Fence Regulations in North Carolina (2026)

Apex's Unified Development Ordinance caps freestanding fences and walls at 7 feet, holds front-yard fences to 48…

Asheville caps fences and walls in a required front setback at 6 feet and those in a side or rear setback at 8 feet…

Brunswick County, North Carolina caps fence and wall height by zoning district and yard. In the RR and R-7500…

Buncombe County's Zoning Ordinance sets no maximum height for a standard residential fence in the unincorporated…

In unincorporated Cabarrus County, rear and side yard fences cannot exceed seven feet and front yard fences are capped…

Cary caps fences and walls inside required yard setbacks at 8 feet, outside setbacks allows building-height limits…

Catawba County caps fences and walls at six feet only where they sit in a required front setback, per Sec. 44-607(1)f…

In Charlotte's Neighborhood 1/2 and MHP districts, fences top out at 5 feet in the front setback, 6 feet along the…

Cleveland County does not set a blanket residential fence-height cap; instead, Sec. 12-173(b)(2) of the Unified…

Concord caps front yard fences, including those on corner lots, at four feet, and bars any fence from standing inside…

Section 1102 C of the Cumberland County Zoning Ordinance sets core fence standards: three-foot front and seven-foot…

In unincorporated Davidson County, fences and walls in the required front setback cannot exceed five feet, and fences…

Durham's Unified Development Ordinance caps street-facing fences and walls at 4 feet in most zoning tiers (8 feet in…

Under Durham's joint City-County Unified Development Ordinance (UDO Sec. 9.9), a front-yard fence may be up to 4 feet…

Table 30-5.D.4 caps a single-family fence at four feet in the front yard and six feet along the corner side, interior…

Under the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County UDO, a residential fence six feet or under needs no building permit; anything…

In Gaston County's residential districts a fence or wall cannot exceed four feet in the front yard or eight feet in the…

On corner lots, Gastonia bans fences, shrubs or other plantings between two and ten feet tall inside a sight triangle…

Greensboro's Land Development Ordinance limits residential fences and walls to 4 feet within 15 feet of any street…

Guilford County caps residential fences at four feet from the property line up to the front setback line and eight feet…

Harnett County doesn't set one flat height cap for fences countywide, but it does regulate corner lots directly…

Residential fences in High Point top out at 4 to 6 feet within 15 feet of a street right-of-way but can reach 8 feet…

In the Town of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, no fence, wall, planting or sign may rise above three feet inside the…

Pitt County does not set a blanket fence height cap outside sight triangles, but at any road intersection it bars a…

Raleigh caps fence and wall height by where it sits on the lot. UDO Sec. 7.2.8 allows up to 6.5 feet in a front or side…

Rose Hill's zoning code does not set a blanket fence height for every yard, but § 154.041(G) bans any obstruction…

Shelby requires a secure fence or railing along any street-facing lot edge that sits more than 18 inches above or below…

In unincorporated Union County, the Unified Development Ordinance's Table 100-1 lets fences and walls stand within any…

Wilmington caps residential front-yard fences at four feet, with the board of adjustment able to approve up to six feet…

Fences and freestanding walls in unincorporated Iredell County are exempt from setback rules but capped at 8 feet…

Rowan County's zoning code does not set a blanket fence height limit for front, side or rear yards, but it does control…

Buncombe County zoning does not require a separate zoning permit for an ordinary residential fence, and the North…

The Town of Cary requires a fence permit only for fences built adjacent to a thoroughfare or collector street…

Cumberland County requires a zoning permit from the Coordinator before erecting any structure, including a fence or…

No zoning permit is required to build a standard fence or wall within Durham City or County limits. Retaining walls…

Before putting up a fence anywhere in Fayetteville, an owner must obtain an Administrative Zoning Permit from the City…

A building permit is only required for fences over six feet tall in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County. Those need…

Building a fence, wall or similar structure inside a Greensboro street right-of-way is unlawful without a written…

Guilford County's UDO regulates fence type, height and placement but does not itself require a zoning permit for an…

Before installing or replacing a fence anywhere in High Point, North Carolina, the property owner must obtain a zoning…

Raleigh does not make homeowners pull a permit for an ordinary wood, vinyl, or chain-link fence: those are governed by…

Rose Hill doesn't require a standalone permit for an ordinary residential fence, but where the zoning code requires a…

Fences and walls anywhere in unincorporated Catawba County face just one dimensional limit: a maximum height of six…

Gaston County's Unified Development Ordinance exempts fences from the zoning permit required for most structures…

Cabarrus County does not require a zoning permit to install a residential fence anywhere in the unincorporated county…

Durham's UDO exempts fences from the standard site plan review and permitting process entirely, unless the fence needs…

Pitt County's Zoning Ordinance requires a zoning permit for development generally, but Section 3(C)(2) specifically…

Fences that primarily enclose the perimeter of a lot in unincorporated Wake County are exempt from the Land Use Permit…

A fence ten feet or less may sit on the shared property line in unincorporated Buncombe County. On corner lots, no…

Cumberland County zoning limits where a solid fence may sit near shared and street lines but does not allocate cost or…

The county sets no fence setback, so you may place a fence anywhere on your own property except in easements and…

Guilford County's UDO does not set a spite-fence or shared-cost rule; those are civil matters. The county does bar…

In regulated floodways and non-encroachment areas within Craven County's special flood hazard areas, § 18-41(10)(b)…

In Kill Devil Hills' coastal high hazard V zones, a retaining wall is regulated as a flood-hazard development activity…

Rose Hill has no townwide retaining-wall height or permit ordinance; the only code language on retaining walls sits…

Alamance County doesn't set a general retaining-wall height limit, but any retaining wall placing fill inside a…

Apex requires a building permit and a licensed engineer's certification for retaining walls with more than 5 feet of…

Asheville requires retaining walls over 8 feet to be faced in stone, brick, form-liner art, or vegetation, and adds…

Buncombe County's Zoning Ordinance does not set a standalone retaining-wall height limit, but a wall that also…

Retaining walls over 30 inches tall in Cary, Wake County must include a guard or barricade, 36 inches on residential…

Charlotte caps retaining walls in a conservation residential development's required common open space at 5 feet and…

Cumberland County's zoning setback requirements do not apply to any retaining wall, so a retaining wall may be built…

Durham allows retaining walls inside required yards, but a wall supporting an 8-foot-or-greater grade change next to a…

In Durham County's mapped flood hazard areas, a retaining wall is one of two ways to satisfy the two-foot freeboard…

Fayetteville permits retaining walls at 48 inches and requires an engineer's design. UDO Section 30-5.D.10 then adds…

Where a nonresidential use in unincorporated Gaston County abuts a residential use and grading creates a two-foot or…

Greensboro's Land Development Ordinance allows retaining walls to encroach into required yard setbacks, but caps their…

Guilford County's UDO treats a retaining wall or berm under a fence as part of the fence's overall height. Fences may…

High Point's Development Ordinance counts a retaining wall or berm sitting below a fence toward that fence's maximum…

In Pitt County's regulated floodways and non-encroachment areas, a retaining wall that involves placing fill must meet…

Raleigh caps street-facing retaining walls at 10 feet unless they step back. UDO Sec. 7.2.8 limits a freestanding…

Rowan County sets no general retaining-wall height or permit rule outside flood areas, but a retaining wall, sidewalk…

A retaining wall built inside a mapped regulated floodway or nonencroachment area in unincorporated Wayne County must…

Brunswick County, North Carolina's UDO allows retaining walls up to four feet in height within required yards. That…

Nash County's Unified Development Ordinance defines a retaining wall as any masonry, metal or treated-wood structure…

The Town of Cary prohibits electrically charged fences and barbed or razor wire fencing town-wide, with narrow…

Raleigh bans barbed wire outright on any lot with a dwelling, and separately makes charged fences unlawful unless…

Asheville bans barbed wire fencing anywhere along a city street or alley outright, and confines electrified security…

Brunswick County, North Carolina bans barbed or razor wire and electrified fences in every zoning district unless they…

Concord's Development Ordinance bans barbed wire and above-ground electrified fencing in every zoning district…

Durham's UDO bans razor wire, concertina wire, barbed wire, and similar fencing in every residential district and on…

Greensboro's Land Development Ordinance bans barbed or razor wire fences, electrified fences, and flammable-material…

Guilford County bans barbed or razor wire, electrified fencing, concertina wire and flammable materials like paper…

High Point bans barbed, razor, and concertina wire on ordinary residential fences, limiting it to correctional…

Shelby prohibits erecting or maintaining barbed wire fencing on any lot that borders a city street or alley, cutting…

Apex fences must use wood, stone, brick, block, or wrought iron; plywood, sheet metal, and concrete slabs are banned…

Buncombe County lets residents use any common fence material for a standard fence. Where screening between uses is…

Charlotte limits fences and walls to a specific approved materials list, treated wood, brick, stone, wrought iron…

Cumberland County classifies a fence by openness: a 'solid' fence or wall is one whose openings pass no more than 25…

Durham's UDO exempts fence and wall posts, columns, and their lighting or ornamentation from the height limits, so…

Fayetteville's Unified Development Ordinance lists the fence materials it accepts, bans junk and barbed-wire fencing…

Gaston County bans electric fences in residential districts, except for livestock protection fencing, and treats…

Onslow County allows electric and barbed wire fencing on residential lots in the unincorporated county, but only under…

Wilmington's zoning code bans open barbed-wire and other injury-causing wire fencing below six feet in every zoning…