Pool Permit Cost in New Braunfels, TX (2026)
Residential swimming pool permit fees for the City of New Braunfels, Texas (Comal and Guadalupe Counties), pulled from the Code of Ordinances, Appendix D - Fee Schedule. New Braunfels is one of the few Texas cities where a genuine all-in pool figure can be reproduced from the adopted code, because the ordinance prints every component: an in-ground pool is a flat $200.00 and an above-ground pool is $100.00 under Building Permit Fee Schedule A Residential, each then carrying a $35.00 residential inspection fee and a 3% technology fee, with the result rounded down to the whole dollar. That works out to $242.00 for an in-ground pool and $139.00 for an above-ground pool. Pool electrical stays separate: the electrical schedule prints a $12.50 swimming pool circuit plus a $15.00 issuance fee.
This guide covers: the City of New Braunfels residential swimming pool permit fees as codified in Appendix D, Sec. B(a) "Building Permit Fee Schedule A Residential" - "Pool = Above Ground $100.00 / In Ground $200.00" - together with the Sec. A add-ons that stack on a residential job: the $35.00 residential inspection fee and the 3% information-technology fee. All four inputs are exact printed figures, and the $242.00 and $139.00 totals are arithmetic on them.
How the $242.00 is built: $200.00 in-ground pool + $35.00 inspection = $235.00, then $235.00 × 1.03 = $242.05 for the 3% technology fee, then the ordinance's round-down-to-the-whole-dollar rule at Sec. B(k) gives $242.00. The above-ground path is $100.00 + $35.00 = $135.00, × 1.03 = $139.05, rounded down to $139.00. Every step is reproducible from the printed code.
What this guide deliberately does NOT add: Appendix D also prints a $50.00 permit application fee and a residential plan review fee of 25% of permit cost, but both are printed as applying to "all new construction, additions and substantial alterations". Whether a standalone pool falls in that bucket is a Building Division determination, and the ordinance does not say. This page therefore excludes both from the $242.00 rather than guessing. If the department does apply them, your cost would be materially higher - ask before you file.
Source age - read this first: Appendix D carries no printed effective date of its own. Its amendment history for the building-permitting section ends at Ord. No. 2023-76, Sec. 4, adopted October 9, 2023 - roughly 33 months before the July 2026 extraction, past our 24-month currency threshold. The Municode page itself is labelled current (version May 28, 2026). A city newsflash also confirms Council amended development-related fees effective April 1, 2024. Treat these as the codified figures and confirm current amounts with the Building Division.
This guide does NOT cover: water, wastewater and roadway impact fees (Chapter 100 and utility ordinances, outside Appendix D), Comal County and Guadalupe County fees, New Braunfels Utilities connection charges, pool barrier or enclosure fencing as a pool-specific item, pool construction cost, HOA approvals, or zoning setbacks.
An in-ground swimming pool permit in New Braunfels, TX is $242.00 all-in - a $200.00 flat permit fee from Appendix D Schedule A Residential, plus the $35.00 residential inspection fee, plus the 3% technology fee, rounded down to the whole dollar. An above-ground pool is $139.00 on the same path from a $100.00 base. Neither figure changes with pool size or value. Pool electrical is separate at a $12.50 swimming pool circuit plus a $15.00 issuance fee. The $50.00 application fee and 25% plan review are printed for new construction, additions and substantial alterations and are not added here - confirm which bucket your pool falls in. Texas adds no state levy.
- New Braunfels is unusual among Texas cities in that a real all-in pool figure can be reproduced from the adopted code: $242.00 in-ground and $139.00 above-ground, both derived step by step from printed ordinance components rather than estimated.
- The base fees are $200.00 in-ground and $100.00 above-ground under Appendix D, Sec. B(a). Both are flat - pool size, water surface area and construction value do not change them.
- Two add-ons stack on every residential job: a $35.00 residential inspection fee and a 3% information-technology fee. On an in-ground pool that is $235.00 × 1.03 = $242.05, rounded down under the ordinance's whole-dollar rule to $242.00.
- The $50.00 application fee and the 25%-of-permit-cost plan review are printed for "new construction, additions and substantial alterations" only. Whether a standalone pool counts is a Building Division call, so neither is folded into the $242.00 here. If both applied, the cost would rise substantially.
- Pool electrical is priced separately and cheaply compared with peer cities: the electrical schedule prints a $12.50 swimming pool circuit plus a $15.00 issuance fee, versus a $70.00 electrical minimum in Beaumont and a $59.00 base in League City.
- Peer context: New Braunfels' $242.00 all-in sits between Brownsville's $200.00 flat line and Beaumont's $275.00, and far below League City's $600.00. But note that the $242.00 already includes inspection and technology charges the others do not - compare the basis, not just the number.
- Source-age caution: the building-permitting section was last amended by Ord. No. 2023-76 on October 9, 2023, roughly 33 months before extraction and past our 24-month threshold. A separate city newsflash confirms development-related fee amendments effective April 1, 2024. Confirm current amounts with the Building Division.
New Braunfels Pool Permit Fee Structure
Every row below is a printed component of Appendix D. The pool line itself is flat; the inspection fee and technology fee are the two add-ons that make the all-in figure reproducible. Rows where the ordinance is silent say so rather than assuming a number.
| Item | Fee | How It Is Calculated |
|---|---|---|
| Pool, in ground | $200.00 | Verified flat fee, Appendix D Sec. B(a) Schedule A Residential - same at any pool size or value. |
| Pool, above ground | $100.00 | Verified flat fee from the same table. Half the in-ground rate. |
| Residential inspection fee | $35.00 | Appendix D, Sec. A. Re-inspections are $35.00 and double for each subsequent re-inspection. |
| Information technology fee | 3% | Appendix D, Sec. A - 3% on all review, building, zoning and development related fees. |
| Round-down rule | To the whole dollar | Sec. B(k). $242.05 becomes $242.00; $139.05 becomes $139.00. |
| In-ground pool, all-in | $242.00 | ($200.00 + $35.00) × 1.03 = $242.05, rounded down. Excludes pool electrical. |
| Above-ground pool, all-in | $139.00 | ($100.00 + $35.00) × 1.03 = $139.05, rounded down. Excludes pool electrical. |
| Pool electrical | $12.50 circuit + $15.00 issuance | Electrical schedule - a swimming pool circuit is $12.50, plus the $15.00 issuance fee. Separate permit. |
| Application fee and plan review | $50.00 + 25% - applicability to pools unstated | Printed for "new construction, additions and substantial alterations". The ordinance does not say whether a standalone pool qualifies, so neither is added here. |
| State / city percentage levy | None (beyond the 3% tech fee) | Texas has no statewide permit levy. The 3% is a city information-technology fee, not a state charge. |
Source: City of New Braunfels Code of Ordinances, Appendix D - Fee Schedule (Sec. A. Schedule of fees; Sec. B. Additional fees specific to building permitting), as codified on the Municode code library. Amendment history for the building-permitting section ends at Ord. No. 2023-76, Sec. 4, October 9, 2023. Note: an older "2018 Fees" PDF is still linked from the city's Building Permits page; it is a superseded printing of Appendix D with a valuation-tiered residential table and was not used for any figure here.
Worked Examples - Real Pool Projects in New Braunfels
Every figure below is arithmetic on printed components of Appendix D. Each example states which add-ons it applied and which it did not, so the assumptions are visible rather than buried.
The standard New Braunfels backyard pool. The permit line is flat, so the surface area does not enter the calculation.
- Pool, in ground: $200.00 (verified flat)
- Residential inspection fee: $35.00 (verified flat)
- Subtotal: $235.00
- 3% technology fee: $7.05 ($235.00 × 0.03)
- Round down to the whole dollar (Sec. B(k)): $242.05 → $242.00
- Verified all-in pool permit: $242.00
Every input is a printed ordinance figure and every step is reproducible. The $50.00 application fee and 25% plan review are not added because the ordinance prints them for new construction, additions and substantial alterations, and does not say whether a standalone pool qualifies. Pool electrical is separate.
The same add-on path applied to the cheaper base line.
- Pool, above ground: $100.00 (verified flat)
- Residential inspection fee: $35.00 (verified flat)
- Subtotal: $135.00
- 3% technology fee: $4.05 ($135.00 × 0.03)
- Round down to the whole dollar: $139.05 → $139.00
- Verified all-in pool permit: $139.00
Choosing above-ground over in-ground saves $103.00 on the permit ($242.00 - $139.00). Note the $35.00 inspection fee is the same either way, so the saving is smaller in percentage terms than the base-fee difference alone suggests.
Pool equipment needs a dedicated circuit. New Braunfels prices that on the electrical schedule, separately from the building permit.
- All-in pool building permit: $242.00 (from Example 1)
- Swimming pool circuit: $12.50 (verified, electrical schedule)
- Electrical issuance fee: $15.00 (verified)
- Verified total, single-circuit pool: $269.50
$242.00 + $12.50 + $15.00 = $269.50, on the stated assumption of a single pool circuit. A pool needing additional circuits, a panel change or a meter upgrade will draw more electrical line items - the electrical schedule prices additional circuits at $10.00 each and residential panels from $20.00 to $65.00 by circuit count.
The scenario this page does not publish as the headline number, shown explicitly so the open question is visible rather than hidden. This applies only if the Building Division classifies a pool as new construction, an addition or a substantial alteration.
- Pool, in ground: $200.00 (verified flat)
- Permit application fee, residential: $50.00 (verified - applicability to pools unstated)
- Plan review at 25% of permit cost: $50.00 ($200.00 × 0.25 - applicability unstated)
- Residential inspection fee: $35.00
- Subtotal: $335.00; 3% technology fee: $10.05
- Conditional figure, not the published answer: $345.00
$345.05 rounded down to $345.00. This is a conditional scenario, clearly labelled - it is what the permit would cost if those two lines are applied to a standalone pool. The ordinance does not state that they are, which is why $242.00 is the figure published on this page. Ask the Building Division which classification your pool receives.
When This Estimate May Not Apply
The $242.00 all-in figure covers the in-ground pool permit, the residential inspection fee and the 3% technology fee under the codified Appendix D. Route your project to the City of New Braunfels Building Division before relying on it if any of the following applies:
- The department applies the $50.00 application fee and the 25% plan review. This is the largest open question on the page. Both are printed for "new construction, additions and substantial alterations", and the ordinance does not say whether a standalone pool qualifies. If both apply, the figure becomes $345.00 as shown in Example 4.
- The fee schedule has been amended since October 9, 2023. The building-permitting section's amendment history ends there, roughly 33 months before extraction and past our 24-month threshold. A city newsflash confirms Council amended development-related fees effective April 1, 2024, so the counter amount may differ from the codified figure.
- Your pool needs more than a single electrical circuit. The $269.50 in Example 3 assumes one $12.50 swimming pool circuit plus the $15.00 issuance fee. Additional circuits are $10.00 each and a panel change runs $20.00 to $65.00 by circuit count.
- Your pool has gas-fired heating or dedicated plumbing. Those draw separate trade permits under the same appendix and are not in the $242.00.
- A pool barrier or enclosure is required. Texas requires a compliant residential pool barrier. Appendix D prints a general "Fence - $50.00" residential line but no pool-barrier line item, so how a barrier is permitted for a pool is a department question. No pool-barrier figure is invented here.
- Impact or utility fees apply. Water, wastewater and roadway impact fees are set outside Appendix D (Chapter 100 Roadway Impact Fees and utility ordinances). New Braunfels Utilities connection charges, and Comal or Guadalupe County fees, are also separate.
- An inspection fails. Re-inspections are $35.00 and double for each subsequent re-inspection, so repeat failures escalate quickly.
The unresolved application-fee and plan-review question, pool electrical and other trade permits, pool barrier permitting, impact and utility fees, county charges, pool construction cost, zoning setbacks and HOA approvals are all excluded from the $242.00 on this page, and the page-standard disclaimer applies - always verify with the New Braunfels Building Division before budgeting.
New Braunfels Pool Permit Cost vs Other Verified Texas Cities
New Braunfels sits mid-range among verified Texas cities, but its figure is built differently: it already carries an inspection fee and a percentage technology fee that the flat-line cities do not. The table below is labelled peer context only.
| City | Pool Fee Basis | In-Ground Pool Permit |
|---|---|---|
| New Braunfels, TX | $200 flat + $35 inspection + 3% tech, rounded down | $242.00 |
| League City, TX | Single flat pool line; trades separate | $600.00 |
| Beaumont, TX | $225 in-ground + $50 pool plan review; MEP separate | $275.00 |
| Brownsville, TX | Flat residential pool line; trades separate | $200.00 |
| Laredo, TX | Flat building permit; trades separate | $64.00 |
Scope note: New Braunfels' $242.00 already includes its $35.00 residential inspection fee and 3% technology fee, so it is closer to a true all-in figure than the flat-line cities. Beaumont's $275.00 includes its pool-specific $50.00 plan review but not its MEP trades. League City's $600.00, Brownsville's $200.00 and Laredo's $64.00 are single flat lines with trades and inspections billed separately. These are labelled peer figures for context, not a like-for-like all-in comparison. Confirm current figures and trade treatment with each department.
See New Braunfels' full residential fee schedule, or compare another verified Texas city's pool permit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who to Contact
| Department | City of New Braunfels - Building Division (Comal and Guadalupe Counties, TX) |
| What to ask | Whether a standalone pool draws the $50.00 application fee and the 25% plan review, whether the codified amounts are still current after the April 1, 2024 fee amendments, how many electrical circuits your pool will be charged for, and how a pool safety barrier is permitted. |
| Fee schedule | Code of Ordinances, Appendix D - Fee Schedule |
Sources
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City of New Braunfels - Code of Ordinances, Appendix D - Fee Schedule New Braunfels, TX - official codified ordinance on the Municode code library, page-labelled "VERSION: MAY 28, 2026 (CURRENT)". Primary source for the $200.00 in-ground and $100.00 above-ground pool fees (Sec. B(a), Schedule A Residential), the $50.00 permit application fee, the 25%-of-permit-cost residential plan review, the $35.00 residential inspection fee, the 3% information-technology fee (Sec. A), and the round-down-to-whole-dollar rule (Sec. B(k)). Amendment history for the building-permitting section ends at Ord. No. 2023-76, Sec. 4, October 9, 2023 source age - last amended 2023, verify current
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City of New Braunfels - official city website (Building Permits, Fee Amendments Customer Information Bulletin) New Braunfels, TX (.gov) - the city's own site, which confirms Council amended development-related fees effective April 1, 2024 and hosts the Building Division's permit pages. Also the location of a superseded "2018 Fees" PDF that was reviewed and deliberately NOT used for any figure on this page. Verified July 2026.
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Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 214 Texas statute (.gov) confirming municipal building-regulation authority and that Texas imposes no statewide percentage building-permit levy. Context for the "no statewide levy" statement. Verified July 2026.