The home pool holds a special place in the Australian psyche, where freedom, fun and luxury merge into the “suburban dream”.
From the post-war kidney-shaped backyard pool to the above-ground 1980s splash-about, and today’s integrated element of an architect-designed home, the residential swimming pool has remained a symbol of Australia’s lifestyle.
Amelia Holliday, from Aileen Sage Architects, said the pool represented suburban luxury but also a location in the home where everyone was equal.
“It’s an incredibly democratic space; it’s a great leveller,” she said.
“It’s a space where a lot of people interact — from kids to old people. There is a luxury element to pools, but it’s also significant as a place where you can relax.
“It’s a symbol of the suburbs, post-war affluence and the suburban dream, really.”
About one in every six Australians lives in a property with a pool, according to Roy Morgan research from 2018. In regional Queensland, which includes both the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, the proportion is higher. About 20 per cent of residents live with a pool.
Fashions wax and wane, with current contemporary designs pebble-stone bases, natural filtration and infinity edges all the rage.
One of the most talked about at the moment is Chris Hemsworth’s new Olympic-sized pool at his $20m home in Byron Bay.
Landscape architect Marion Spiller said water was a powerful design element that evoked the senses, adding that the pool should be integrated into the residence with connections to the home’s living areas, potential view, and include lounging areas.
“Any private residential garden and swimming pool design represents a unique opportunity for creating a conversation between the existing environment, architectural design context, and the client’s needs and desires,” she said.
“Swimming pools are typically developed in close relationship to the residence as a feature and extension of the outdoor living areas.”
She said a well-considered design was timeless but contemporary consideration revolved around environmental factors and technology, leading to new methods for size, equipment and material selection.
Construction manager Sean Fraser oversaw the development of the Master Builders Association of Queensland award-winning pool at Yandina Creek on the Sunshine Coast.
It was a challenging site to build, with a 3m drop, footing foundations, block walls, backfilling and finally, the pool form on the top.
He said the pool and the home “just melt together”.
“It gives a luxury feel that you get in and around the pool, taking in the beautiful view in front of you,” he added.
Although there was great variation, Mr Fraser said an average pool of about 30,000 litres cost about $25,000. A glass edge could increase the price another $5000, and an infinity edge could add another 20 per cent.
At Colonel Cummings Drive in far-north Queensland’s Palm Cove, a Roger Mainwood-designed home offers a pool with a view over the Pacific Ocean and inland.
From the 80,000-litre wet-edge pool, people can look out to the Great Barrier Reef or Cape Tribulation.
Selling agent Jason Monk, with Ray White Port Douglas, highlighted the pool’s twin infinity edges.
“It’s quite a unique pool. The whole idea is that it brings the outdoors in and the indoors out,” he said. “Everything from the living area opens out to the pool and you bring the Great Barrier Reef into your loungeroom.”
He said for luxury homes in a tropical climate, pools were “a must”. Offers over $8m are being sought.
Further south in Buderim, on the Sunshine Coast hinterland, agent Lew Pottinger said when a pool was cohesively designed with the house it created value greater than the sum of its parts. “That is certainly the case with this house,” he said.
The Lindsay Clare-designed home at Jones Street, Buderim, features a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house on 1686sq m and a pool with views to the hinterland and ocean. Offers are being sought over $2m.
“When the pool is integrated with the living areas and it enhances the view, it certainly brings value,” he said.