So Long, Swimply? Palm Springs Says Pool Sharing is Illegal in Residential Neighborhoods

People across the country are trying to go for one last dip in the record-breaking heat this summer — but some are saying “not so fast” to a national pool-sharing program.

We reported last week on the gaining popularity of Swimply, a social platform like Airbnb where homeowners rent swimming pools to guests for the day or by the hour. 

More than 260 pools are listed in the Dallas area, and judging by the five-star reviews, many have had a good experience with Swimply. Some hosts even provide snacks, a WiFi password, and access to the bathrooms inside their home. 

But a city outside Texas — Palm Springs, Calif. — deemed Swimply pools illegal in residential neighborhoods, according to an Aug. 3 report in the Desert Sun newspaper. 

Renting pools is against Palm Springs’s zoning code because it’s “not listed as an allowable use nor considered to be ancillary or incidental to residential use,” according to a public official quoted in the Desert Sun article. 

Is Dallas Next?

The Dallas City Council and Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee have recently talked extensively about short-term rental properties but have not had specific discussions on pool-sharing platforms like Swimply.

Dallas regulates and inspects commercial pools, health club pools, hotel/motel pools and institutional pools, according to city code. While residents have to pull a permit to build a backyard pool in Dallas, who they share it with is essentially up to them. 

Swimply maintains that it is operating within the law, and they’re upping the ante. A new feature on the site advertises that coming soon, residents will be able to list even more things to share.

“From sport courts and large backyards to home gyms and music studios, we’re going beyond pools in order to place the awesome spaces of the world at your fingertips,” the site states. 

Guests can filter their pool searches by location and for amenities like heated pool, grill, hot tub, fire pit, pet-friendly, water slide, restroom, and ADA-friendly. Diving boards are not listed among the filters. Guests can choose indoor or outdoor pools, saltwater or chlorine. 

Wisconsin officials got into the fray last year, alleging Swimply hosts were operating illegally and would have to obtain the same licenses and permits as those who operate large public pools. They backed down when Swimply threatened to sue them.  

Swimply hosts in the U.S. are covered by a $1 million liability insurance policy and $100,000 of property protection coverage. Hosts have to have their pools inspected for things such as proper levels of chlorine. 

The platform launched in 2018 and struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic but revenues increased 4,000 percent after the platform was featured on the Mark Cuban entrepreneurial television series Shark Tank in 2020. Swimply makes money by taking a 15 percent commission from the rental fees.