted:

Tom

Some additional considerations for you:

The expense of additional insurance, both primary liability insurance and possibly an umbrella policy

Lifeguards were mentioned. I have no experience in this area but, ISTM your association could become involved in an employer/employee relationship which leads to payroll, taxes, FICA, benefits, etc.

Who will be the contact for issues and emergencies? Do you have a management company now? If not, and you proceed with a pool, I strongly recommend you hire a management company to interface between the property owners/residents and the "pool". You don't want the Board being called at all hours of the day and night.

If you have a management company, perhaps they have other clients who would be willing to provide you with insight into their operating costs and experiences.

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By JonD1 on 09/09/2015 7:06 AM

Posted By TomE8 on 09/09/2015 4:20 AM
Our HOA has 150 members and we're wondering if it would make sense to have a pool, approximate cost to build and maintain, etc. One home owner mentioned that you can save a lot on initial cost by buying a prefabricated pool that goes into the ground. Any input/words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Tom

Tom

Over time in my view pools can become money pits. We just removed our pool to cut costs and control spending.

As for new installation I would suggest you contact the local health department that might oversee the operation of any pool.
Here our pool came under their control which added to the cost.

Yes, you have prefabricated shells that can be installed, concrete, or vinyl lined pools to choose from. Each had its own set of issues and costs.

Cost wise:
Insurance
Chemicals
Lifeguards
Maintenance
Permits
Utilities
Pool furniture
Fencing
Lighting
Passes or badges

These costs are yearly on top of the cost of construction.

As you are located in a state with seasonal use these costs cover maybe 3-4 months of use?
The contractor who removed our pool structure told me his business now sees more removals than installations. Due to increased cost and declining use.
I would carefully consider going down this road because long term it can be quite costly and provide few real benefits.

Here we decided there were far more important things to be done with the funds being used for the pool.

That's exactly why we got rid of ours!

The last time our pool was open, we had about 5% of the residents (out of about 300) using the pool, so it wasn't cost effective to keep it anyway. Between the county license, cost of opening, closing and maintaining the pool and paying a pool monitor to check pool passes and keep some semblance of order, the last time we budgeted the season (Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend), it cost about $20K. Our community has 156 units, so it was really much cheaper in the end for people to go down the street to the city park, which has a pool AND one of those fancy slides kids like so much.

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

JonD1
Posts: 2,350

Posted:

Great minds think alike!

We had seasonal use only a few months if you run into bad weather even less.. Just to run the pool was $20,000 per year. Repairs, replacements, maintenance was additional.

We have 130+ units most days we had 4-5 people at the pool.

Once the novelty wears off attendance will drop.

Weigh the positives against the negatives it was the best decisin we have made for the long term financial health of our property.

MelissaP1 (Alabama)
Posts: 13,836

Posted:

Keep in mind what the purpose of having a pool is for a HOA. It is a sales element. It is used to ATTRACT potential buyers. Buyers who don't want the expense of maintaining their own individual pool are attracted to having a pool for exclusive use instead. If your trying to attract potential buyers and have a shared enjoyable entertainment element, then a pool may be worth the expense. It depends on the type of owners/members you want in your HOA. It may be better to offer a playground instead of a pool if your trying to get families to purchase. Put in an element of the type of people you want. Want families then pools/playgrounds. Want older couples/singles then Tennis courts or walking trails.

Keep in mind HOA's do NOT keep or maintain Property Values. Their purpose is to ATTRACT potential buyers.

Former HOA President

KellyM3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 2,239

Posted:

Hi Tom,

I doubt a prefabricated pool will hold up to "public" use by your community so you'll want a pool construction company to install a plaster/quartz, in-ground pool.

With digging, permitting, digging, concrete, plastering, pool pump, salt-based chlorination system (avoid chlorine-based), sand filters, underground piping, cement pool deck, fencing, access gate, access gate programming, guest keys or digital keycards for entry, commercial-grade restrooms, shower, commercial-grade pool chemical room and your community should assess itself approximate $1,250-$1,500 per property and expect a $200,000 price tag is a "guesstimate" for construction. You'll need the pool, the deck surrounding the pool, a fence, gate and a small building for restrooms and pool supplies.

Expect to re-plaster your pool every 8 years. Expect to conduct plaster repair ($1,000-plus) every 24 months for maintenance and to purchase or restore pool chairs every 24-30 months.

I'm in NC and we run our pool from May 10 - Sept 11th, approximately every year,expect running costs of:

Daily pool maintenance on a 12-month contract: $11,000/year
Chemicals (we are salt-based): $1,000/year or $2,000/year if you choose "hard" pool chemicals.
Mandatory 911 telephone: $500/year
Water Bill: $1,200/year (some years lower but some years we'll have a leak)
Power Bill: $4,750/year (you will pay commercial electric power rates in NC)
Liability Insurance: $3,000....wild guess here but it rolls into your overall insurance
Pool furniture: $500 year some years.....$1,500 others.
Random repairs: $1,200 (Pools crack, leak and seals go bad, pumps stop, etc.)
Pool Permits: $175 year (but county based)

Your pool will not shut down in the off-season. It must operate and be maintained at a minimum level and pool pumps must run 24 hours in the off-season, by law, but less than that during cold weather; it's only off-season for swimmers.

If your residents will pay OR you have the reserves and no other property issues pressing OR are over-funded, then it's worth a discussion but ONLY if your HOA is willing to invest in a high-quality pool construction. Since it's not a residential pool behind one's house, users will be more rough in the usage so low grade construction or economy purchases may bite you.

LarryB13 (Arizona)
Posts: 4,099

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By TomE8 on 09/09/2015 4:20 AM
Our HOA has 150 members and we're wondering if it would make sense to have a pool, approximate cost to build and maintain, etc. One home owner mentioned that you can save a lot on initial cost by buying a prefabricated pool that goes into the ground. Any input/words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

I bought a home with a pool once. It was a royal pain-in-the-butt to maintain and we found we (wife and I) got very little use out of it. When we went looking for another home one we would not consider one with a pool.

Pools get a lot of use by elementary and middle-school-aged kids. Once they get older their attentions turn to other things. Communities have life cycles and if yours is more than ten or fifteen years old you may not have enough kids or adults who are likely to use the pool.

Also, pools can be a source of trouble. A friend used to manage apartment complexes and he said all his problem properties had pools; the ones without pools were never a problem.

Shelia offers up good insight into the problems you will face.

PitA
Posts: 1,416

Posted:

Pool:

A liquid filled hole in the ground into which one pours excess money.

TomE8 (North Carolina)
Posts: 10

Posted:

Thanks everyone for the great info. One last question: Did any of your HOA's get a bank loan to build your pool initially? If not how was the money for the initial construction raised?

Thanks

Tom

MikeS1
Posts: 521

Posted:

JonD is spot on. Any builder or developer will tell you that unless you have around 1,000 homes, you should not go down this road. Your community cannot afford it. We have 368 homes and we have a small 25 meter pool (no deeper than 5 ft) with a small pool house. The Pool management contract is usually about $30,000 but with all the other maintenance items and other items that JonD mentions, it usually can be more like $45,000 per year. I would certainly not take out a loan for this. If the board votes on this and you have the community behind you on this, you may want to put this in the budget or go for a special assessment. (Good luck with that).

I have noted that pools in the south and a lot of areas, are not monitored with Lifeguards, (which we find unusual here in our area) which might reduce your expenses but increase your liability exposure.

While your realtors will usually tell you that it's good for resale, there are lots of folks (like me) that will be looking for our next home in a community without a pool. It's a financial boat anchor.

Good Luck.

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

I've noticed a number of newer communities around town don't have pools, unless they're in the suburbs and the houses goes for over $150K. A lot of them don't seem to have trees either. Maybe it's because too many developers (like ours) planted them too close to the houses, and while large oaks and maples are majestic when full grown, they can also cause structural problems like sewer line disruptions from tree roots and trip hazards on the sidewalks. We recently spent $12K to take down some of our older trees that did just that and because our community is over 40 years old, I expect this to continue for the next few years because the others are coming to the end of their lifespan.

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

The costs that others have listed sound about right for us with our pool for 211 high rise condos. Yes, pumps, motors, resurfaced twice in 14 years, draining & cleaning extra charges when glass has gotten into it & then refilling and reheating. Don't think I'd factor in pool furniture as without one, there probably is some sort of shard amenity with ours door furniture it it, yes? We do have a spa in the same area and it gets a lot of use.

Two-three lap swimmers swim every day and 2-3 exercise in it every day. Otherwise there are many non-summer days when no one else uses it. The majority of residents here are over 50 and so we get a fair number of grandkids who come over in the summer. No lifeguard and fobs to enter the area.

I have nice views of the pool and enjoy seeing people at it and the lights on at night. Visually it's attractive. In addition, all the high rises around us have pools, so with Melissa, I think sales might be hurt a little if we did not have one.

On one hand, it seems like a waste of homeowners' $$$ if folks are content with what you do have, Tom. An I wouldn't proceed without an estimate to your community about all the costs involved. and ask for a vote. I don't know about NC, but CA laws state that Owners must vote on capital improvements if they'll cost more than 5% of our budget. Even if less, CA HOA attorneys advise to et a vote form owners on such a dramatic change.

We have two sets of friends who live in desert HOAs and both have removed their tennis courts & put in fitness centers. Like Melissa says, it depends on who lives in your HOA and your demography.