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Finding a NYC apartment with private pool access is easier—and more affordable—than you might think

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By Emily Myers  |
July 22, 2019 - 10:00AM
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Residents at 2400 Johnson Ave. in the Bronx get use of an indoor pool. There's a one bedroom on the market here for $375,000.

Douglas Elliman

If pool access is on your list of must-haves as you shop for a NYC apartment, it might be easier than you think to get what you want. If you're after a luxury pool with city views you're more likely to find that in Manhattan or Brooklyn—but listings in the Bronx give the most affordable access to private swimming pools, according to data from the home-search platform Localize.city that tracks local amenities.

The Bronx also ranks highest in terms of listings with pool access, more than a quarter of properties for sale. Manhattan ranks second for listings with pool access with 18 percent of units for sale offering this perk, followed by Staten Island, where 11 percent of listings have pools. Only six percent of listings in Brooklyn come with a pool and just two percent of listings in Queens offer this amenity.

At $4.5 million, the average cost for an apartment with a residents-only pool isn’t cheap—but savvy shoppers can get pool access for closer to $300,000 if they are prepared to head north. 

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Co-op residents at 5800 Arlington Avenue in Riverdale have seasonal access to an outdoor pool—a one bedroom is currently available there for $229,000.

The majority of listings in the Bronx with pool access are in the northwest neighborhoods of Riverdale and Spuyten Duyvil. In Riverdale, many older building complexes sprawl across several acres, often with seasonal outdoor pools. Listings in these neighborhoods are also the most affordable—it's possible to get a studio or one bedroom with pool access for close to (or under) $300,000.

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The pool at 15 Hudson Yards. 

Breaking the data down by neighborhood, the top area for listings with pools is in Hudson Yards, Manhattan's new luxury neighborhood on the far West Side. There, 73 percent of residential sales listings have pool access. A pool is certainly an enticing amenity, especially during the summer ,and with health and wellness the focus of many new developments, primarily those in Manhattan and Brooklyn, it's an obvious luxury to add to the list.

Two-bedroom units at 15 Hudson Yards are available from $4,360,000 and one-bedroom rentals start around $5,915 per month, according to the latest StreetEasy data. 

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Renderings of the rooftop infinity pool at Brooklyn Point in Downtown Brooklyn—there are currently 17 active listings and studios are priced around $900,000.

Although only 6 percent of total listings have a pool in the entire borough of Brooklyn, 50 percent of sales listings in Downtown Brooklyn have pool access. 

The coolest pools

In the race to provide the next cutting edge amenity, Brooklyn Point now boasts the highest infinity pool in the Western Hemisphere and the Dumbo development at 98 Front Street is installing a high-end saltwater pool (so residents avoid that lingering chlorine smell). Studios at Brooklyn Point start at $906,000 and at 98 Front Street are currently priced around $665,000.

In Manhattan, Battery Park and Hell's Kitchen are tied with Riverdale, where 41 percent of listings offer a pool as an amenity. Over at 225 Rector Place, a condo building in Battery Park City, there are a dozen active listings including a studio for $875,000. The building was redeveloped in 2008 and offers residents access to a 40-foot indoor atrium-style pool with skylights.

Charlie West, a condo building in Hell's Kitchen has an indoor/outdoor pool connected to the open-air terrace that leads to the private courtyard. Not to be outdone, developers at Tribeca's 108 Leonard are installing a 75-foot mosaic glass-tiled lap pool with an adjacent thermal bath, plus an oversized sauna and steam room. 

 

Headshot of Emily Myers

Emily Myers

Senior Writer/Podcast Producer

Emily Myers is a senior writer, podcast host, and producer at Brick Underground. She writes about issues ranging from market analysis and tenants' rights to the intricacies of buying and selling condos and co-ops. As host of the Brick Underground podcast, she has earned four silver awards from the National Association of Real Estate Editors.

Brick Underground articles occasionally include the expertise of, or information about, advertising partners when relevant to the story. We will never promote an advertiser's product without making the relationship clear to our readers.

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