Under California Civil Code 841 (Good Neighbor Fence Act), adjoining landowners in Alameda County share equal responsibility for reasonable costs of shared boundary fences unless one party shows the cost would be unjust.
California Civil Code Section 841, the Good Neighbor Fence Act, governs shared boundary fences in Alameda County. The law presumes that adjoining landowners share equally in the reasonable cost of construction, maintenance, or replacement of a shared fence. A property owner who intends to incur such costs must give the adjoining owner 30 days written notice describing the problem with the fence, the proposed solution, the estimated cost, the proposed cost-sharing, and the timeline. A neighbor who believes equal sharing would be unjust may rebut the presumption by showing factors such as disproportionate benefit, financial hardship, or that the fence exceeds what is reasonably necessary. Alameda County does not have additional county-level neighbor-fence rules beyond state law; disputes are civil matters typically resolved in small claims or superior court. Mediation through the county dispute resolution programs is encouraged before litigation.
Contact your local code enforcement office for specific penalty information.
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Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Alameda County.
See how other cities in Alameda County handle neighbor fence rules.
See how Sunol's neighbor fence rules rules stack up against other locations.
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