A homeowner signed a $56,000 pool contract. The final bill? $140,000.
This isn't rare. I've seen 3,000 pool quotes in the last year alone, and cost blowouts of 150-200% happen constantly.
The worst part? The system is designed this way.
The Perfect Trap
Here's how it works. Pool builders give you artificially low quotes to win your signature. Then they recover the missing costs through "variations" and "provisional sums" once you're locked in.
Take excavation. A realistic allowance starts at $5,000 minimum. A day rate for a digger, bobcat, and truck to remove soil costs around $6,000. That's for a simple job with good access and no complications.
But I see quotes with $1,500 excavation allowances all the time.
Homeowners don't know what reasonable costs should be. They see the low number and think they're getting a deal. The reality is they're signing off on a guess, not a quote.
The builder knows this. They're counting on it.
Why This System Exists
Pool builders are incentivised to underquote. Their salespeople work on commission and want your signature as quickly as possible. They're not worried about what happens later.
The contracting system protects them. Standard industry contracts allow them to charge variations and recover underquoted items. Construction projects experience cost overruns constantly, but pool construction takes this to extremes.
Most builders won't insist on solid planning upfront because they don't need to. The contracts give them all the protection they need.
The Lock-In Moment
The trap springs the moment construction begins. Sometimes even earlier, once you've paid a deposit.
No other builder will take over a half-finished pool project. You're completely stuck with your original choice.
The power dynamic shifts completely. Builders can threaten to walk off the job. They pressure you into quick progress payments, saying they won't return for weeks unless you pay immediately.
Every progress payment you make essentially approves the work done so far. You're trapped in a cycle where you keep paying to avoid losing everything you've already invested.
There's almost nothing you can do.
What You're Really Missing
Beyond excavation, the biggest gaps are usually:
Quality equipment. Cheap quotes use cheap equipment. You won't know until it's too late.
Pool surrounds. Tiling, fencing, landscaping. These can add $20,000-30,000 that wasn't properly budgeted.
Essential inclusions. Like heating provisions. Include the pipework during construction at no extra cost. Try to add it later and you're looking at $10,000-20,000 in labour alone to empty the pool, core drill holes through the shell, install pipework and waterproof the new penetrations - not to mention pulling up existing tiling.
Most people end up never getting the heating they wanted because the oversight is too expensive to fix, or they install it in a sub-optimal way that doesn't heat the pool anywhere near as well.
The Home Construction Contrast
You'd never build a house this way. You'd hire an architect first, create detailed plans, then get quotes based on those specifications.
This lets you compare apples to apples. Builders quote on the same scope. No surprises, no gaps, no guessing.
Pool construction should work the same way. The fact that it doesn't is what creates this mess.
How The Best Builders Operate
Great builders encourage proper planning before quoting. They put realistic provisional amounts in contracts. They appear more expensive initially because they're being honest about real costs.
This requires a savvy customer to understand that higher upfront quotes often mean lower final costs. The "cheap" quote is usually the most expensive by the end.
I've partnered with over 300 pool builders, but said no to four times that many. Only 20% of builders I interview make it onto our platform; and only 5% make it into our EasyBuild service. The standard in this industry is shockingly low.
The Real Solution
Professional design first. Detailed specifications. Then quotes from vetted builders based on identical scope.
This is exactly why we created EasyBuild. One expert visit, professional 3D design of the entire outdoor space, then accurate quotes you can actually compare.
When homeowners see this approach, their reaction is always the same: "This sounds fantastic. Why isn't this standard practice?"
The answer? Because the current system works perfectly for builders who want to underquote and recover costs later.
But it's a disaster for families.
EasyBuild was specifically designed to solve this exact problem. We represent the homeowner's interests, not the builder's. We create detailed specifications so every quote is comparable. We work only with builders who've proven they do the right thing by customers.
Learn more about EasyBuild here and see how we're changing the way pools are built in Australia.
Breaking The Pattern
In our Pool Owners Australia Facebook group with 190,000 members, we see complaints about cost blowouts daily. This is a rampant industry problem.
The solution exists. Proper planning, realistic budgeting, vetted builders who do the right thing by customers.
You just have to know to demand it upfront.
Because once that hole is dug, it's too late. The trap has already closed.
The pool building process is broken because builders are incentivised to underquote and homeowners aren't aware enough to spot the gaps. The contracting system lets builders recover missing costs later, and the threat to walk off jobs leaves homeowners with no options.
You end up paying whatever the builder puts in front of you.
The industry needs to change. Until it does, the only protection is knowing how the system really works and demanding better from the start.
Your family's pool should be exciting, not a financial nightmare. But that requires approaching it completely differently than most people do.
Plan first. Quote second. Choose builders who earn your trust by being transparent about real costs upfront.
Everything else is just a trap waiting to spring.
