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Los Angeles pool removal permits and cost
The rules, then the ranges.What LADBS actually requires to backfill a pool, and what published 2026 guides say a job can cost — labeled as estimates, never as our prices.
Use this page when you want the bulletin in plain language and every cost figure this site repeats, with the source next to it.
In the City of Los Angeles, a swimming pool is not abandoned by filling it with whatever dirt is handy. Information Bulletin P/BC 2023-111 — effective January 1, 2023, previously issued as P/BC 2020-111 — sets two methods and requires a grading permit for both.[1]
The official bulletin
Two ways to backfill a pool in Los Angeles
The purpose of the bulletin, in the department’s words, is to establish the requirements for backfilling existing pools. The method depends on the intended future use of the fill: a pool may be backfilled with structural compacted fill suitable for the support of footings, or the shell may be left in place and backfilled with uncertified fill.[1]
Path 1 — Structural compacted fill (full removal)
Under Los Angeles Building Code Section 7011.3, material used to backfill swimming pools must be placed on natural undisturbed material or an approved compacted fill and compacted to a minimum of 90 percent relative compaction as determined by ASTM D 1557. The fill is tested by a soil testing agency approved by LADBS. A compaction report including a Certificate of Compliance must be submitted before approval of any fill.[1]
- A grading pre-inspection (GPI) report is required when the site is in the Hillside Grading Area.[1]
- When the department requires it, a soil report from a licensed soils engineer goes to the Grading Division.[1]
- The grading permit must specify the total number of cubic yards of fill.[1]
- The pool shell shall be removed from the site.[1]
- The bottom of the excavation is inspected and approved before compacted fill is placed.[1]
- No foundation shall be constructed before the compaction report is reviewed and approved.[1]
Inspections called out for this path are an initial meeting, a bottom or excavation inspection, and a final inspection.[1]
Path 2 — Uncertified fill, shell left in place
Leaving the shell and placing uncertified fill is allowed under Exception No. 1 of LABC Section 7011.3, with conditions:[1]
- A grading permit is obtained with a plot plan showing the pool and distances to buildings and property lines. The permit shall indicate that the fill is uncertified.[1]
- The backfill shall be used for landscaping purpose only.[1]
- The existing pool shall not be on ground sloping steeper than 10 percent. If it is, the structural procedures in Part I of the bulletin apply instead.[1]
- Drainage holes at least 12 inches in diameter shall be provided in the concrete pool bottom, a maximum of 8 feet apart, with one hole in the deepest section.[1]
- Backfill shall consist of clean soil or gravel and shall be moistened and tractor-rolled or tamped with a whacker into place.[1]
Inspections for this path are an initial meeting, a bottom inspection after the drainage holes are made and before any fill, and a final inspection.[1]
Read the bulletin itself before you treat this summary as complete. The official PDF is linked in the sources below. (In some network environments that URL currently redirects to the LADBS homepage; the text summarized here is the search-indexed content of that official file, and it matches the department’s earlier P/BC 2014-111 language on the uncertified-fill conditions.)
LADBS also publishes a general page on when grading permits are needed for cuts, fills and related work.[2]
Independent cities
This guide is about the City of Los Angeles. Neighborhoods such as Sherman Oaks and Encino are inside that city.[3][4] Places that are their own cities — Beverly Hills, Santa Monica and others — run their own building departments. Say so on the form if that is your property.
Published cost ranges
Every dollar figure on this site, with its source
This site does not publish its own prices and does not guarantee a cost. The tables below reprint figures other organizations have already published. They are rough estimates. A visit is the only way to price a specific yard.
Angi, Los Angeles, updated June 9, 2026
Angi reports an average Los Angeles pool removal cost of $6,816, with most projects between $5,680 and $9,088. It lists full removal at $4,550 to $18,200 and partial fill-in at $2,850 to $11,350. Above-ground removal is listed separately at $340 to $910.[5]
| In-ground size (feet) | Partial fill-in (Angi) | Full removal (Angi) |
|---|---|---|
| 10×20 | $2,250–$7,050 | $4,900–$12,250 |
| 12×24 | $2,400–$7,600 | $5,250–$13,200 |
| 14×28 | $2,600–$8,750 | $5,550–$14,650 |
| 15×30 | $2,850–$9,200 | $4,650–$15,200 |
| 18×36 | $3,200–$10,550 | $6,350–$17,150 |
| 20×40 | $3,400–$11,700 | $6,950–$18,650 |
| 30×50 | $4,650–$16,700 | $9,100–$25,550 |
Source: Angi, “How Much Does Pool Removal Cost in Los Angeles, CA? [2026 Data],” updated June 9, 2026. Angi describes its method as starting with national average project costs and adjusting with Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities.[5]
Angi also publishes material ranges (for example vinyl at $3,400 to $11,350 and concrete, gunite or fiberglass with their own bands), labor at $1,150 to $3,400, and a structural engineer at $115 to $225 per hour.[5] Those figures are likewise theirs, not ours.
A Los Angeles contractor’s published table
Demolition Los Angeles CA publishes the following estimate table and notes that final costs depend on access, pool condition, soil type and permits:[6]
| Pool size band | Partial removal | Complete removal |
|---|---|---|
| Small (up to 400 sq ft) | $3,500–$6,000 | $6,000–$10,000 |
| Medium (400–600 sq ft) | $5,000–$8,000 | $8,000–$15,000 |
| Large (600+ sq ft) | $7,000–$12,000 | $12,000–$20,000+ |
What another local page says about national guides
Southwest Hauling writes that published 2026 cost guides put in-ground pool removal nationally at about $4,000 to $16,000 for a full removal and about $2,000 to $10,000 for a fill-in, and that Los Angeles access and disposal move those numbers.[7]
The homepage estimator shows the Angi size row and the matching contractor size band for the method you pick. It does not add invented extras for access or a crane.
Draining, briefly
Water quality rules sit beside the grading permit.
LA Sanitation’s residential guidance calls for dechlorination (holding time or a dechlorinating agent such as sodium thiosulfate), a chlorine residual no higher than 0.1 mg/L, and pH between 6.5 and 8.5 when water is discharged under those best-management practices.[8][9] Salt, copper-based algaecides and other restricted chemicals have additional limits.[9] Storm-drain discharges are described as allowed from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.; very large discharges need advance notice.[9]
After the fill
Landscaping is not the same as a building pad.
Lawn and garden match the landscaping-only path on a qualifying lot. An ADU or addition needs the structural path and then its own city process.[1][10] Outdoor living with footings belongs with the structural path; a lightweight surface on uncertified fill can settle.
Sherman Oaks and Encino are both City of Los Angeles neighborhoods, so these rules apply there.[3][4]
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Permits and cost questions
Do I always need a grading permit?
Can I build on a filled pool later if I only did a landscaping fill-in?
Why do published price tables disagree?
Does this site guarantee a price?
Sources
- Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety, Information Bulletin P/BC 2023-111: Backfill of Swimming Pools (effective January 1, 2023; previously issued as P/BC 2020-111)
- Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety: Grading Permits
- Wikipedia: Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles
- Wikipedia: Encino, Los Angeles
- Angi: How Much Does Pool Removal Cost in Los Angeles, CA? [2026 Data] (updated June 9, 2026)
- Demolition Los Angeles CA: Pool Demolition & Removal Services in Los Angeles (published estimate table)
- Southwest Hauling: Pool Demolition and Removal in Los Angeles, CA
- LA Sanitation: Tips for Pools, Spas, Fountain Owners
- LA Sanitation Watershed Protection Program: Discharge Requirements for Pools, Spas and Fountain Owners (fact sheet)
- Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety: Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU)