A place to cool off on hot summer days. A place for your family to gather. An - swimming pool can be the perfect addition to a home. But, a person selling a home may have a tough time selling the property if the swimming pool is more of a liability then a paradise.

Real estate experts believe that adding a swimming pool to a home can make it harder to sell in places where swimming is not a year round activity. Pools can also make homes harder to sell factoring in the age, condition, and required maintenance of the swimming pool. Swimming pools are usually considered assets to homes in California, Arizona, Texas, and Florida. And, above ground swimming pools are even tougher selling points and contribute little if any value to a home - they may even be a liability and subtract value from homes.

In order for a swimming pool to add to the resell value of your home, it must be built properly. Swimming pools do not have to be a deal breaker for people looking to add value to their home, they can actually increase the asking price of a home in states where swimming is not a year round activity such as Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York.

If you are looking to sell your home and you have an in-ground swimming pool, make sure the in-ground pool is clean and free of debris such as twigs, leaves, worms (yuck) and anything else that would make the pool look murky. You should also perform any cosmetic repairs to the swimming pool before you put it on the market such as tile repair, coping repair, and decking repair. Also, for families with small children where safety is a concern, an in-ground swimming pool should always be fenced in, with a self locking gate, and (if possible) an alarm on the fence.

If real estate agents are selling homes with pools, they should KNOW the pool they are selling. Ask the homeowners about the age of the pool, the maintenance involved, who was the swimming pool contractor, is the pool still under warranty, etc. The more knowledgeable you are about the swimming pool, the more confident the buyer will feel when making the purchase. Swimming pools come with the stigma of ‘amazing power consumption’ and ‘hours of maintenance’. The more prospective buyers understand every aspect of the swimming pool, the more it will become a selling point vs. a liability.

With the advent of the popular television show “Flip That House”, we all understand the benefits of ’staging’. For those readers unfamiliar with staging it is basically making the home look liveable and beautiful. The same staging concept should be used on your swimming pool. Set up deck chairs, tables, add landscaping around the pool, etc. For pools that require major maintenance, don’t be afraid to spend money to refurbish the pools. New aggregate plaster coatings, building a pool house as an accent, adding new tile, etc.

And, we hate to say it, some people don’t want swimming pools. Before the homeowner of the realtor makes the decision, gauge the buyers and see if they are turned off by the swimming pool or the home. If the consensus is the pool, look into removal. Above ground pools can be sold on local classified boards such as craigslist. In-ground pools require more time for removal as construction equipment needs to get to your backyard, pool must be torn out, hole back filled, land regraded, and new grass or sod planted.

We believe swimming pools are a great accent to any home!

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