Astorga plans and builds custom pools and outdoor living across Greater Houston. We publish a page for an area only when we can write honestly about its permitting, soils, drainage, and neighborhoods. If you’re nearby but not listed, just ask. The honest answer is one form away.
Why the area changes the project
Greater Houston is not one place to build in. It is dozens of cities and a handful of counties, and the same pool runs into different rules a few miles apart.
- Who issues the permit. A city building department, a county engineer, or in parts of unincorporated Fort Bend County no county pool permit at all. It depends on the parcel, not the mailing address.
- What is under the grass. Expansive clay across much of the metro, well-drained loam around Fulshear, saline clays near the bay, and a seasonal water table close to the surface in many places.
- What the neighborhood requires. Architectural review in the master-planned communities, tree protection in the Memorial Villages, floodplain and windstorm rules toward the coast.
That is what each page below covers for its own area.
Northwest corridor
- Cypress. Master-planned communities, active architectural review, and genuinely expansive clay we engineer for. It is unincorporated Harris County, so pools permit through the county engineer.
- Tomball. Pine canopy on one side, open-sky new construction on the other, and an established base of pools reaching remodel age. Most Tomball addresses are unincorporated Harris County, and the local soil holds a seasonal water table the dig has to plan for.
West
- Katy. Newer construction, open sky, and four jurisdictions’ worth of permitting nuance. Design review in the master-planned communities can take up to 30 business days.
- Fulshear. The fastest-growing corner of the metro, from Cross Creek Ranch to Fulbrook’s acreage estates. Two permit worlds: the City of Fulshear inside Cross Creek Ranch and the city core, unincorporated Fort Bend County for most of the rest.
- Richmond. The master-planned belt from Aliana to Veranda, where the review committee is the real permit. All four communities we cover sit in unincorporated Fort Bend County.
Northeast corridor
- Kingwood. Forest lots, mature pines, and drainage that deserves respect. City of Houston permits, plus active village architectural review.
- Humble & Atascocita. Established neighborhoods and generous lots northeast of the airport. Three possible permitting jurisdictions, decided by the parcel.
Memorial and west Houston
- Memorial & the Memorial Villages. Large wooded lots, strict tree ordinances, and backyard rebuilds done to the standard the street expects. Each village is its own city with its own pool packet.
Southeast
- League City & Clear Lake. Waterfront living from South Shore Harbour to Taylor Lake, and pools built for coastal ground. Seven jurisdictions share the shoreline, with floodplain and windstorm rules on top.
- Pearland. Shadow Creek Ranch to Green Tee, one city across three counties, and clay that carries a shallow water table. City permits inside the limits, and a mandatory architectural review in Shadow Creek Ranch.
Houston itself is home base: start with custom pools in Houston and what a pool really costs here.
Plan before you call
Wherever you are on the map, these answer the questions that come up first:
- Houston pool permits and HOA approvals: who governs your lot, corridor by corridor.
- What a pool costs in Houston, with city editions for Katy and League City.
- What size pool fits my backyard: reading your survey before you talk to anyone.
- The best time to build a pool in Houston.
- How an Astorga project runs: six phases, a written scope, and what you decide at each step.
- The free Houston pool planning guide, and the pool building FAQ for everything else.
We only publish a service-area page where we can write honestly about local conditions, from permitting authority and soils to drainage and neighborhood realities. No copy-paste city pages.
Not sure which rules apply to your address?
Send us the address. We identify the permitting authority from the parcel, read your HOA guidelines, and tell you what your lot needs before anything is designed.
Nearby but not listed? Ask through the contact page. We will answer either way.