This is an issue that has come up a few times with some of our customers, so we wanted to give you some useful information from the San Antonio city permit office.
You must have a building permit before work is started
If you are building a swimming pool within the City of San Antonio, a permit from the city must be obtained before any work can be performed.
Should a homeowner get their own pool permit?
According to the City of San Antonio’s Development Services Department, a homeowner can obtain a building permit and then hire a licensed contractor to perform the work.
However, to protect the homeowner, it is recommended that the contractor obtain the building permit himself.
Here’s why your contractor should obtain the pool permit…
Although any homeowner can get a permit from the city, a contractor must be licensed if they want to get a permit. So, if a contractor is asking you (the homeowner) to get the permit, this should raise red flags. Maybe they are not licensed, not insured, and/or will not take responsibility for the work performed (or not performed).
Also, the person who takes out the permit is held solely responsible if things are not built to code. In other words, if the homeowner takes out the permit, hires a contractor, and the contractor doesn’t do his job correctly, all of the liability rests on the homeowner’s shoulders… not the contractor’s.
In conclusion…
Be wary of any pool company in San Antonio or elsewhere who says they’ll walk you through the steps of obtaining your own building permit. A licensed contractor will always get the pool permit on their own.