Pool Builder Payment Schedule in Texas: Normal Deposit, Draws & Lien Law (2026)

Short answer: Texas law doesn't cap a pool builder's deposit or set a draw schedule. What it does do is require you, the owner, to hold back 10% of the contract price until 30 days after the work is done, and it gives you documents you can demand before each payment.^[1] DFW builders' own published guidance puts a normal deposit at roughly 5–15% at signing, with the rest tied to completed stages.^[3] Below are the published schedules we found, what homeowners report, the red flags, and the parts of Texas law that protect you, each linked to its source.

How to read this page. Builder's claim means a company's own published terms or advice. Homeowner report is one person's forum post, not a statistical sample. Statute summaries are our plain-English reading of the official text as checked on October 22, 2026. This is not legal advice. For a contract you're about to sign, talk to a Texas construction attorney. We run a pool service company (see the footer) and don't build pools or take payments for pool construction.

What a normal schedule looks like

Schedules and guidance published by builders

Source	Deposit at signing	Draws	Held to the end
Dallas Cool Pools (DFW builder)^[3]	"Most reputable North Texas pool builders ask for a 5 to 15% deposit"	"Balance tied to milestones"	Says 30%+ up front, "or full payment before substantial work," deserves "a hard second look"
WETYR Pools, Dallas cost page^[4]	10%	Excavation, plumbing rough-in, gunite/shell, plaster/finish	Final 10% "at startup and walkthrough." Advises never paying more than 25% up front
J. Oliver Pools (Hill Country builder, not DFW)^[5]	Says it asks for no money up front. Warns to be cautious of more than 10–15% at signing	Example schedule 10% / 30% / 30% / 20%	10%
DFW Custom Pool (DFW builder)^[6][7]	One article: "commonly 25–50%." Another article on the same site lists "We need a 50% deposit upfront" as an answer that should end the conversation	Tied to phases (excavation, shell, equipment)	Final payment "upon completion and your acceptance"

Builder claims as published when we checked on October 22, 2026. These are not offers and not endorsements. The DFW Custom Pool articles contradict each other on deposit size, which shows why you should compare schedules against the work completed rather than against a "standard" percentage.

What homeowners report

Central Texas, gunite, about $67,600 contract: nothing at signing, then 40% at excavation, 30% at gunite, 20% at deck pour and 10% just before plaster. (Trouble Free Pool forum)^[9]
Houston area, about $253,000 project, Jul 2025: a $5,000 deposit, then 40% at excavation, 40% at gunite, 15% before decking and 5% before plaster. Replies called it "heavily front-loaded," and one forum member suggested negotiating "that 10% is paid at the completion of the project." (Trouble Free Pool forum)^[10]
Texas, fiberglass, Sept 2026: when a poster's contract left only $500 for the last payment, one commenter answered, "Never. Leave at least 10-15% after final inspection." Another shared a schedule of 10% at signing, 40% on shell delivery, 40% at water fill and 10% after "pool school," adding, "I have trust issues with being 99% paid when only a shell is delivered." (r/pools)^[8]

Quoted from public threads. Reddit blocks automated access, so we read it through search-engine snapshots. Builders aren't named here because these posts are about payment terms, not complaints. In both forum schedules, most of the money was paid by the shell stage. That is why the 10% statutory retainage below matters.

Red flags in a payment schedule

A large deposit before any work. Dallas Cool Pools flags 30% or more.^[3] WETYR's line is 25%.^[4] No Texas law sets a limit, so the only limit is the one you negotiate.^[1][3]
Payments tied to dates instead of finished stages. Pay when a stage is done and, where the city inspects it, passed.
Little or nothing left for the end. If almost everything is paid at shell or before plaster, you have little leverage over decking, startup and punch-list work.^[8][10] Texas law also expects you to hold 10% until 30 days after completion.^[1]
No lien waivers or bills-paid affidavits. Dallas Cool Pools advises conditional waivers with each progress payment and unconditional waivers at final payment.^[3]
A demand that you convey or deed property to the builder as part of the deal. Chapter 53 prohibits requiring that on residential jobs.^[1]
Cash-only or payment to a personal account. For a homestead job over $5,000 under a written contract, Texas law requires the contractor to deposit your payments in a construction account.^[2]
No written contract, or a contract signed after work starts on your homestead. Chapter 53's homestead rules require a written contract made before work begins.^[1]

Our vetting guide covers the other checks: electrical licenses, permits, court records and the BBB.

How Texas law protects you when you pay

Pools count as "improvements" under Texas Property Code chapter 53, the mechanic's lien law.^[1] If your builder doesn't pay a subcontractor or supplier, that company can pursue a lien against your property even though you never hired it. These are the protections we found in the statute text:

Protection	What the statute says (our summary)	Section
10% retainage	The owner shall retain 10% of the contract price (or of the value of work done) during the work and for 30 days after it's completed. Subcontractors and suppliers who properly perfect claims have a lien on those retained funds. If you don't retain, you can be liable up to the amount you should have kept.^[1]	§§53.101, 53.103, 53.105
Withholding after a notice	On residential jobs, a subcontractor or supplier must send its notice of claim by the 15th day of the second month after the month it provided the work or materials. Once you receive one, you may withhold that amount from the builder. You aren't liable for money paid before you were authorized to withhold (apart from the retainage), but you can be liable for money paid after.^[1]	§§53.056, 53.081, 53.084
Disclosure before you sign	On a residential contract, the builder must give you a statutory disclosure titled "Know your rights and responsibilities under the law." It covers the payment procedure, the 10% retainage, monitoring payments and getting lien releases and bills-paid affidavits.^[1]	§53.255
List of subcontractors and suppliers	Before construction, the builder must give you a list of the subcontractors and suppliers it expects to use, unless you waive this in writing using the statutory form.^[1]	§53.256
Statement with each payment request	With each payment request, the builder must give a disbursement statement listing who will be paid with the money. Providing false information in it is a misdemeanor.^[1]	§53.258
Bills-paid affidavits	You may ask for a bills-paid affidavit as a condition of payment. On residential jobs, a final bills-paid affidavit is a condition of the final payment. A false statement is a misdemeanor.^[1]	§§53.085, 53.259
Lien waivers on state forms	Waivers and releases must use the statutory forms, which come in conditional and unconditional versions for progress and final payments. A claimant can't be required to sign an unconditional waiver unless it has been paid.^[1]	§§53.281–53.284
Homestead rules	For a lien on a homestead, the contract must be in writing and executed before work begins, signed by both spouses if married, and filed with the county clerk. The contract also carries a required notice about the 10% retainage and your right to withhold.^[1]	§53.254
No property conveyance	A builder can't require you to convey your property as a condition of the contract.^[1]	§53.260
Trust funds	Construction payments are trust funds, the builder is the trustee, and you are a beneficiary under a residential contract. Misapplying them can be a crime. For homestead jobs over $5,000 under a written contract, the builder must use a construction account and keep records.^[2]	Ch. 162: §§162.001–162.007, 162.031–162.032

Chapter 53 also says it doesn't change what your contract says about the amount, manner or time of payment (§53.122), so the schedule itself is set by negotiation. Statutes change. Read the current text at the source links and confirm with a Texas attorney before relying on any of this.

One builder claim we couldn't confirm

J. Oliver Pools writes that "Texas law requires pool builders to follow a structured progress-payment schedule."^[5] We didn't find a required schedule in chapter 53 or chapter 162. The closest provisions are the 10% retainage, payment-request disclosures and trust-fund rules above.^[1][2] If you know of a statute or rule we missed, tell us.

Questions to ask before you sign

What is the deposit, and what does it pay for (design, engineering, permit)? Is it refundable if the permit isn't issued?
What exact event triggers each draw: excavation complete, steel inspection passed, shell shot, deck poured, plaster, startup?
How will we handle the 10% statutory retainage? Will it be written into the contract and held until 30 days after completion?^[1]
Will you give me the statutory disclosure statement and a list of your subcontractors and suppliers before work starts?^[1]
Will each payment request come with a disbursement statement, and will you provide conditional lien waivers from the major subcontractors (excavation, steel, gunite, plumbing, electrical, plaster)?^[1][3]
Will you sign a final bills-paid affidavit before the final payment?^[1]
Will my payments go into a construction account in the company's name?^[2]
How are change orders priced and paid? Are they added to the next draw or paid up front?

Next steps

Check the builder first: vetting checklist · DFW builder directory (permit counts, BBB, public records)
Sanity-check the total: what a pool costs in DFW (2026) · fiberglass vs gunite
How we source claims: methodology. Are you a builder quoted here? Request a correction.

FAQ

What is a normal deposit for a pool build in Texas?

Texas law doesn't set one. Dallas Cool Pools, a DFW builder, says most reputable North Texas builders ask for 5 to 15% at signing and that 30% or more up front 'deserves a hard second look.' WETYR Pools says it takes 10% at signing and advises never paying more than 25% up front. One DFW Custom Pool article says deposits are commonly 25 to 50%, while another article on the same site calls a 50% deposit 'not standard practice.' Published guidance varies, so compare the deposit with the work it pays for.

Does Texas cap pool builder deposits?

We found no cap in Texas Property Code chapter 53, which says it does not affect what a contract provides about the amount, manner or time of payment (section 53.122). Dallas Cool Pools also says Texas does not cap deposits on residential improvement contracts. This is our reading of the statute, not legal advice.

Do I have to hold back 10% from my pool builder in Texas?

Texas Property Code section 53.101 says the owner shall retain 10% of the contract price (or of the value of the work) during the work and for 30 days after it is completed. Under section 53.105, an owner who doesn't retain those funds can be liable to subcontractors and suppliers who properly perfect their claims, up to the amount that should have been retained. Ask a Texas attorney how this applies to your contract.

Can a subcontractor put a lien on my house if I already paid the pool builder?

It can happen. Chapter 53 gives subcontractors and suppliers a lien process even though they have no contract with you. Your main protections are the 10% retainage, withholding payment after you receive a subcontractor's notice of claim (sections 53.081 and 53.084), and getting lien waivers and bills-paid affidavits before you pay.

Pool builder payment schedules in Texas: normal deposits, draws and lien protection (2026)