Getting frustrated

[MGood]

I need help please to understand something. We started off with a 1,280 sq ft pool and it came out to be $23.58 a sq ft base price for just the pool. Then we scaled down to 1,152 sq ft and it then was $25.68..both were L shape. People keep telling us those are way to big, so I priced a 1,000 sq ft rectangle is it was $26.63 sq ft. What I'm confused about is he just told me that a rectangle is a lot less work and that the cost is significantly less on a rectangle. I told him I didn't understand because the sq ft price is more?? He said they come up with a base price and for example if I decided to go with a 20x40 instead of 20x50 it would be $3,000 less because they figure $300 x 10ft= $3,000. He told us before with adding and subtracting is was $300 a ft. He can figure it however he wants but the 20x40 rectangle is more expensive which is opposite of what he is saying. Is there something I'm not getting??

 

[jblizzle]

There is a base cost for building any pool. As you go bigger, the price per sqft is going to go down because adding the extra 100 sqft is going to be cheaper than the first 100 sqft ... since the contractors are already going to be there and the main structure does not change.

Houses are similar in that smaller houses cost more per sqft than larger houses in similar construction type and neighborhoods.

Guess I am not really sure what your question is ... he can charge you whatever he wants, if you agree to it.

 

[MGood]

I totally get that!! But that is not what he just said to me on the phone. He said the rectangle was by far less expensive and we are saving money by going with a rectangle instead of a L shape. Price for 1,280 sq ft L is $30,100..1,000 sq ft rectangle is $26,600. Only $$3,500 dollars difference with what he said is a lot less work which makes it a big savings. Hope I explained better.

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Just doesn't make sense to me.

 

[Texas Splash]

I'm no math major, but I don't get it either. I could understand the logics in a smaller pool being cheaper than another, and also a rectangular shape being cheaper than an "L". So why is he quoting you the highest price for the smallest of the 3 options - smallest AND rectangular? Maybe it's a magical rectangle? Well, regardless, it all boils-down to the dotted line I guess. If you have reservations, and the builder is not satisfying your concerns for such a large investment, it may be time to shop around some more.

 

[MGood]

Thank you! I'm pretty good with math and it's just not adding up. We have received really good references and we like him but he just isn't making any sense at this point. I will pass on the magical rectangle since it's more .