Pool building is hurting

[jbequer]

I noticed that pool contractors are having a hard time with this economy,in california that is.
It has become very hard to get pool loans, just as it is for home loans. Pool builders are hurting for work.

I was thinking that it is only going to get worse, before the economy picks up again. This is prabrably a great time for those who are thinking of building a pool to negotiate with the
contractors for better prices.

Anybody notice this??

 

[gregg123]

You still get what you pay for, if you are lucky. If you negotiate too hard the PB will cut a corner and you will pay for it later.

 

[JasonLion]

We haven't done any work on the pool recently, but we are doing some home renovations right now. The largest difference is that everyone is available right now. A couple of years ago we were getting rejected by our first choice contractors because they were too busy. Right now they are not just available but available this very afternoon. Prices are also down just a little, but not dramatically.

 

[LeeD]

Pool building in our area (North San Joaqin valley, Ca) is hurting very bad. The builder I was working for closed its doors last month. They were a builder with a great rep, a lot of leads coming for sales, but no-one was getting financed. The final straw was having four pools on the board ready to dig, awaiting final financing approval, and having all four fall through on the same day. Business is off by about 90% for most builders here, at least the ones that are still operating. Less people with money to buy the pools is one problem, tough financing and low home values is the primary.
Houses in my neighborhood sold in 2005 for $450k+. Now I can get the same houses (some still brand new) for $160k-$230k.

As far as prices, if you can get financed, you can probably get a great price. If you are paying cash, even better. But caution still applies. Don't go with the cheapest just because they are the cheapest. A lot of builders are in financial trouble and will take a job at a crazy price just to say they are still building. They may never finish the job if they go under though.. or may not have the finances or man power to do a proper job. Even if a builder finishes, if they can't pay their sub-contractors, you're going to be stuck with the bill via lien.

 

[kjcole]

I'll bet a lot of pools were getting built using equity value in the home - which has been reduced or eliminated depending on where you live.

 

[reindeerboy]

OK, I am a Loan Officer and my personal professional opinion is to never try to finance your pool build using your home equity. Equity comes and goes, and the only way you would want to do this is by doing an equity line of credit for like 5 years and to then be sure you have plenty equity in your home or to pledge some other equity in order to handle the security in your loan. That takes the issue of Loan to Asset Value out of the picture as that is what most banks look at for a benchmark.

Call me old fashion, but I like saving some money away and doing thigs in 5 year increments. That way its paid for, you are definitely adding instant equity to your home, and did I mention that its paid for!

 

[LeeD]

Yes, home equity was the big way to finance a pool around here for a long time. Definitely not happening any more. There are so many foreclosures the last year or so that it is scary too. On the street that I live on, the homes were built in 2005-2006, and sold for 450k-550k. Now about 1 in 4 is empty, and either for sale or in foreclosure. There are four empty houses across the street from me in a row. Dead lawns, major wasp problems, overgrown weeds.. it's ugly. One even has a pool that has turned into a swamp, breeding mosquitos and more.

Jbequer - Where in california are you? I may be able to suggest a good builder if you are in my area. I no longer work for a builder, but I know most of them in my area and see their pools daily.

 

[jbequer]

I will be working with Alan Jackson Pools..


I am in Palmdale ca.
Thanks.

 

[LeeD]

They are a bit further south than I am familiar with.. I am only familiar with the northern san joaqin valley unfortunately..

 

[linusb212]

We couldn't get a home equity loan in this market but I was able to get a $30,000 unsecured personal loan with a 7 year term through Capital One at either 6.9% or 7.9 (i'm embarrassed i can't remember which rate is correct) and I thought that was a great deal. We did have to come out of pocket another $12k or so...but this turned out to be about our only option without depleting our non-401k savings.

 

[cobra46]

Lee. What PB did you work for?

 

[LeeD]

I have worked for three. Pools by Nelson in Ripon, CA (imo the best builder in the valley) Merced Pools, in Merced, CA - no longer building. and Trademark Pools, in Salida, CA. (Second, nearly tied with first for best builder in the valley, but shut down for a while due to lack of business)