1. Which permit desk is yours
The Metroplex is thirty-plus cities, and each runs its own building department with its own setbacks, barrier details and review times. The common ones:
| If your address is in | Permit goes to |
|---|---|
| Dallas (Preston Hollow, Lakewood, North Dallas, Oak Cliff) | City of Dallas Development Services |
| Highland Park / University Park | Each town's own Building Inspection department |
| Plano, Richardson, Allen, McKinney, Frisco, Prosper | That city's Building Inspections |
| Southlake, Colleyville, Flower Mound, Grapevine | That city's Building Inspections |
| Unincorporated Collin, Denton, Rockwall or Kaufman County | The county, plus a septic review if you are not on sewer |
Then your HOA. Most Frisco, Prosper, Southlake and Flower Mound HOAs require architectural review before the city will accept the application. We submit both.
2. Sizing the pool to the yard
Start with the deck, not the pool. You need 8 to 10 feet of deck on at least one long side for seating, and most cities want 5 feet from the water to the property line, with easements on top of that. What is left is the pool. On a typical 60x120 Plano lot that is a 15x32 pool with a comfortable deck. We lay it all out in 3D so you see it before you commit.
3. Soil, rock and access
Most of Dallas and Collin County sits on Blackland clay that swells wet and shrinks dry. It is not a problem, it is an engineering input, and it is one we price from the site visit. North toward Frisco and west toward Flower Mound you hit limestone instead. Access matters just as much: a 6-foot gate or a removable fence section is the difference between a two-day dig and a week.
4. Shell and finish
Steel-reinforced shotcrete is the standard here for good reason. For the interior finish, pick a pebble or quartz aggregate over plain plaster; between our water and our sun, plaster shows wear within a few seasons.
5. Equipment
Variable-speed pump, oversized cartridge filter, salt chlorine generator, LED lights and automation with freeze protection. Add a heater if you want a spa or a longer season, and a chiller if you want to swim comfortably in August.
6. The barrier code
Texas adopted the International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, and every Metroplex city enforces it: a 48-inch barrier around the pool, self-closing and self-latching gates, and alarms or self-closing hardware on any house door that opens to the pool area. A wrought-iron pool fence, a compliant wood privacy fence, or a combination of fence and alarmed doors all work. It is on your quote from the start because the pool does not pass final inspection without it.
7. Timeline
| Stage | Typical duration |
|---|---|
| Site visit, 3D design, fixed quote | 1 – 2 weeks |
| HOA and permit approval | 2 – 5 weeks |
| Excavation through shotcrete | 2 – 3 weeks |
| Cure, tile, coping, deck, equipment | 3 – 5 weeks |
| Finish, fill, startup, final inspection | 1 – 2 weeks |
| Total | 8 – 14 weeks |
8. Questions to ask any builder
- Texas does not license pool builders. Who carries your liability insurance, and can I see the certificate?
- Who does the electrical and plumbing, and are they licensed with the state?
- Is the barrier on the quote?
- Is the finish a pebble finish or a plaster allowance?
- Who pulls the permit and who talks to the HOA?
- Is the deck square footage on the quote, and how much is it?
- Who is my one point of contact from design to walkthrough?
Get a number for your yard
Ranges are useful, but your lot decides the real price. We come out, walk it, and send a 3D design and a fixed line-item quote. It is free and there is no obligation.