Washington County, OR Fence Regulations: Height Limits (2026)

Section 419-3 of the Community Development Code sets the county's baseline fence height at 7 feet: a fence, lattice work, screen or wall not more than 7 feet in height may be located in any required side, front or rear yard, except where the corner-vision rule in Section 418-3 applies. That 7-foot cap increases to 8 feet specifically where the yard abuts an arterial street or a limited-access highway, recognizing the added noise and privacy pressure those properties face. The corner-vision exception in Section 418-3 requires a 20-foot sight triangle measured from the street corner along each street side, within which no fence, wall, berm, vegetation or structure between 3 and 10 feet above street grade is allowed, so a fence that would otherwise be legal at 7 feet must drop to 3 feet inside that triangle.

2 layers on a driveway clear-vision rule for residential lots: no sight-obscuring fence over 3 feet is allowed within a 15-by-15-foot square measured from the property line, sidewalk or travel easement closest to the fence. Section 419-6 clarifies there is no height limit on hedges or other vegetation except within these same vision-clearance areas. These height rules apply only within unincorporated Washington County; Hillsboro, Beaverton, Tigard and the county's other incorporated cities set their own fence standards.