Sink or Swim? In at the Deep End

Indoor or Outdoor? Will it be used? How much will it cost to run? Will it add value to the property? All questions I am asked when clients consider a house with a swimming pool. 

There is no doubt there are a few short years a pool will be used by children and teenagers. It is a luxury only an individual can quantify in financial terms and the pleasure they will derive from it. A pool will put off as many people as it will attract and whilst modern technology may make it easier to heat with solar panels, ground source heat pumps etc. and automatic cleaning systems ease laborious tasks, a pool is generally the single most expensive investment in a property. 

Will it add value? Generally not in pure financial cost but add in the pleasure value and it shows a good return. If lifestyle and budget allow then install a pool, indoor or outdoor and the reap the rewards through the pleasure it provides, the friends it attracts -the memories it will make.

Aesthetically an outdoor pool should blend into the landscape and not become the focal point- concealed to minimise distraction from an elegant, period or contemporary house. Equally an indoor pool shouldn’t be housed in a building that looks like a sports hall, dominating the elevations. 

In the summer months it always seems more appealing to look at houses with pools than in winter months. Whilst Devon is blessed with many beaches and most towns have leisure centres with pools, the privacy and ability to swim whenever you want is appealing.  There are always a number of excellent options of properties to buy with a pool. 

Perched above the beach and with sublime views across to Burgh Island, Savills (01392 455700) are selling Sunnynook at Bigbury on Sea - a new build detached house.  The best of all worlds -private swimming pool and access to a sandy beach. Strutt and Parker ( 01392 215631) are offering Haydon and Kenn. The quintessential, listed thatched house enjoying a rural, secluded setting just 7 miles from Exeter.  The pool is in a secret garden-  hidden from view. Hockworthy House near Wellington and Aish House, Iddesleigh are two prime country houses where the pool is set within walled courtyards, the former retaining views across the surrounding countryside - Knight Frank (01392 423111)

Jackson Stops (01392 214222) however can offer the alternative to a formal pool -wild swimming on Dartmoor at Jordan Manor, Widecombe in the Moor. Maybe only for the hardy but with no maintenance or cost issues, the lake is fed via a leat bubbling through the rocks to the Webburn River below. Swimming with the fish and skating in the winter -the ultimate all -purpose pool!

So, does a pool add value -of course but not necessarily purely in financial terms. The pleasure derived from family gatherings or just to exercise on a daily basis  is of great value, all in your own home -it is after all - “all about coming home”.