Joining a country club. Pros/cons??

[dshin]

I am looking into joining a country club. Ironically I was a waiter at this club while I was on college. Its one of the more prestigious ones in the area.
Not looking at a full membership...just a "social" membership. Access to everything (tennis, pool, dining, etc...) except golf. Though I do play golf, I only play maybe once a month. Initiation fee and annual dues are very reasonable and wont put a dent in my current finances.

Pros:
-Dining...the restaurant serves awesome food.
-Can go swimming/play tennis whenever I and the wife want
-Having a son in Oct...he will have accesses to a lot of activities offered at the club when he starts growing up.
-If I want to golf, I can always lay with another member as a guest
-Potential networking opportunities. I am currently going to a top 5 B-school pursuing a MBA in the evening/weekend program...can make the right connections/harvest relationships that can greatly benefit me when I graduate and if I decide to leave my current employer and do something else.
-Of course there is the snob factor

Cons:
-Snob factor
-Cost...it is expensive.

Cant really thinking of any other cons.

Anyone here belong to one? Is it worth it or a waste of money?

 

[Gradstudent78]

I'd imagine it's like belonging to a gym. It's worth it as long as you use it frequently. If you join, go five times and then don't go back for months on end then probably not worth your money. If your having a son in october I'd imagine thats going to cut into a lot of your leisure time and it will be years before he gets anything out of it.

 

[mink31]

Looking at your lists of pros vs. cons, it looks like you've already made up your mind. So just join already!

 

[robin]

They're great places to con meet people.

 

[MrG]

Originally Posted by mink31

Looking at your lists of pros vs. cons, it looks like you've already made up your mind. So just join already!

I gleaned this too. You seem to be very interested in joining, and you have more pros than cons, so it appears to be the right idea for you. That said, to echo what gradstudent said, it's only worth it if you actually use it.

I know the initiation fee will effectively become a sunk cost, but if you join and find you're not using it couldn't you discontinue your membership? This way you can give it a shot and if you don't like/use it, you can save the money next year.

 

[Davidko19]

ok, ill be the asshole who asks since everyone is thinking it: how much to these places cost (small timer)

 

[Slopho]

Isn't the "Snob Factor" something that is entirely up to you? You can be a member of a CC without being a snob.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by Davidko19

ok, ill be the asshole who asks since everyone is thinking it: how much to these places cost (small timer)

It really ranges all over the place. There is a fee to join a club that could be as low as $500 (like mine, for poor or cheap guys) up to $15k or even $25k I've heard. Then you have yearly membership fees on top of that that can be $150 to 5 or 6k. Some places have monthly restaurant fees where you have to pay the fee whether you eat there or not (and then pay for your actual dinner when you do eat).
It depends on the place.

 

[edinatlanta]

Originally Posted by Davidko19

ok, ill be the asshole who asks since everyone is thinking it: how much to these places cost (small timer)

It really depends.

They range from not cheap to very expensive. Some subdivisions (at least here in Atlanta but I would assume elsewhere as well) have country clubs and you have to pay neighborhood association dues and then club dues etc. It also depends on the prestige of the club and how many places you can go. The Capital City Club for example has a downtown club and then a legit country club too.

 

[Mark from Plano]

I belonged to one several years back, but it was more of a golf thing. As someone else said, it's a function of how much you use it. We used ours a lot and it was a smaller club so the costs were reasonable. We had lots of friends that were members and so it was great. We have a boat now that we spend weekends on so I've all but given up golf so we don't have a membership anymore.

BTW. I'd take "snob factor" off the list. I'm not sure what it means. If it means people will think you're a snob for being a member then that's irrelevant. If it means the other members are snobs, then you're joining the wrong club.

 

[crazyquik]

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

It really ranges all over the place. There is a fee to join a club that could be as low as $500 (like mine, for poor or cheap guys) up to $15k or even $25k I've heard.

You left off a zero.

Try up to $250,000.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by crazyquik

You left off a zero.

Try up to $250,000.

Does Tiger Woods caddy for the members or what?

 

[crazyquik]

Southhampton/Shinnecock/etc go for 500k+

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...MCbkU&refer=us

Location, location, location.

 

[GQgeek]

Originally Posted by Mark from Plano

I belonged to one several years back, but it was more of a golf thing. As someone else said, it's a function of how much you use it. We used ours a lot and it was a smaller club so the costs were reasonable. We had lots of friends that were members and so it was great. We have a boat now that we spend weekends on so I've all but given up golf so we don't have a membership anymore.

BTW. I'd take "snob factor" off the list. I'm not sure what it means. If it means people will think you're a snob for being a member then that's irrelevant. If it means the other members are snobs, then you're joining the wrong club.

+1 Our family was a member of a couple private clubs when I was younger, and I really loved them. The people were great and I had a lot of fun. My parents enjoyed them as well. I'll definitely join one when I have more money.

 

[dshin]

Originally Posted by GQgeek

+1 Our family was a member of a couple private clubs when I was younger, and I really loved them. The people were great and I had a lot of fun. My parents enjoyed them as well. I'll definitely join one when I have more money.

Some great points. And yes the snob factor is entirely up to me...and it shouldnt factor in the decision making process.
Instead of snob factor....maybe it should be exclusivity?? This club is fairly exclusive...

I do think I will use the membership a lot. My wife loves to swim but we cant stand public pools. And again, the potential networking opportunities will be awesome.

Seems like my decision is 99% made.