Merced County, CA Fence Regulations: Neighbor Fence Rules (2026)

The unincorporated county's fence ordinance (Chapter 18.34) addresses height, materials, sight-distance, and corner-lot placement, but it does not state who pays for a shared boundary fence or how disputes between neighbors are resolved. Those private cost and maintenance questions fall under California Civil Code Section 841, the Good Neighbor Fence Act of 2013. Section 841 presumes that adjoining landowners share an equal benefit from a fence dividing their properties and, unless they agree otherwise in writing, are equally responsible for the reasonable costs of construction, maintenance, or necessary replacement. A landowner intending to incur such costs must give each affected adjoining landowner 30 days' prior written notice describing the problem, the proposed solution, the estimated cost, and how the cost is to be shared. The equal-responsibility presumption can be overcome by a preponderance of evidence showing equal cost-sharing would be unjust, considering factors such as whether the fence benefits only one owner. Property owners should also confirm the exact boundary line, since a fence built off the line does not change legal ownership, and county zoning height and sight-distance rules still apply to any boundary fence regardless of who pays for it.