Demand drops for private swimming pools in Belgium

Fewer people in Belgium are buying into the luxury of a private swimming pool at their property, according to new figures from the Belgian Federation of Swimming Pool and Wellness Professionals (FBP).

In 2024, companies built 3,475 pools, 25% fewer than in 2023 (4,625). Since the boom year of 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic, when some 6,150 pools were built for private clients - three times the amount built in 2015 - the number of new pools constructed has fallen. The year 2022 already saw a significant decrease in new builds to 5,670 pools.

But FBP director Jean Ceuppens, also head of Piscines Desjoyaux in Soignies, said that this downward trend, caused by rising material and construction costs, the threat of war and changing consumer priorities, was not new.

"There’s a bit of an economic situation - there’s a potential war. But these are cycles. This is the third I’ve seen in 20 years," he said.

“So we’re in a downward trend now. But all it takes is one good summer, a resolution of the problems with Ukraine and Russia, or with Trump, to get the whole thing back on the up and up again.”

Pool specialists also assert that the current demand is for smaller pools, “more like six by three metres instead of 12 by six,” said Julien Loiseau, pool designer and customer advisor, also based in Soignies.

This is because houses built on estates today have smaller gardens. “Customers are looking for a well-equipped pool, something comfortable, but not necessarily as big as they used to be,” he said.

While interest in new pools is waning, the pool renovation market is booming, accounting for some 12.5% of swimming pool-related sales in 2024. This year, the FBP expects to renovate 815 pools, compared to 680 pools in 2024, 659 in 2023 and 620 in 2022.

“Owners want to modernise their facilities to improve energy efficiency, optimise water quality or incorporate new connected functions,” for example remote monitoring of energy and water consumption, the FBP report added.

Other changes requested by clients include reducing the size of the pool and fitting heat pumps instead of using the household boiler to control pool temperature. Customers also want to know how they can reduce their swimming pool’s water and electricity consumption, or to build environmentally friendly pools with a low chlorine content.

As for price, almost 68% of homeowners set their budget at between €50,000 and €80,000 for a new pool. Nearly 14% prefer the low end of the range (from €35,000) and just over 18% opt for the most expensive (from €80,000 to €150,000).

Vincenzo Cattafesta, from the Fleurus-based company ServiPools, said that as soon as the sun shines, “the phone does not stop ringing”.