Where pools are going in, and which households are buying them.
Across 4,579 Harris County pools permitted since 2022 that trace to the current owner's recorded deed:
55% were permitted within 24 months of the owner taking title. Median wait: 639 days — a little under 21 months.
The effect is not just timing — it is rate. Of the 69,430 households whose deed was recorded in 2023, 0.797% permitted a pool within 24 months, against a county-wide base rate of 0.200%:
A household that just bought is roughly 4× likelier to build a pool than the county at large — and the window stays open about two years.
County appraisal panel, pools permitted per year. 2025 finished above 2024 — the correction stopped, with volume settled at roughly two-thirds of the 2021 peak and a clean seasonal shape (Q2 build-up, Q4 trough) you can staff against.
County appraisal permit panel. The panel republishes permits about one cycle late, so current-year figures come from the live county feeds instead — the full report carries both, never spliced.
Top ZIPs by pools permitted since 2024 (county panel; the county's own permit system agrees on the order):
| ZIP | Character | Pools 2024 → |
|---|---|---|
| 77433 | Cypress/Bridgeland greenfield — far ahead of everything else | 361 |
| 77024 | Memorial — established, high value | 244 |
| 77018 | Oak Forest/Garden Oaks — infill | 187 |
| 77055 | Spring Branch | 140 |
| 77389 | Spring/Klein | 133 |
Inside the leading ZIP, the grain that works is the named community — 100% of 77433's pools since 2024 resolve to one. The full report ranks them all; the top three:
| Community (appraisal-roll label) | Pools 2024 → |
|---|---|
| Bridgeland Parkland Village | 40 |
| Dunham Pointe | 25 |
| Bridgeland Prairieland Village | 17 |
| Community four | 8 |
| Community five | 7 |
| Community six | 7 |
| Community seven | 6 |
Statewide we identify 2,355 pool firms by name, market footprint and annual permit volume — 305 of them active in more than one market. Three of the leaders, from the DFW markets:
| Builder | Named permits | Markets |
|---|---|---|
| Riverbend Sandler Pools | 705 | 15 |
| Gold Medal Pools | 560 | 13 |
| J Caldwell Custom Pools | 414 | 4 |
| Builder four | 344 | 1 |
| Builder five | 286 | 14 |
| Builder six | 248 | 12 |
| Builder seven | 241 | 14 |
The full report carries per-market rankings, year-by-year volume for every named firm, and share movement — who is gaining, who is fading.
The appraisal district publishes a census of which homes already hold a pool. Put that against the deed index and every recent transfer sorts into one of two conversations — a build or a remodel. In the leading ZIP:
| 77433 recent-transfer households | Count | The conversation |
|---|---|---|
| On homes without a pool | 6,227 | New build — ~4× propensity, ~2-year window |
| On homes with a pool | 504 | Resurfacing, equipment, remodel |
Single-family pool saturation in this ZIP: 14.6%. The full report ranks every community by its open cohort, weighted by how often that community's own households actually build — redacted redacted redacted redacted redacted.
Measured from government records. Not surveys. Not estimates.