Westminster, CA Fence Regulations: Neighbor Fence Rules (2026)

Disputes over fences between neighbors in the incorporated City of Westminster split into two issues. The physical fence — its height, location and materials — is governed by Westminster Municipal Code Section 17.300.030, which caps most fences at six feet and dictates that on an interior property line height is measured from the higher of the two abutting grades; if the wall is within five feet of a public right-of-way, it is measured from the right-of-way grade. The financial side — who pays to build, maintain or replace a fence on a shared boundary — is not set by a Westminster ordinance but by California Civil Code Section 841, the Good Neighbor Fence Law. Under Section 841, adjoining landowners are presumed to share equally in the reasonable costs of constructing, maintaining and replacing a boundary fence, and a landowner who intends to incur such costs must give 30 days' prior written notice to each affected neighbor describing the work, the estimated cost, and the presumption of equal responsibility. That presumption can be overcome if a court finds equal cost-sharing would be unjust given the relative benefit and financial hardship. Westminster's role is limited to enforcing the zoning standards; cost disputes are civil matters resolved between neighbors or in court, not by city code enforcement.