Dozens of homeowners in North Las Vegas have discovered a simple method of earning a good amount of money during the hot weather: letting people rent their backyard pools. In some cases, they’re making tens of thousands of dollars. Serena Rosa, who’s been using the Swimply app to rent out her pool for almost four years, has earned over $15,000 this year alone, as reported by KTNV. Over that stretch of time, her total income has been almost $50,000.
Demand for the pool has been steady throughout the summer. Rosa mentioned that in one recent week she had it rented out every day, sometimes even twice a day. The money earned has been sufficient to alter the way her family lives, relieving them of a financial strain.
The additional income has, over time, enabled the family to travel more. It’s also allowed Rosa to quit her part-time job. She said that her guests were respectful of the property and added that the ones who’d rented from her cleaned up after themselves.
She lets visitors use the pool under her own special set of rules. Guests have to agree to them if they want to book a stay, and she and her husband are even thinking about expanding. The couple has discussed the possibility of purchasing another house to list on both Airbnb and Swimply to get extra income. When rentals can net thousands of dollars a month, the appeal is more than lucrative.
How Backyard Pool Rentals Have Grown in North Las Vegas
The trend surrounding pool rentals has developed very rapidly in the Las Vegas Valley. Swimply states that there are over 100 pools available for rent in North Las Vegas, and the company has noted a 65% increase in rentals from last year, a figure that represents exponential growth. In a region where the summer heat is severe, the attraction is clear since a private pool is a useful facility that many renters and people who live in apartments don’t have access to.
The model is similar to that of short-term home rentals: homeowners list their pool on an hourly basis, set their own prices, availability, and rules, and guests then book a time slot for a group gathering, a party, or simply for a swim. Since the homeowner is already spending money on maintaining the pool, renting it out during the hours when it would otherwise be unused turns a fixed expense into an income.
What Homeowners Should Know Before Renting Out Their Pools
If you plan to rent out your pool, you should take liability and insurance into account. When using the Swimply platform, guests are required to sign a liability waiver and pool hosts must have valid insurance that meets the company’s terms and conditions. There are some serious risks involved in having a backyard pool available to paying strangers, such as injuries and damage to property.
It can also be hard to deal with local rules if you’re thinking of renting out your pool. When KTNV inquired of the city of North Las Vegas regarding the requirements for homeowners who want to rent their pools, the city replied that its short-term rental code covers rentals of houses, apartments, and rooms, but not amenities such as backyard pools. This means that pool rentals fall outside the scope of the short-term rental regulations.
So, anyone who is considering doing this should make sure they are covered and also check with their homeowners association for any rules before opening the gate to paying guests.