Chicago may not have the perfect climate for back yard swimming pools, but homeowners can still dream (can`t they?), especially with summer coming on.
And though its balmy weather is offset by frigid winters, Illinois ranks fourth in the nation (behind New York, Pennsylvania and California) in the number of above-ground pools, with 155,000 of them, according to the National Spa and Pool Institute, a trade group based in Alexandria, Va.
But when it comes to permanent pools in the ground, Illinois dives to 19th position, with only 42,000 out of 3.4 million nationwide, according to a 1990 survey. By comparison, California ranked first, with 766,000 in-ground pools, and Florida second, with 589,000.
In fact, few Chicago area home shoppers are asking for a pool, according to an informal Tribune survey of 20 real estate professionals in and around the city.
”I can`t say that I`ve ever gotten a request for a house with a pool,”
says Bill Hutcherson, sales associate at Baird & Warner in Palos Heights.
Off the deep end
It`s clear that a cooling dip for one person is a plunge into trouble for another. Despite the image of luxury associated with pools, real estate professionals say, there are some less than glamorous aspects: the headaches that come with maintaining a pool and the problems of selling a home that has one.
”In the 15 years I`ve been here, no one has ever come in looking for a house that has (a pool),” says Jim Hayland, a real estate broker at Century 21 Bee-Line Realty in Orland Park. ”If it`s already there, I mean, people will look at the house, but some people don`t want to look because they don`t want the added expense that comes with keeping it up. You might want to have one, but the reality of it is something else.”
But Maxine Nethery, sales manager of Koenig & Strey Inc. in Northbrook, says if the homeowner has an in-ground pool that has been well maintained, it can be an asset when it`s time to sell the house.
An above-ground pool, however, can hamper the sale, Nethery says. ”They are not attractive. Instead of blending in, they are conspicuous.”
Most real estate professionals agree that the home with an above- or in-ground swimming pool is going to attract a limited numbers of buyers. But they also say that these buyers will match the select group of sellers who have pools.
You`re most likely to find pools in the back yards of higher-priced homes, in the $300,000-plus range, says Nethery, whose office covers the North Shore from Evanston to Lake Forest. And most of those pools will be in-ground, she says.
Nethery and other real estate salespeople say above-ground pools are more common in the city because city lots are seldom large enough to accommodate the in-ground variety.
The costs
But space is not the only thing that dictates pool type.
”It also has to do with dollars,” Nethery says. ”If you`re going to live in the house for only two or three years, you don`t want to invest too much in the house. And a pool is a big investment.”
Pool makers and installers say above-ground pools range in price from $1,000 to $4,000. The price for in-ground pools is $13,000 to $30,000. And, if you want an indoor pool, add another $50,000 to the in-ground pool price.
Annual maintenance can range from as low as $100 to as much as $1,000, says Elizabeth Repa, a spokesperson for the National Spa and Pool Institute. She says the costs depend on the consumer`s use of the pool, the size of the pool, how the pool is serviced and the disinfectant used.
”Most people assume the cost to maintain a pool and to carry extra liability insurance is high, but both are manageable,” says Guy Larsen, co-owner of All Seasons Pools and Spas Inc. in Orland Park.
Larsen estimates that additional liability insurance can add $50 a month to a homeowner`s policy.
But some insurance companies say the cost depends on how much additional liability coverage you want.
Jerry Parsons, a spokesman for the Bloomington, Ill.-based State Farm Insurance Co., says because properties with pools are often higher-valued properties anyway, owners of these homes naturally pay higher monthly premiums.
Homeowners who have pools are not singled out to pay more on their insurance policies simply because they have a pool, he says. But their monthly premiums will increase, he notes, if they choose to take additional liability insurance.
”There`s no specific pool insurance coverage that I know of,” Parsons says. ”Safety or other concerns about the pool fall under the basic liability you have with your homeowners policy and any additional liability coverage you seek.”
The payback
But what people who already have swimming pools want to know is how much of this investment can they recoup when they sell their homes.
Remodeling Magazine, which has issued an annual ”Cost Versus Value Report” for the last five years, tells readers what kind of return to expect on their remodeling projects, such as installing a new bathroom or making room additions. But swimming pools were dropped from the study two years ago because consumer interest was low, says Wendy Jordan, editor of the Washington, D.C.-based magazine.
”There was no way to tell what kind of investment gains homeowners were realizing from adding pools to their homes,” says Jordan. ”Chances are you have the income to pay for the pool, and the hassles that may come with owning one are not going to be hassles to you.”
Jordan says pool popularity is geographic, favored in warm weather spots such as Florida, California, Arizona.
”Overall, people seem to prefer having a back yard and the space to entertain in areas like Chicago as opposed to having a pool,” she says.
Hayland, of Century 21 Bee-Line in Orland Park, says, ”I doubt if anyone would put (a pool) in now. Most of the houses that have pools have had them for some time. If you live in an area where a public pool is easily accessible, most people will choose to use it.”
While pools appear to be luxury items, they do more harm than good in increasing the value of the property, says Hayland.
”Of course, you can still put in a pool now, but you`ll be lucky if you break even on the cost of doing it when it comes time for you to sell your house,” he says.
”It enhances the value of your home if you`re in Phoenix, Ariz.,” says Baird & Warner`s Hutcherson, ”but it doesn`t do much for you if the house is in Chicago.”
Remodeling`s Jordan agrees. ”This is why it`s difficult to say what the added value is to a home in Chicago. It depends on how much the buyer of that home really wants a pool.”
Look at the boaters
Larsen, co-owner of All Seasons Pools and Spas, has heard the criticism of ”to pool or not to pool” before.
”It depends on the area and the homeowner,” says Larsen, whose 38-year- old company is one of the oldest in the Chicago area. ”The more above average the value of the home, the more desirable it is to have a pool. Years ago, it was looked at as something that decreased the value of property.”
As for the limited number of warm months, pool owners are much like boat owners, Larsen says.
”Sure, being in an area where there is a short season is a valid argument, but people are aware of this,” says Larsen. ”If anything, they want to utilize the summer more; they may even cherish the warm weather more.”
Larsen says his company has seen a renewed interest in pools as people are wanting to spend more time at home.
”Pools have become more popular,” he says. ”And the homeowner who wants his home to be his dwelling as well as his place of recreation is willing to make the investment in a swimming pool. It`s not an oddity for them, and when they sell the property it`s not an oddity for the buyers. It`s something extra.”
Larsen says the price range of above-ground pools makes them more common than in-ground pools at middle-priced homes.
”Sometimes it boils down to a family with young children deciding between an above-ground pool or taking the whole family to Disney World,”
says Larsen. ”You`re most likely to see the above-ground pools in the yards of those couples with children.”
John and Gloria Bently, who own Rosebrook-Carefree Pools Inc. in Highland Park, say the in-ground pool group is harder to pinpoint.
”Some have had an above-ground pool and are moving up to an in-ground pool,” says John Bently. ”And, they are not afraid to invest money in it.” An indoor sport
Some, in fact, invest in indoor pools-not a bad idea given Chicago`s changeable weather.
Between 15 and 20 percent of the Bentlys` business is indoor pools, and a good part of it is on the North Side of the city, in the Lincoln Park community where old buildings have been rehabbed, John says. ”A surprisingly number of people have indoor pools in this area.
”I`m not saying that every house in this area has a pool, but it`s common to see them here. It has also become more common in the last five years to install swim spas in pools for the health conscious homeowner.” (A swim spa is a device that forces you to swim against the current).
”It`s an investment and a recreation choice,” says Bently. ”You`re more likely to sell the house to someone who is like you so the investment is not a wasted one.”
Real estate salespeople agree that the investment in a pool will not be a wasted one if the homeowner sells his or her home to a buyer who is seeking, and not just accepting, the pool that comes with the house.
”A swimming pool is something you really want or you really don`t want,” says Jordan, of Remodeling Magazine. ”There`s no in-between on this.”
