Fence Regulations in Franklin County, WA (2026)
3 rules for unincorporated Franklin County, Washington.
Verified from official government sources
Height Limits
In unincorporated Franklin County, fences on residential, retail business and office-zoned lots are capped at four feet in the front yard and six feet in side and rear yards, with a three-foot cap near street intersections to preserve sightlines.
Franklin County Fence Height Limits
Some RestrictionsFranklin County Code § 17.74.050(C),(D),(I)
C.Front Yards. Subject to subsection A of this section, the height of fences, walls and hedges shall be limited to four feet within the front yard area of a residentially zoned lots, retail business and office zoned lots; provided, when two contiguous corner lots, or two corner lots separated only by an alley right-of-way, form the entire frontage between parallel or nearly parallel streets, th...
Retaining Walls
Stack a fence or hedge on top of a retaining wall in unincorporated Franklin County and the combined height cannot exceed nine and one-half feet. Franklin County Code Section 17.74.050(B) sets that cap, but if the wall exists only to hold back a cut in the natural grade, the fence itself is measured under the normal height rules as long as it sits three feet back from the wall.
Franklin County Retaining Wall Fence Height Limit
Some RestrictionsFranklin County Code § 17.74.050(B)
B.Fences, Walls, and Hedges. The height of fences, walls, and hedges located between a structure and a street shall be measured from the existing or finished grade of the fence, whichever is lower. For sloping lot conditions, the height may be averaged for each six-foot segment, with no height greater than eight feet. If you wish to place a fence or hedge above a retaining wall used to raise th...
Material Restrictions
Barbed and razor wire fencing is banned in every residential district in unincorporated Franklin County, and electrified fences are barred there too except as a secondary security layer behind an existing fence. Franklin County Code Section 17.74.050(G)-(H) carves out exceptions for suburban residential tracts over an acre, the office district, the central business district, and one strand of barbed wire in the C-1 retail zone.
Franklin County Barbed Wire and Electric Fence Rules
Significant RestrictionsFranklin County Code § 17.74.050(G)-(H)
G.Barbed and razor wire fencing is prohibited in all residential districts, except barbed wire may be permitted in suburban residential districts on tracts larger than an acre, and in the office district and the central business district. In the C-1 retail business district only one strand of barbed wire is permitted along the top rail or within two inches of the top rail.H.Electrified fences a...
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