6 Arizona cities among nation’s highest for homes with backyard pools

Valley cities are making a splash on a new list of places where homeowners love pools the most.

In evaluating public property records of single-family homes around the country, Realtor.com found six Phoenix-area cities rank among the top 10 medium-to-large cities with the highest percentage of backyard pools.

With a 62 percent showing, the city of Scottsdale is swimming in the deep end of the pool count here in the Valley. Nationally, it’s second only to Coral Springs, Florida which tops the list with 66 percent of homes boasting pools.

Tempe, Chandler, Glendale, Gilbert and Mesa also made the list.

The home-to-pool percentages for Arizona and Florida shouldn’t be too surprising given the hot temperatures in both states.

Swimming pools offer a way to cool down from the rising mercury, even if they don’t always add value to the home.

Some real estate experts say pools can actually detract potential buyers for a number of reasons: possible health hazards for those with young children, added expenses for liability insurance and pricey maintenance efforts, to list a few.

For many, however, the benefits of having a pool override the costs. And like Arizona and Florida, backyard pools in many places around the country are becoming the new normal.

By the numbers, here is a look at the top ten medium-to-large cities in the country with the highest percentage of backyard pools, according to realtor.com:

1. Coral Springs, Florida – 66 percent
2. Scottsdale, Arizona – 62 percent
3. Tempe, Arizona – 46 percent
4. Chandler, Arizona – 40 percent
5. Glendale, Arizona – 37 percent
6. Gilbert, Arizona – 37 percent
7. Clearwater, Florida – 32 percent
8. Clovis, California – 32 percent
9. Mesa, Arizona – 31 percent
10. Plano, Texas – 31 percent

Join Realtor Diane Brennan for That Real Estate Show Sundays at 8 a.m. on KTAR News 92.3 FM.