The changing seasons in spring and summer are one of the reasons people want to buy houses with a swimming pool these days. With these pool spas, you can have your friends come over for a relaxing get-together and enjoy the water while lounging around the area.

If you have a stunning backyard pool that you keep up well, then the summer months will be better than you can imagine. Thinking about having a pool in your backyard? Then you should know how much it would cost to maintain a swimming pool before 

If you are interested, please read through this article.

A swimming pool can be a great investment over the long term. It's important to keep in mind that if you renovate your home's kitchen or bathroom, you might have a higher resale value than if you renovate the swimming pool.

Though swimming pools are costly to maintain, they are beneficial for many activities.

According to Sabine H., who is a home improvement professional and an avid swimmer, "swimming pools don't add value to homes for some folks. Some people love swimming pools; some people just can’t see the point of having it."

You’re not about to take everything the experts say as gospel, are you?

Owning a swimming pool is not just about the upfront cost. It's important to know how much you'll spend over time, so make sure your research includes more than just short-term costs like installation and maintenance fees.

Knowing what you want in life and owning it can be the dream. You'll need to know exactly what type of pool if any at all is right for your lifestyle before committing to a purchase.

So How Much Does It Cost To Own A Pool?

Pools are beautiful features in real estate, but they aren’t common everywhere if you own a pool in areas where indoor pools aren't the norm. Selling it can be difficult when your customers don't know what to do with them.

Town zoning authorities require that swimming pools have fences, cleaning nets, thermometers, and landscaping. Pools also usually need several accessories to be up-to-code with the law - such as a pool cover or ladder. If we ignore these costs, a standard in-ground swimming pool costs around $29,660 on average.

This all depends on your budget and what you care about. If you want to upgrade the lights, get a waterfall or an island in the middle of this pristine water hole then be prepared to spend more than average for these add-ons.

Besides buying the pool, you would have to pay for installation and maintenance. Maintaining a swimming pool costs thousands of dollars every year in chemicals, repair equipment upkeep, supplies needed to clear out debris from pumps or filtering baskets. 

The energy required just cooling off your water can cost $1-$2 per day on electricity alone!

Quoting Wall Street Journal, “recurring expenses such as swimming pool cleaning equipment and chemical purchases are quite underestimated, but they cost around $800 annually.” 

According to HomeAdvisor, other expenses include weekly payments for vacuuming, pool filters, skimming, and several other recurrent works on the pool.

When you have a lot on your plate, it's hard to be proactive about these things. Outsourcing your pool maintenance to professionals will significantly cut the cost of maintaining a clean, safe, and beautiful swimming area.

Outsourcing pool maintenance jobs to professionals can cost around $50-$120 monthly. But the price varies depending on where you are based. To save time and money in the long run, you should do some research online about how much pool maintenance professionals charge near your location before installing a new one.

If you have a new swimming pool, it may not need any equipment replaced in the first year. However, this doesn’t mean that replacement should be taken for granted throughout its lifetime. 

According to a story recounted to CNN Money by a pool owner, he spent an annual estimate of $1000 for replacing his pool equipment, $2500 for pool resurfacing after 11 years, and $600 to replace the pool vacuum. Closing pools for the season, even in regions where they're not open all year round could cost up to $500. How about the electric heaters and pumps? Those require extra costs of up to $100 monthly.

A Swimming Pool Has Insurance Liabilities

Insurance companies literally ‘loathe’ pools! It’s a well-known fact that homeowners with swimming pools must pay increased and recurring insurance costs to make up for the added risk of potential accidents.

According to Zach Investment Research, a backyard swimming pool is an ‘attractive nuisance,’ which only draws the attention of your neighbors to want to jump in, which may result in severe injuries and eventual lawsuits. Furthermore, the insurance payment varies depending on a number of factors like the kind and location of the pool. 

The cost of pools in the south is drastically higher than their northern counterparts. Pools are common and account for most insurance premiums; however, they're rare up North because people have seen them as a luxury or status symbol instead of necessary utility.

There are many factors that contribute to the cost of a swimming pool liability insurance policy, but on average it will run you about $100,000.

Real estate experts like Allstate and Zacks advise that a swimming pool liability coverage should be within $300,000 and $500,000 to secure your finances in the advent of someone getting severely wounded. This could increase your premium by an extra $75, at least (depending on where you live).

Furthermore, experts advise that you have to pay for an umbrella policy to cover pool-related accidents, and this policy covers up to $1 million in liabilities. However, your premium would be increased by at least $300. If you do broad research, you might get a better deal.

Finally...

According to experts, the annual swimming pool expenses going forward will at least be 15% of your initial price and its installation due to frequent remodeling or repair needs. Therefore, mathematically, if you paid $30,000 for your pool, you’re going to be spending $3000 to $4500 annually.

After the price considerations, are you still happy with your decision to have a swimming pool? If you think it's worth it and fits into your budget then go for it! But if not, consider joining one of those public pools and it might do the trick.