We use to live in NJ, now we are in Fl. (Grew up in NJ and have fond memories of the Jersey shore!) If I lived in NJ, I would go for the investment in a house on LBI...also depends on where you live in NJ, I would want the beach house within so many hours/minutes of my home. We used to live in Morris County and LBI was 2 hours away. Wild Wood Crest was beautiful too but just too far to frequently visit a house. Since you can only use a pool in NJ from Memorial day to Labor day, (and in No. Jersey, the water didnt warm up until late June) I would go for the beach house. Tough decision. We had a pool growing up, not a beach house.....wish we had the beach house, it would be worth a fortune today:) Thats another thing...I bet its cheaper to put in a nice pool than buy a home at the beach!

we can get to any shore from LBI south in less than 2 hours (w/o traffic, of course). homes are sure worth a fortune...can't touch a 3br house for less than about $500k, and it will surely need work. can't afford that kind of $$ without renting it out for most, if not all of the season.

I thought it was pretty expensive there, my family still lives in Morristownship....maybe you should put in a pool:) When we lived in VA, we still use to rent a beach house at LBI so our friend & family could come see visit for the day. I loved it there, is it still family oriented? What part of NJ do you live in?

If it's purely for investment, I'd say get the house. However, we had a vacation lake house - 2 hours from home. Our little boy was perfectly happy going there almost every weekend thru summer and fall.

Then he turned 7. Gained some independence and lots of friends in our neighborhood. He HATED leaving every weekend to go up north. Even if we took one of his friends along he gave us a lot of grief. And I can't say I blame him. What is a quiet lakeside retreat for an adult is BORING for a child.

We sold the house and are using some of the proceeds for pool. Now we're all happy. Other investments will come our way. Right now it was important to live in a way that was enjoyable for all concerned.

It all depends on your situation. good luck with the decision.

gk5040 - we live in gloucester county. LBI is still pretty family oriented. we're most familiar with ship bottom and surf city and would make it down to bay village in beach haven on occasion...and even catch a show at the surf light and ice cream at the showplace.

banana_fanna - your experience is exactly what I'm thinking about. My son is going to be 6 and I'm finding that his/our schedule for the summer is already booked pretty solid. The shore probably has more to offer to kids than a lake house, but I can imagine that not being with friends during the summer would turn into a problem.

i'm starting to lean toward pool...and leaving the shore house for later....we can always rent, i guess.

We're from S. Jersey (Hammonton)-now in Maryland. A beach house in Wildwood would have been sweet, any of the Jersey shores really. We're in Maryland now and seriously considered a beach house in OC, MD prior to signing our contract. My pool isn't open yet and sometimes I wish we had gone the beach house route--better financial investment I think. Maybe my thoughts will change when the pool opens. One advantage to a beach house in MD is that you can use it almost year around, OC is very tranquil in the off season. Best of luck in your decision.

I am a Jersey Girl. While we've been married we've had two shore houses: one in Deauville Beach and one in Ocean Gate. Since we live in PA we were always feeling guilty when we weren't there. We did rent to a family for about 4 weeks each year. Then we unexpectedly stumbled upon our current 7 acre property for sale. We knew we could sell the shore house faster than our current home where we had lived for so many years. So we bought this quickly, sold the NJ property and put in a pool at our "new" home. Though I really miss the beach, I love being able to swim every day in the summer. I love not having to clean two houses. Or pay the taxes. Or feel that every vacation has to be there. Or be guilty when we can't be there. Or spend every visit there fixing something. We may buy another vacation home someday, but for now this is great. Our country home feels like a retreat. But there is something about that salt air and crashing of the waves to make you lose all common sense......
Boby

We had to make a similar decision - lake house vs building a pool. We decided against the lake house because of the enormous amount of work involved in maintaining it, the stress of wondering if the house was "OK", the price of gas, the high taxes in Wisconsin, wanting to be at home and not away all the time in the summer, feeling like we "had" to be using it. We also have three (oh my gosh, I just typed two! my newest is 8 months old! LOL) young children and the thought of getting them packed up to head out to the cabin every weekend is enough to give me a coronary. Maybe someday - but for now, we are really happy with our pool. Good luck with your decision!!

I live in Gloucester county too! We went through this last year as well! We went with the pool and are VERY happy. Although I find myself checking the shore real estate section every Sunday. I'm sure in a few years we will have a shore house. Good Luck with your decision. What pool builder will you use?

What qualifies as a beach house? To me 20 minutes from the beach is not a beach house. In my mind a house would have to be no further than 3 or 4 short beach "blocks" back from the water in order to be a "beach house". The closest I ever lived to the beach was 3 miles from my door (apartment) to the shore and that was in Huntington Beach, CA .. surf capital of the world. If I had the choice between a beach house (on the beach) or Right there or a swimming pool I would DEF choose the beach house LOL. Otherwise I would choose a pool. You can always drive to the beach.
The pool is there for your enjoyment Every day :)

We contemplated the same decision here, whether to get a house on Cape Cod or build a pool. While the house is more expensive, it would have been a nice investment. In the end, we didn't want to sit on bridge traffic every weekend only to get to another house we had to clean, mow the lawn, and fix whatever needs fixing. Also, while our kids are young now we know that in several years we will have weekend sports and activities that will keep us in the area. So, we are anxiously awaiting water this week in our new pool. Good luck with whatever decision you make. I'm sure you'll make some great memories either way.

Kim

jrzygrl - we are looking at A&S and Swim-mor right now. We tried to get VanBrill out, but they were a no-show. Are there any other reputable pool builders in the Gloucester County area to consider?

We faced the dilemma and went with a pool. Price was a huge factor, of course, and then the idea of trekking to the beach house every weekend and packing up at home then going to the shore with two little kids was exhausting in my mind. We've only been in our current home for 2 years and I want to finish up projects here before adding a second home to the mix. We still hope to rent a house for a week each summer at least to get a taste of the idyllic shore living.

-another Jersey girl here (now residing in NC). I knew you were from Jersey when I read the post and it said a "shore" house. I'm from Cumberland County (-showed horses in Glouster county) and miss the shore terribly... :-( I'll gladly trade time in my pool for time in someone's house at the Jersey shore!!! ;-)

How 'bout a beach house with a pool? :-)

Of course, it is a small house and a small pool - but nothing beats coming home from the beach (it IS a hot 5 minute walk, after all) and jumping in the pool. Ahhhhhh...

smuggs~I've heard from several people that A&S was nothing but trouble! We used a small custom pool builder and things could not have gone any better! As a matter of fact we recommended them to friends and they had the same positive experience.They are D&T Pools. If you want their # or have any questions, feel free to email me. ~Donna~ duck260@verizon.net

What did you end up doing? we are in same predicament 18’yeare later where I wish I could get a 3 br for 500k in LBI. I long to be by the water. i have a 5 and 8 yo. my husband and kids would love the pool. id rather be near the water, fishing exploring and escaping. but as my kids age i worry they will be missing friends and we ar geting busy with sports through most of June. my husbands job we could spend the summer there though omce baseball ends. they also currently attend a camp they love. but how long will that last. Will they love it or be missing friends? do i make decisions based on them or my own dreams. but the burden of upkeep of 2 homes where i could get a pool and still rent when we want to go extra $ to take vacations .