We bought a home 4 years ago when we move cross-country, and we rejected anything with a pool. Upkeep and insurance alone made it more a nuisance than an asset.

In my area of S Florida a built in spa/hot tub will bring negative returns. IOW's not only do you not get any return on the spa, but the value of your home will be reduced by the cost of removal of the spa/hot tub. The exception to this rule is if the built in spa is attached to a decent pool - not a splash pool. A splash pool is a negative too - no added value at all. If you build a decent gunite pool in my area most of the time you will spend $40k -$60k or more ($80k to $100k is not unusual) at least and the "added value" is about $15k on resale depending upon the neighborhood which is a loss overall but not negative value.

If you want a pool and built in spa, build it for your own needs and don't expect any return at all.

I am not going to weigh in on pools (because I have a decent gunite pool and hate it nevertheless). However, I will weigh in on spas/hot tubs. We have both an in ground spa and a freestanding hot tub. The freestanding hot tub is so much better. It is less expensive, easier and cheaper to maintain, better adjustable jets, more comfortable. If it were me, I would skip the in-ground spa and get a freestanding one.

I would call some local real estate agents and ask their opinions. They will know better than anyone what buyers do and don’t like. Good luck - I know this is a tough dilemma!

As an appraiser, I would state that it will be a negative $10,000 hole in the ground. That is not including the insurance and maintenance costs. You may live in one of the exceptional areas, but I doubt it. Join a club with a pool.

Spend a fraction of that $100K budget with a really good landscaping/hardscaping and you can have a fabulous yard.

Thanks all. And not surprised by the comments about a pool. But I desperately need water in my yard. So, what about nice patio and landscaping, fire pit and just big hot tub? Thx!’

That sounds lovely!

Doesn’t this vary geographically? I am in the Midwest so no comparison... aren’t pools on CA much more common? Like in AZ, where EVERYONE has a pool.

I agree with speaking with a well known, successful, local realtor. I can’t imagine that a pool in CA would be a huge negative... but I have no idea. Have to believe that’s a super local thing. Good luck!! :)

@Kate E - the original question was built-in spa and a splash pool - not a regular pool.

To be honest I don't think the cost of doing a full pool will be hugely different to a splash pool, unless the ground has issues such as lots of large unmanageable rocks when digging.

Yes the labor is a bit more to dig and finish and the materials are a little more, but the cost is really in getting the machines in there to dig and setup and the same for doing the gunite etc. so going for a larger pool isn't going to be that much more than just an in-ground spa or splash pool.

You may not get all the money back that you invest, but as long as it isn't a negative value and you get several years of enjoyment out of it will it be a big deal to you to spend the money. Only you can really answer that in the end.

I'm personally not a fan of hot-tubs or spas, but will be giving a pool a try this year before we build a house and include an in-ground pool. We are going to use an above ground pool for this summer to test drive it. When we go and sell this house we will remove it and the area will become an extension of our patio and we'll put our fire pit and chairs on it. Maybe if you can tolerate the look you could do an above ground pool (don't leave it there for re-sale though). I hate the look personally, but figured it will be a good test vehicle for us before committing to an in-ground pool and we are spending less on it than what we'd planned for our vacation this summer. Keep the kids entertained in our heat while we work instead of traveling as planned.

I wouldn't do a splash pool. As @lyfia said, you won't save that much. I had a large inground gunite pool for 10 years - kids were younger and it got a lot of use in the few months available in northern WI - and I swore I'd never have another one based just on upkeep - daily skimming, backwashing, etc, etc. Sooooo many chipmunks in the skimmers....

The next house we built was a 3-story walkout in the back. I did a 40' lap pool that was under the deck and had the very large area completely screened. That lanai was heaven - no constant pool cleaning!

In other words, in addition to value/resale, think about the daily maintenance of a pool and who has to do it (always me; husband off on business). We're currently looking at homes in FL and even though the pool isn't a must, we are immediately rejecting anything that doesn't have the screened enclosure around the pool/outdoor area and also rejecting a splash pool. My husband desperately wants a spa or hot tub and I've told him if the house doesn't have one, he'll get a stand alone. Not going to spend the money on anything permanently in the ground in what will be - and I swear I mean it - our last house.

Coastal SoCal here, Donna. Spools (spa-sized pools or "cocktail pools") are hot here now as an alt to the all-pool backyard that was a more common feature of SoCal backyards of the past. They're not dramatically cheaper to build since you'll still need to run all the mechanicals with a slightly smaller pump farm, but they can take up less footprint in a smaller backyard--and are anything under 400 sqft of surface area. Pool builders in the region are running busy as people look to amenitize their own properties: locations they'll always have access to even when movement is curtailed. Sounds like it's something a lot of folks are thinking about. And the weather's pleasant so much of the year, so there's that...cheers!

Thanks all. Definitely a tough decision but really appreciate the comments!

If we get just a hot tub, it would leave us budget to make the other stuff nicer. :) But I would want a large hot tub. Maybe 10x10’. Anyone have that? With a natural gas heater, anyone know if it’s possible to have at 85 during the day then 95-98 at night? How quick to heat up? I know there are probably lots of variables... Thanks!!

Fairway Style- thx! In your experience, when people have a small ‘cocktail pool’, do they also have a separate spa? Any have a big spa? Thx!

@C Marlin SOC here, too. Funny.

@Donna Penn - yep, I've seen the two paired together (usually with a small spillway from spa > pool) with sizes that vary successfully. Since the overall footprint is more modest and the masses are closer in size, it's not jarring. Think it works well.

Not sure how helpful this all is in a vacuum without pictures--apologies for not having those to add to the thread! It's an idea we're kicking around for ourselves, too...so will have some to share after we put the plan afoot.

@houzz://user/cmarlin20 - thank you! Very helpful! I do really want it but literally, just me. So I’m willing to compromise and go smaller.

Just curious, if your hot tub is at 85 degrees, roughly, how long to get it to 95/98? Any idea? A couple of hours or half the day??

Great to know about the size. Our guy suggested 8x8 for hot tub. I was thinking bigger only if I don’t do a small pool also.

Thanks!!

@Fairway Style Living- thanks! I think we would want both rectangular and flush so we could have a automatic cover. I love the spillover and waterfall idea but guess that doesn’t work for a cover! If you do come across photos of ones you like, I’d be happy to see them!! Gotta keep getting estimates to. Thanks!

In my area (Gulf coast central FL), almost all houses have pools. It's expected here at a certain mid-level price point. My pool doesn't have a heater, but due to the position of the house and property, it is in the sun from early morning to almost sunset. By August, the pool water is too hot during the day to be properly refreshing and we swim at night instead. It probably has a low ROI, but it helps sell the house faster.

donnatrus, heating my spa to 100 takes about 20-25 minutes, before we get in we turn the heater up to 102-103. All the controls are on our phone.

Years ago in San Diego I had an in-ground pool and attached spa.

Not many messy trees in SD... no cover needed! Every surfer dude in SOCAL wanted to maintain our chemistry for a few dollars a week. The only expense I remember was gas for heating - either the pool or the spa.

One thing to consider is that smaller pools can really heat up in the summer. A relative had a pool similar to the size you're saying you'd like, and just six feet deep, and it was literally like warm bathtub water on a hot, sunny day. Not refreshing at all.

@Open House Home Staging, thanks! Good to know. Where was this relative located? Where we are, it cools off nicely at night and we don’t often have super hot days (maybe total 25 days per year over 90). But I’ll ask the local pool guys about this. Definitely don’t want it too small where it’s not refreshing. Thanks!

Go to a neighbor. Offer to take care of his pool for a month and then do it. Maintain the chemicals (chlorine, muriatic acid -- hack, hack), brush the pool checking for algae, vacuum it, perform the filter maintenance (love that filter backwash), remove the leaves; maintain it just like you owned it. After the month, decide whether you want to do that 365 days a year.

Wdccruise- Good suggestion! But I grew up with a pool and helped quite a bit as I was older. Plus I actually got an inflatable hot tub last year to see if I would use it and see how it is to take care of... chemicals, clean, etc. Not quite the same as a pool but similar. And yes, I would definitely take care of it. I grew up with a pool and LOVE pools/spas. Sitting in my hot tub right now actually! :)

Thanks all! I’ve considered all the feedback and although my realtor friends haven’t gotten back to me yet (looking forward to their advice on our local market)... I’ve made a preliminary decision to go with a spool or large hot tub/small pool. I’m at least going to get a layout going and get some estimates. Then my husband and I will make a final decision and go for it!!! Thanks again! Feel free to keep sending thoughts/advice my way. In the meantime, I’ve posted for advice on layout :) Thx!

This may already be your plan, but a saline system makes a huge difference in my experience, and is worth every penny. The water feels wonderful, you use far less chemicals, and it just stays cleaner so there’s less work to do. Last time we put a pool in (in GA) every pool salesperson recommended them and we didn’t know if it was just a sales pitch. But we asked around and everyone that had them loved them. So we opted for it and wow - it truly was better.

Thank you lwfromny! Yes, that is my plan but glad to hear it’s so great. I’m actually allergic to chlorine! Found that out as a kid in our pool.. my parents had to switch to a different chemical in the 80s when it was a lot more expensive. I have bromine in our inflatable hot tub now. Don’t love it, so looking forward to salt!! Thx again! :)

I have had 3 pools . I have a large 40 foot x 22 footer now. I now live in Charlotte, NC.

I brush the walls once a year in the Spring, when I add all of my chemicals for the year.

My Polaris cleaner runs every night for 10 hours and pool is spotless.

I clean my skimmers maybe once a week.

I backwash the DE filter maybe once every 6 weeks. It takes 3 minutes to backwash and 3 minutes to add more DE.

I have a salt cell generator. Unlike what most people believe, all salt water pools use chlorine. They take salt, NaCl, runs it through a "battery" (the salt Cell), where the Na and Cl are split and the Chloride atom turns into chlorine for approximately 8 seconds, before it recombines with a Sodium ion and forms back into NaCl. And, it has NO determination on the amount of other chemicals that a pool needs or does not need. The pool will need pretty much the same chemicals rather it derives it's chlorine from NaCl or from chlorine tabs.

When we downsize without kids around, we will probably go for a spool, as our 8 person hot tub gets used more than our pool does.

OP, check out Troublefreepools.com. Good source of info there.

Here in Charlotte, I may see about 1/3 or a little more of my pool costs back when I go to sell. It is not an investment... it is for fun.

Thanks ncrealestateguy!

We have our second house in the Palm Springs area (Cathedral City) and would not have bought any house that did not have a pool. Our pool is about 12' wide (irregular shape) and 30' long. One end is quite deep, and the shallow end is about chest deep. The spa is 7'x7' and is large enough for the two of us, but we've had four in it comfortably. We also have an above ground hot tub in Los Angeles, about 2-1/2 miles from the beach, and it is probably 6'x6' - I'm not there right now, and so I'm not exactly sure. Anyway, it is supposed to accommodate four to six people, but they would have to be children. For us, three is the limit.

Right now our pool is 86° without using the heater, and it takes about 15 minutes to heat the spa to 102°. In the winter it takes a bit longer, but since I heat the pool to 85° in the winter anyway, the spa heats up quickly. It does take about a day to heat the pool in the dead of winter (December) - otherwise the water would be about 55°, I think. I have not noticed an excessive gas bill when we do heat it, however. We have a pool maintenance company that comes twice a week and charges $175 a month. We need this because we are not here all the time. If we lived here full time, it might be different.

I think it would be difficult to sell a house in Palm Springs without a pool, and most of them seem to have one. We were willing to consider a house without a pool but room for a large pool, but it would have had to be $100k less than what we would pay for a house already with a pool.

I don't need the pool to be refreshing - I prefer warm relaxing water, even when it is 110° outside.

@donnatrus, I live in Georgia.