Custom Pools Designed Around Your Property, Your Family & the Way You Want to Live
From established Auburn neighborhoods to newer communities and larger foothill properties, every backyard presents a different opportunity.
THE CJR EXPERIENCE
A pool may be the centerpiece of your backyard, but it is rarely the only part of the project that needs to be considered.
Concrete, drainage, elevations, landscaping, access, retaining conditions, outdoor living features, and how everything connects to the home can all influence the final result.
CJR approaches pool construction from the perspective of a complete outdoor contractor, allowing us to look beyond the water and consider how the entire property should function together.
For Auburn properties where elevation, mature trees, rock, access, or existing improvements may influence construction, that broader perspective can be especially important.
Additional Custom Pool Features & Outdoor Living Options Available Upon Request
Auburn offers an incredible variety of homes and properties—from established neighborhoods around Maidu to newer communities such as Briar Meadows and Canyon Creek, along with larger foothill and custom properties throughout Christian Valley, Winchester, and the surrounding Auburn area.
That variety means there is no single pool design that makes sense for every Auburn backyard.
Some properties provide a relatively open starting point. Others require more careful consideration of elevation changes, existing landscaping, mature trees, drainage, access, rock, views, privacy, or the relationship between the home and surrounding land.
Our job is not to fit your property into a standard pool design. It is to design the pool around the property.
Designed Around How You Live
Custom pool design is about much more than choosing a shape. We spend time understanding how you want to use your backyard before deciding what belongs in it.
For some Auburn homeowners, that means creating a backyard centered around family, swimming, and summer days at home. Others want an integrated spa for cooler foothill evenings, a Cabo shelf where the kids or grandkids can play, more room for entertaining, or quieter areas positioned to take advantage of the privacy and views their property already provides.
The property itself helps shape those decisions. Auburn backyards can range from established neighborhood lots with mature landscaping to larger foothill properties with elevation changes, existing trees, open views, natural surroundings, and more room to spread different outdoor areas across the property.
We consider how the pool relates to the home, where people naturally enter the backyard, how the sun moves across the property, which views should be preserved, and how the pool will connect with patios, landscaping, outdoor kitchens, shade structures, fire features, and other parts of the outdoor plan.
Features such as a Cabo shelf, integrated spa, bubblers, waterfalls, raised walls, lighting, steps, benches, and custom finishes can then be incorporated intentionally based on the property and the way your family wants to use it.
A well-designed pool should feel natural to your Auburn property, your home, and the way your family lives—not like a pool that could have been placed in any backyard.
Building in Auburn
Auburn properties can have meaningful changes in grade. Pool elevation, deck elevations, drainage paths, retaining conditions, and the relationship between the pool and home should be considered together before construction begins.
Larger properties do not automatically mean easy construction access. Gates, slopes, mature landscaping, existing improvements, rock, equipment access, and excavation conditions can all affect how a pool project is planned and built.
Many Auburn homes have something worth designing around—mature trees, foothill views, open land, existing landscape, or simply additional privacy. We consider those surroundings when determining pool orientation, gathering areas, elevations, and outdoor living spaces.
Concept to Completion
A complete backyard can involve far more than pool construction.
Concrete, drainage, landscaping, irrigation, lighting, structures, utilities, outdoor kitchens, retaining conditions, and finish work all need to come together in the correct sequence.
CJR provides one team to help plan and coordinate those moving pieces from the beginning.
That means fewer gaps between trades, clearer communication, and one company looking at the project as a whole instead of treating every element as an unrelated scope of work.
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Craftsmanship You Can See
A pool changes more than the appearance of a backyard. It creates a place for summer afternoons, family gatherings, quiet mornings, evenings outside, and the everyday moments that make home feel like home. Take a look at some of the custom pools and outdoor environments our team has had the opportunity to build.
Outdoor projects become much easier to manage when the company planning them understands more than one trade. Here's what sets the CJR experience apart.
We design and build pools, concrete, hardscape, outdoor living, landscape, drainage, and more—so every element works together from the beginning.
CJR is a family-owned and owner-operated company. You work directly with owner Colton Ray from the initial consultation through construction—there isn't a salesperson between you and the person responsible for the work.
Our background in concrete, excavation, pools, and complete outdoor construction helps us anticipate challenges, plan properly, and consider how each part of the project affects the next.
We want our clients to understand what they are building, what is included, how the project will be approached, and who is accountable for bringing it together.
Auburn properties can introduce elevation changes, mature trees, drainage considerations, rock, access challenges, and other site-specific conditions. We consider the property itself from the beginning of planning.
Our focus is thoughtful planning, proper preparation, quality craftsmanship, and doing the work correctly—not taking shortcuts to move a project along.
Colton and his team were EXCEPTIONAL in their work at our home. We had a big backyard of flat dirt and he helped turn it into a beautiful resort like feel.
— Heather A. · CJR client, via Google
Our Pool Construction Process
We believe every homeowner deserves a clear understanding of the pool construction process. That’s why we’ve outlined our proven process, guiding you through each phase of your project, from your first design consultation to the day you get your toes wet.
View Our Step-by-Step ProcessThe Details That Matter
There is not one meaningful price for a custom pool because the investment depends on the pool itself as well as the property it is being built on. Size, depth, spa configuration, finishes, water features, decking, access, elevation, excavation conditions, retaining needs, drainage, utilities, landscaping, and outdoor living improvements can all affect the final scope.
We prefer to discuss your targeted comfort zone of investment early so we can determine whether the project you are envisioning and the investment you are comfortable making are reasonably aligned before spending significant time designing it.
Yes. CJR is a complete outdoor construction company. Depending on the project, our work can include the pool and spa, concrete, drainage, hardscape, landscape installations, irrigation, lighting, outdoor kitchens, pavilions, fire features, turf, putting greens, and other outdoor improvements.
Because two proposals with different totals may not actually represent the same project.
Excavation assumptions, equipment, plumbing, steel, concrete, finishes, drainage, decking, access, allowances, exclusions, warranties, and included site work can vary considerably.
A lower number isn't necessarily the same project for less money if the scopes aren't actually equivalent.
Some do. Auburn contains everything from relatively level neighborhood lots to larger foothill properties with meaningful elevation changes, mature trees, rock, drainage considerations, or more complicated construction access.
Those conditions do not automatically make a project difficult, but they should be understood during planning rather than discovered unnecessarily after construction begins.
Yes, and for larger outdoor projects we often prefer to understand the complete plan even when every element will not be constructed immediately.
Knowing where future concrete, landscaping, structures, utilities, kitchens, or recreation areas may eventually go can prevent today's construction from creating problems for tomorrow's improvements.
Absolutely. The important part is planning those phases together. Good phasing begins with planning the later phases before the first one starts. That allows us to consider elevations, utilities, drainage, access, sleeves, structural needs, and future connections before completing work that may otherwise need to be disturbed later.
CJR is owner-operated. Colton is directly involved in project consultations, estimating, planning, construction oversight, and field decisions.
There isn't a salesperson handing the project off to someone you've never met once the contract is signed.
Look beyond the rendering and final number.
Ask what is actually included, who will be responsible for the project after the sale, how site conditions are evaluated, how changes are handled, what is excluded, how communication works, and whether the contractor has experience coordinating the other construction that may surround the pool. A company planning a significant outdoor project should be interested in understanding your property and priorities—not simply figuring out how quickly it can give you a price.
Planning an outdoor project comes with a lot of questions. We’re here to help you understand your options, what may make sense for your property, and the right next step.
More than just your average pool builder. We specialize in complete outdoor construction, including decorative concrete, structural concrete foundations, landscape installations, artificial turf, outdoor living, and more. One point of contact. One seamless experience thoughtfully designed and built by one experienced team.
Explore All ServicesBuilding your dream backyard may be more attainable than you think. Through our trusted financing partners, Lyon Financial and HFS Financial, we offer flexible financing options for custom pools and outdoor living projects. Get pre-approved today with a soft credit inquiry and explore financing that fits your budget and goals.
Explore FinancingTrusted Partners & Suppliers
Take a look at a few of the trusted suppliers and local businesses we rely on for quality products and professional services.
Local Suppliers & Partners →CJR's Local Picks
One of our family's favorite stops whenever we're in Auburn and recently voted #1 Best Pie Shop in the USA. Between the market, delicious food, and fresh-baked pies during the holidays, it's hard to leave empty-handed. Their Dutch Apple pie is Colton's favorite and has become a staple at our family holiday gatherings.
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A favorite for getting together with family and friends, celebrating birthdays, or grabbing dinner in Old Town Auburn. We especially love the rooftop when the weather is nice.
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A great Auburn spot to meet up with friends, grab coffee or a drink, and spend some time downtown. We love the relaxed atmosphere, and it's an easy stop when we're already in the area.
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Tell us a little about your property, what you are hoping to create, and how you want your outdoor space to function.
We'll start with a conversation about your project, priorities, property, and targeted comfort zone of investment to determine the right next step.
