Pool cost against home value, by city
| City | Pool permits | Usual filed value | Single-family value figure | Reached final | Usual days, issue to final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scottsdale, AZ | 1,688 | $32,967 | $1,197,000 | 81.1% | not recorded |
| Miami, FL | 978 | $35,000 | $599,000 | 73.3% | 312 |
| San Diego, CA | 525 | $51,300 | $571,000 | 91.2% | 244 |
| Mesa, AZ | 452 | $45,000 | $484,000 | not recorded | 87 |
| Cape Coral, FL | 2,081 | $64,508 | $335,000 | 90.4% | 177 |
| Orlando, FL | 864 | $65,000 | $377,000 | not recorded | 198 |
| Albuquerque, NM | 151 | $70,000 | $292,000 | 49.5% | not recorded |
| Marin County, CA | 155 | $70,000 | $1,017,000 | 67.8% | 466 |
| Waco, TX | 169 | $80,000 | $226,000 | 43.5% | not recorded |
| Denton, TX | 174 | $86,500 | $347,000 | 93.3% | 129 |
| Naperville, IL | 111 | $89,050 | $539,000 | 28.8% | 418 |
| Nashville, TN | 895 | $100,000 | $421,000 | not recorded | not recorded |
| Tyler, TX | 167 | $115,000 | $268,000 | 20.2% | 29 |
| Honolulu, HI | 141 | $120,000 | $1,012,000 | 73.5% | 448 |
| Cary, NC | 204 | $137,000 | $587,000 | 70.8% | 362 |
| Raleigh, NC | 328 | $150,000 | $463,000 | not recorded | not recorded |
Permits October 2023 to September 2026 (Cape Coral from January 2025; Honolulu July 2022 to June 2025). The single-family value figure is the one each city's compare pages use. "Reached final" is the share of permits a year or more old that the city closed out.
What the table says about value
Where pools are common, they are filed for less. Scottsdale (1,688 pool permits), Cape Coral (2,081 in under two years) and Miami file pools by the thousand, and their usual filed values ($32,967, $64,508, $35,000) are far below NAR's $90,000 national estimate. That puts the cost of a pool closer to NAR's $50,000 recovery estimate, though NAR's estimate is national and these are local build costs.
Where pools are rarer, they cost more and are a bigger bet. In Cary ($137,000), Raleigh ($150,000) and Tyler ($115,000), the usual pool is filed above NAR's $90,000. In Tyler that is a large share of a house whose single-family value figure is $268,000. Part of the gap is what is filed: several cities' pool type includes spas (San Diego, Marin County and Mesa label it pool and spa), and a filed value may or may not include decking and fencing.
The national 56% is an average. It is Realtors' estimate across markets, not a sale price, and NAR notes costs "will vary depending on geographic region, property, and scope of work". A local agent's comparable sales, with and without pools, are the better guide for your street.
An open pool permit is a resale problem
An open pool permit means the city never signed off the finished pool, and a buyer's permit search will find it. Pool permits close at very different rates: 90.4% reached a final in Cape Coral and 91.2% in San Diego, but only 28.8% in Naperville and 20.2% in Tyler. If you already have a pool, search your address on the city's portal and book the final before you list. If you are building one, make the final inspection a condition of the last payment.
Before you build: five checks
- Look at how many pool permits your city files in the table. If it is a handful, a pool is a lifestyle choice, not an investment.
- Compare a builder's quote against your city's usual filed value, and ask what the quote includes (deck, fence, enclosure, heater).
- Check the permit rule: every in-ground pool needs one (do I need a permit for a pool).
- Ask the builder the questions in questions to ask a pool builder, including the license and payment rules in your state.
- Find the builder on your city's pool list here and check its finished share: for example Cape Coral or Scottsdale.
See every Cape Coral pool builder by finished share →
What these numbers cannot tell you
NAR's figures are Realtors' and landscape professionals' estimates from a 2023 survey, not measured sale prices, and they describe one gunite pool design. Our filed values are builders' own estimates, filed before construction, and they do not say whether a deck or enclosure is included. The single-family value figure is a citywide number, not your house. Neither source measures what a pool does to insurance, property tax or upkeep.
How we know this
Pool permits are those each city files under a swimming pool or pool and spa work type in its window; the usual filed value is the median of those that carry one; days is the median from issue to final inspection; "reached final" is the share of permits a year or more old that the city closed out. The single-family value figure is the one each city's compare pages use for the home-value control. National cost and recovery figures are from NAR's 2023 Remodeling Impact Report: Outdoor Features (March 2023), read 23 October 2026.
Numbers come from City of Scottsdale building permits (the City's open-data permit file up to January 2026, and the City's SPUR permit system since), with the contractor named on each permit; City of Miami building permits (since 2014); City of Cape Coral building permits (the city's open permit table starts January 2025); City of Orlando building permits for one- and two-family homes; Town of Cary building permit applications (issued permits only); City of Tyler TRAKiT building, mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits on homes, from three city GIS exports of the permit table; City of Naperville building permits (the current permit system plus the city's older records); City of San Diego Development Services approvals, data through October 17, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Does a pool add value to a home?
Some, but less than it costs. In NAR's 2023 Remodeling Impact Report, landscape professionals put an 18-by-36-foot gunite in-ground pool at $90,000 and Realtors estimated $50,000 of that would be recovered at sale, 56%. Only 1% of Realtors recommended adding a pool before selling.
- How much value does an in-ground pool add?
NAR's Realtors estimated $50,000 for a $90,000 pool, nationally. Against the value of the house, a pool is a larger bet where homes are cheaper: Tyler, Texas's usual pool permit is filed at $115,000 against a single-family value figure of $268,000, and Scottsdale's at $32,967 against $1,197,000.
- Does a fiberglass pool increase home value?
NAR's estimate is for a gunite pool, and we know of no comparable published figure for fiberglass. City permit files do not separate fiberglass from gunite, so the usual filed values in our table cover whatever was built. Ask a local agent for comparable sales with and without pools.
- Should I put in a pool before selling my house?
Almost never for resale. 1% of Realtors in NAR's survey recommended it before selling, and a pool permit takes months to close: the usual one went from issue to final in 177 days in Cape Coral and 312 in Miami. Build one because you will use it.
- Does an open pool permit affect selling the house?
It can: a buyer's permit search finds it, and it means the city never signed off the finished pool. In Naperville only 28.8% of pool permits a year or more old reached a final; in Tyler 20.2%. Check yours on the city portal and book the final before listing.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Pool installation cost in 2026: what pool permits were filed at in 20 cities
- Do I need a permit for a pool? Yes for in-ground: the rule in 13 cities, and how long they take
- Questions to ask a pool builder, and how to check the answers against the permit record
- Does a contractor need a license? By trade, in 10 states