| If saving money is important to you, you have to | | | | the $14,000 in interest they paid over the five |
| learn how to look honestly at what things cost... | | | | years on the money they borrowed to put the |
| If you are interested in saving money on the | | | | pool in (7% annual interest). His wife was a bit |
| things you buy, you have to start by being | | | | shocked when Jeff showed her that it had cost |
| honest about what they REALLY cost. Lets look | | | | them $19,000 for the use of the pool for the last |
| at an example of what this means. | | | | five years. |
| Saving Money On The Swimming Pool | | | | They were also disappointed to learn that the |
| Jeff and his wife loved the idea of having a built-in | | | | pool didn't add as much to the value of the home |
| swimming pool behind the house. It seemed like a | | | | as they had hoped. People like pools, but a |
| great way to improve the house and a great | | | | $40,000 pool doesn't necessarily make them |
| way to relax on hot summer afternoons. They | | | | willing to pay $40,000 more for a house. Their |
| were going almost every week to the sports | | | | real estate agent figured that the swimming pool |
| complex to use the pool there for $7 each, so | | | | added about $20,000 to the market value of their |
| they would be saving money on that too. They | | | | home. Sure enough, their home sold for just |
| agreed with their logic. | | | | about $20,000 more than a similar one down the |
| The first quote they got was for $48,000, | | | | street that didn't have a pool. |
| including all the tile work around it and the finishing | | | | Reflecting back on their "dream pool" Jeff started |
| touches. But they were smart enough to get two | | | | to wonder. Sitting in their new home, he took out |
| more quotes. The next one was close to the first. | | | | a pen and a piece of paper, and started to add up |
| They finally found a company that would do it for | | | | the times they and their friends had been |
| $40,000. | | | | swimming in it. He figured the pool was actually |
| Refinancing the house, they pulled out $40,000 in | | | | used for a total of just 400 hours during those |
| equity and had the pool put in. They did spend | | | | five years. Adding up the costs to maintain the |
| another $2,000 for the extras that they wanted, | | | | pool ($4,000), the repair costs ($1,000), the |
| but over all they were very happy with the way | | | | interest costs ($14,000), and the capital loss |
| it turned out. That first summer they used it | | | | ($20,000), and the extras they bought ($2,000), |
| almost every night for two months. The second | | | | he arrived at $41,000. He divided that by 400 |
| summer, they used it less often, and grew a little | | | | hours. |
| bit tired of the work it involved. There was | | | | "$102 per hour," he explained to his wife. That is |
| chlorine monitoring, filters to changes, leaves that | | | | what the use of the pool had cost them. And |
| needed to be cleaned out. | | | | they thought they were saving money by not |
| Jeff did most of the work himself to keep the | | | | paying $7 each to use the pool at the gym. |
| cost down. Still, it cost them over $800 per year | | | | Looked at another way, they could have gone to |
| for heating, treating and caring for the pool. The | | | | the gym every week and paid for a week-long |
| thrill was gone by the fourth year, when they | | | | vacation to Hawaii every year for less than what |
| realized they had used the pool just eight times | | | | they had spent. But looking at it that way was |
| that summer. To save money, they stopped | | | | too depressing, especially when Jeff thought |
| heating it when they weren't using it, but this | | | | about the time he had spent cleaning and caring |
| meant that it was difficult to use spontaneously (it | | | | for that pool. |
| takes a long time to warm up a swimming pool). | | | | This is an example of why saving money doesn't |
| After five years, Jeff got a new job and they | | | | just require good shopping skills. It also requires a |
| had to move. Cleaning and repairing the pool cost | | | | good look at the true cost of the things we buy |
| $1,000, but it seemed necessary to get the | | | | and do, and an honest assessment of whether |
| house ready to sell. That, along with the $4,000 in | | | | they are worth it. There are usually cheaper |
| annual costs over the years, added up to $5,000 | | | | alternatives that are just as satisfying. |
| for the time they had the pool. Then there was | | | | |