7 rules for unincorporated Baltimore County, Maryland.
Verified from official government sources
In unincorporated Baltimore County, residential fences may be up to 42 inches (3.5 feet) in a front yard and 6 feet in a side or rear yard. A fence may reach 10 feet if set back 2 feet horizontally per vertical foot above 6 feet.
Baltimore County Building Code Part 122.1 (Residential Properties); BCZR §427
1. Front Yards: The maximum height permitted for any residential occupancy fence shall be 42 inches above normal grade in a front yard. 2. Side and Rear Yards: The maximum height permitted for any residential occupancy fence shall be six feet... A fence may be erected up to ten feet high in a side or rear yard when the fence is set back from the property line a horizontal distance of two feet f...
Baltimore County requires a building permit for any fence taller than 42 inches. Fences 42 inches and under generally need no permit. Apply through the Office of Permits, Approvals and Inspections (Zoning Review), Towson.
Baltimore County General Residential Fence Detail (BCZR 427 permit rule)
Fences higher than 42 inches require a permit from Baltimore County. ... Access or Walkway Easements MAY NOT be fenced. Fence must be on the owner's property and cannot be within a street or alley right of way.
A residential fence may not be built in your rear or side yard where it adjoins a neighbor's front yard, and within 10 feet of that front-yard property line the fence may not exceed 42 inches. This does not apply if the homes are over 200 feet apart.
BCZR §427.B, §427.C
1. A residential occupancy fence may not be erected in the rear or side yard of a lot which adjoins the front yard of another on which a residence has been built. 2. The fence may not exceed 42 inches in height if situated within ten feet of the adjoining front yard property line. ... Subsection B of this section does not apply if the residences on the adjoining lots are more than 200 feet apart.
Baltimore County requires a building permit for all retaining walls over three feet high. Walls four feet or higher also require a Retaining Wall Data Sheet. Apply through Permits, Approvals and Inspections.
Baltimore County Permits, Approvals & Inspections – Retaining Wall Building Permit
A building permit is required for all retaining walls over three feet. ... Retaining Wall Letter — For residential only. Must be signed by the owner. ... If the retaining wall is four feet or higher: Retaining Wall Data Sheet.
Beyond height, Baltimore County requires fences to sit on the owner's property, keep out of easements and rights-of-way, and meet corner sight-triangle limits. At a street corner, fences or plantings within the sight triangle may not exceed 3 feet.
Baltimore County General Residential Fence Detail (placement & sight-triangle rules)
Fence must be on the owner's property and cannot be within a street or alley right of way. Access or Walkway Easements MAY NOT be fenced. ... A street corner has a 3 ft ht. limit for all fences or plants within the triangle. At a street and alley the height limit is 15 X 15 ft. At an alley and alley the height limit is 10 x 10 ft.
Barbed wire is allowed only on top of fences more than 6 feet 9 inches high (or on farms for livestock). Electric fences are permitted only on farms to retain livestock. Fences may not have sharp points or jagged edges that could injure people or animals.
Baltimore County Building Code Part 122.3 (All Properties)
Electric fences shall be permitted only on farms for the retention of livestock and only if the electric fences are not a safety hazard to people. ... Barbed wire or other approved retarding material or construction may be placed on top of any fence which is more than six feet, nine inches high except where such barbed wire or other retarding material will create a highly hazardous condition.
Baltimore County allows common fence materials (wood, vinyl, chain-link, masonry) with no aesthetic material ban, but requires them to be safe: no sharp points or jagged edges that could injure, and sharp pickets are barred on fences under four feet high.
Baltimore County Building Code Part 122.3(2)
No fence shall have any projecting sharp points, jagged edges or other projections which may injure persons or animals coming into contact with such fence and no fence less than four feet shall have sharp pickets or vertical pointed objects on top.
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