7 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 1 city in Marion County, Oregon.
Verified from official government sources
In unincorporated Marion County, fences may reach 8 feet in interior yards, but only 48 inches within 10 feet of a street where above 24 inches would block driver sight lines. Salem allows 8/6/4 feet.
MCC 17.117.080
In any yard adjacent to a street and within 10 feet from the property line adjacent to such street, fences, walls and hedges may be up to 48 inches in height, when that portion of the fence above 24 inches does not create a vision obstruction. Fences located in a yard area other than above described may be up to eight feet in height.
Marion County's zoning code exempts fences from the minimum yard-setback requirements, so a conforming fence needs no land-use permit. Under Oregon's building code a structural building permit is required only for fences over 7 feet tall.
MCC 17.136.100(B)
Minimum Setbacks: ... the following setback requirements shall be implemented for all new structures other than farm-exempt buildings, signs and fences.
Marion County sets no boundary-fence cost-sharing rule. Oregon's statewide partition-fence law (ORS 96.010) governs: a neighbor who encloses their land against your line fence must pay half the value of the shared portion.
ORS 96.010
Whenever there is a fence that is in all respects such as a good husbandman ought to keep on the line of any land, and the person owning or holding a lease ... of the land adjoining thereto makes or has an enclosure on the opposite side of such fence ... the latter shall pay the owner of such fence already erected, one-half of the value of so much thereof as serves as a partition fence.
Marion County's zoning code regulates 'walls' under the same height limits as fences (MCC 17.117.080). A structural retaining wall over 4 feet high generally requires a building permit under Oregon's building code.
Along a public right-of-way, Marion County measures fence height from the sidewalk, or the curb, or the finished shoulder grade if neither exists. All other fences are measured from the finished grade where they sit (MCC 17.117.090).
MCC 17.117.090
All fences, walls and hedges along a public right-of-way will be measured from and along the sidewalk, or if no sidewalk exists, from and along the curb, or if no curb exists, from and along the finished shoulder grade of the right-of-way. All other fences will be measured from and along the finished grade upon which the fence, wall or hedge is located.
Marion County bans fence and wall materials that can cause bodily harm, including barbed wire, electric wire, broken glass, and spikes, with an exception for stock or wildlife fences (MCC 17.117.100).
MCC 17.117.100
Fences and walls shall not be constructed of or contain any material which will do bodily harm, such as barbed wire, electric wires, (other than stock or wildlife fences), broken glass, spikes, and any other hazardous or dangerous material.
Marion County allows any ordinary fencing material, wood, vinyl, chain link, masonry, so long as it is not hazardous. Barbed and electric wire are permitted only as stock or wildlife fences on farmland (MCC 17.117.100).
MCC 17.117.100
Fences and walls shall not be constructed of or contain any material which will do bodily harm, such as barbed wire, electric wires, (other than stock or wildlife fences), broken glass, spikes, and any other hazardous or dangerous material.
1 cities in Marion County have their own fence regulations rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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