Roanoke County, VA Fence Regulations: Height Limits (2026)

Section 30-100-9, "Location and Design of Fences," states the county's baseline rule broadly: except as provided in §§ 30-92 and 30-100-8, fences may be constructed in any location, on any lot, meaning Roanoke County does not set a general side- or rear-yard fence height limit. The one numeric limit in § 30-100-9 itself applies to residential lots: fences located in front of the building line are capped at four feet in height. The building line is the point on the lot even with the front of the house, so a taller fence is permitted behind that line, along the sides and rear of a residential lot, without a county cap under this section.

The cross-referenced § 30-100-8 sight triangle rule cuts back into that permissiveness on corner lots: at the intersection of any two public street rights-of-way, a clear sight triangle with 20-foot legs measured from the point of intersection must stay clear of anything over three feet in height, including fences, walls and plantings, though obstructions installed before the ordinance's effective date do not have to be removed. Fences are also listed in § 30-100-2(C)1 among the structures that may be located anywhere within a required yard setback, provided the sight-triangle rule is honored, meaning a fence does not have to observe a district's front, side or rear building setback the way a house or accessory structure does.