I have always wanted a pool. Growing up a was constantly trying to convince my parents that a pool would be a great idea. Even to this day I’ll playfully drop the subject on them despite not living there anymore. I was always quickly denied and given the reason of “too much work.” I don’t doubt that for a second, but for some crazy reason I’m blind to that fact and still want a pool!
However, when it comes to an investment property, not so much. My partner looked at a house the other day that was a hot mess on the outside. Needed tones of landscaping and also had an in-ground pool. The pool was in pretty bad shape and probably would cost a lot of money to fix. In our analysis of the property, we decided that it would be best to fill in the pool and call it a day. The only problem is that we are unsure of the cost. I’ve seen ranges anywhere from $700 all the way up to $5000.
Every situation is different I guess….
- What is the pool made out of?
- How big is the pool?
- Is there a lot of surrounding concrete or pavers? and what to do with it?
- How deep is the pool?
- Is it easily accessible for large equipment?
- What are the towns regulations about filling in the pool?
The questions just keep coming and it doesn’t seem as simple as just getting a boat load of dirt and just filling in the hole. One of the investors we talked to mentioned that they usually break up all the concrete and put that in the bottom of the pool, then fill the rest in with dirt.
Has anyone ever filled in a pool? How did you do it and how much did it cost you?
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Comments 8
I filled my first one last year. It has a screened enclosure that my handyman pulled down free for the scrap metal. Then we brought a tractor in, broke up the deck and concrete and pushed it all in the hole. After that we needed 3 loads of dirt to fill it. Guy charged me 300 for the tractor work, and I think the dirt was 100 per load.
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It’s amazing how much the price differs! So your total was $600?
that sounds about right, from memory. if it was more it wasn’t by much.
Scott, try contacting Matt Kearny from http://www.flippingsmart.com. I know they had a property with a pool that they filled in, so he could also give you some insight as to what the cost would be, permits, etc.
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Will do Ingrid. Thanks for the point!
We had an estimate done on one of our properties and it was $15K to do it and remove the gunite and all that. I then hired my septic guy to do it for less than a quarter that price, probably could have gotten it lower if I had pushed but he was doing me a favor. We dumped in our town dump and split the fee so it was all cheap in the end. My reco is to ask a septic guy you may know and may use on other jobs (or anyone with a backhoe) and see what itll cost. You may be able to save a few thousand.
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That’s a very good tip Mike. 15K is the highest estimate I’ve heard from asking around that is for sure, but I’m glad you got it done for much cheaper or that could have really eat’n up some of your profit!
Okay, it’s 3:30 in the morning. Can’t sleep so I’m checking emails and ended up here. Trying to figure out how to get out of debt, but that’s a whole other story.
My only input about your pool came from a coworker many years ago. He was complaining about what a pain in the ass his pool was compared to the time they actually got to use it. And this is in Alabama, so much longer “season” than most.
Well, he made a decision to enclose it similar to a 4 seasons room w/sliding glass doors and attached it directly to the house.
Told me what a change it was. Year round use, chemicals cost & adding water dropped to a fraction. And since it was a heated pool, it helped heat the rest of the house.
I’ve always heard pools were a zero factor in house value, but this may give you an alternative.
Good luck.