It depends on the height, the material and where on the lot the fence stands. In the City of Los Angeles the Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) issues permits and enforces the zoning height limits. Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Burbank, Long Beach and the other cities around us each have their own code. We check the rule for your address before we start.
Do I need a permit to build or replace a fence?
Many ordinary wood, vinyl and metal fences that stay inside the zoning height limit are built in Los Angeles without a building permit, but the height limit applies either way. Masonry is stricter. LADBS has an information bulletin (P/BC 2014-080) on the block and concrete fence walls that may be built without a permit, and it covers only walls no taller than 6 feet built to its standard details. Any wall that holds back soil is engineered work. A like-for-like replacement of an existing fence at the same height and place is the simplest case. We confirm with LADBS when a job is near a limit.
How tall can my fence be? Is 6 feet allowed?
Yes, in side and rear yards. LADBS states that fences are limited to 3 feet 6 inches in the front yard and 6 feet in side and rear yards, and that the limit may be raised to 8 feet depending on lot size and location. The rule is Los Angeles Municipal Code section 12.22 C.20(f), and height is measured from the natural ground next to the fence. Hillside lots and corner lots are treated more strictly, so we check yours. State law also treats a fence that unnecessarily exceeds 10 feet and was built out of malice toward a neighbor as a private nuisance (Civil Code section 841.4).
How close to the property line can I build? Do I need a survey?
Boundary fences usually go on the line or a few inches inside it. A fence cannot go in the public right-of-way, and in Los Angeles the city's strip often runs well behind the sidewalk, sometimes into what looks like your lawn. Where the boundary is not marked, or you and the neighbor disagree, get a plot plan or a survey before a single hole is dug. That is the work of a licensed land surveyor.
I live in a historic district. What can I build?
Ask City Planning before you pick a design. Los Angeles has many Historic Preservation Overlay Zones, and exterior work that can be seen from the street in one of them, front fences and walls included, can need review by the Office of Historic Resources. Pasadena and Long Beach have their own historic districts with similar review. We look up the rule for your address instead of guessing.
Can my condo association or HOA restrict my fence?
Yes. Association rules on height, style, color and material sit on top of the city's rules, and the stricter one wins. Get the approval in writing before we order anything.
We are adding a pool. What fence does code require?
California's Swimming Pool Safety Act sets the enclosure standard in Health and Safety Code section 115923. The barrier must be at least 60 inches high, with no more than 2 inches of clearance at the bottom, no gap that lets a 4-inch sphere through, and an outside face with nothing a child under five could climb. Gates must open away from the pool and close and latch by themselves, with the latch at least 60 inches off the ground. Your building department inspects it and may add local conditions.
The inspector failed my existing fence for the pool. Who brings it up to code?
A fence contractor does. When an inspector failed a pool barrier, the list is usually short: a gate that does not self-close or self-latch, a latch set too low, a gate that swings toward the water, a gap under the fence, or a block wall that is too low or easy to climb on the outside. Send us the correction notice and we price each item on it.
My association only allows a 4-foot open fence, but I want privacy. What are my options?
Work inside the rule first. Planting a hedge behind the 4-foot open fence is the usual answer, and a taller screen set close to the patio may count as something other than a boundary fence. If that does not do it, apply to the board in writing for a variance. Look at your plot plan for utility or drainage easements too, since a fence may have to stay clear of one.
Do wildfire rules in the hills affect my fence?
They can, and the rules are changing. Large parts of the Hollywood Hills, the Santa Monica Mountains, the Verdugos and the foothills are mapped as Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones. The Los Angeles Fire Department's brush clearance rules there already call for clearing within 200 feet of structures and within 10 feet of a combustible fence. Separately, the State Board of Forestry voted in August 2026 to adopt Zone 0 rules for the first 5 feet around a building. As adopted, they would bar new combustible fencing in that strip and call for a noncombustible section where a fence or gate meets the house. When we last checked in October 2026 those rules had not been approved by the Office of Administrative Law and had no statewide start date. Many hillside owners already choose steel or aluminum for the stretch that touches the house. Check the current rule with LAFD or your city's fire department before you build.
Who calls 811 before digging, me or the contractor?
Whoever is doing the digging. In Los Angeles County the 811 center is DigAlert (Underground Service Alert of Southern California). California law requires notice at least 2 working days, and no more than 14 calendar days, before digging starts, and the day you call does not count. The dig area is marked in white first, and then the utility companies mark their lines. On our jobs we open the ticket. Private lines such as sprinkler pipe, pool equipment wiring, landscape lighting and gas to a barbecue are not marked by the utilities, so show us where yours run.
My contractor wants to skip the permit and reuse the old holes. What is the risk?
You carry it, as the owner. If the job needed approval and has none, the city can issue an order to comply, and the problem can come back at sale time. A contractor who offers to skip the permit is also telling you something about how the rest of the job will go. In California, work that needs a permit must be done by a licensed contractor even when it is small.
The city says my existing fence breaks the current rules. Can I just repair it?
Talk to LADBS, or your own city's building department, before paying for work. An older fence can sometimes be repaired as it stands while a full rebuild has to meet the present code, but that is the city's decision and not ours.
We can only give a real price after seeing the fence line. The estimate is free. Call (310) 361-5119 or text us a photo of the yard.