aniceone,
For starters, you can go online to the California Contractors License Board and check their standing. Ask the PB for references and call them.
The other thing you can do is call a few of the PB's subs and vendors to see if they pay on time.
The rest is finding someone you feel comfortable with and make them put ALL promises in writing. Good luck.

How many PB quotes did you get? You might need a couple of more to get a good idea of some middle ground. I am finishing up a pool build and understand how stressful it can be to chose the right builder. I had one super high bid and the cost couldn't be justified so I didn't go with that builder I had a lower bid (not especially low but lower) and they included barely any concrete in their quote. I think in the end I had 5-6 quotes and a few of them were generally in the same ballpark. I also suggest making a spreadsheet listing out the size, the equipment being offered, the SQ of concrete, any extras you are planning on including and compare the prices that way. You won't be comparing apples to apples (because they offer different equipment etc) but it does help to see the different prices side by side. Also focus on the quality of construction. I called quite of few of the references from the PB I ended up choosing and everyone seemed happy with their pool and the build itself. So far my PB has gone pretty well, a little slower than expected (but we are in MD so we won't be swimming for awhile anyway). In the end (after you have done all of your homework) it is somewhat of a crap shoot. If you can go see some of the pools that the PB has built and talk to the owners while you are there without a sales rep being around. You can get some good information on this site and of course you can research on the internet but there is so much misinformation out there sometimes it is hard to tell the truth from the lies. Good luck!

Thank you! I will try to get a couple of other quotes. So tired of lies already, and the high price guy is laying it way too thick!

Anyone has recent experience with pool build in So California and is willing to share? (Have read the recent LA thread with much interest - good luck). Thanks again!!

Go to the Court house and get a copy of this years Pool builds Permits. This will give you names of companys and homeowners addresses then make some calls to the homeowners they will be more than happy to share the good and bad of the companys you are looking at.

hope this helps
Rusty

aniceone, i feel your pain!!

we're building our pool in LA...we have learned that the pool building business out here is like the wild west... :) builders are in very fierce competition with each other, and it sometimes seems like there are no rules, and some builders will say and do anything to get your business.

we initially were working with a designer who took our specs and design to 2 companies to get bids, they both came in at 10k above his ballpark estimate! we had another pool builder offer to do it for less, but our designer told us about some negative stories he'd heard about that builder. now, were those stories true? or was our designer getting a kickback from the companies he got bids from...? (the designer seemed like a nice guy, so i'd like to believe the former, but it's still daunting...)

we finally found a company in our price range and looked up their licenses and checked the BBB and asked for a list of references. we called three of the references they gave us and heard good things. our designer had never worked with them, but he said that he had never heard anything negative about them either.

we're still in the middle of our build, so i can't really say whether we made a wise decision or if we would've been better off with one of the pricier bids, but in the end there's always going to be some small leap of faith involved.

do as much research as you can and take your time with the decision, but take even MORE time going over your contract with a fine toothed comb and making sure every scenario is covered. the only way to battle "hidden" charges is to anticipate them and make sure you have it in writing that they're included in the price you're paying. make sure you understand every step of the process, and always ask "will there be a charge for that? is that included?" and get it in writing either way.

good luck with your research and your build! looking forward to seeing pictures of your torn-up yard in the near future!! :)

We had two pools built by the same builder over a 4yr. period. We moved to a new house and had them build our second one because we were so happy with them on the first pool. We live in North O.C. area, and the builder we used was from the Inland Empire. The name of the builder was Bluefountain pools, and the sales rep. name is Don Hubble.
Tell him Jim recommended him.

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