Fence Regulations in Tennessee (2026)

Chattanooga caps fences, hedges, and other obstructions at 3 feet for 25 feet back from the curb at every street…

Franklin's 2026 Zoning Ordinance caps side and rear yard fences at 7 feet for residential lots, 8 feet for…

In unincorporated Hamilton County, fences and walls on corner lots may rise no higher than six feet, and no fence, wall…

Hendersonville, Tennessee caps front-yard fences at 4 feet unless built with approved materials, corner-side fences at…

Knox County does not require ordinary residential fences, but its Zoning Ordinance mandates opaque screening fences in…

Knoxville caps fences and walls at 42 inches within five feet of the front building line to the front lot line and in…

In Memphis's Central Business Improvement District, fences and walls taller than four feet cannot be built within 30…

Murfreesboro caps fences, walls and other objects at 30 inches inside a corner or driveway sight triangle, and…

In unincorporated Rutherford County, residential fences may not exceed 8 feet in side and rear yards. Front-yard fences…

In unincorporated Shelby County the Memphis and Shelby County Unified Development Code caps front-yard fences at four…

Sullivan County allows privacy walls and fences up to 8 feet tall, measured from finish grade, in any yard, but corner…

Sumner County caps residential fences at 8 feet in side, rear, and even transparent front yards, while commercial and…

Nashville allows privacy fences up to 6 feet in side and rear yards and up to 8 feet on the side or rear of the…

Franklin's 2026 zoning ordinance says a fence or wall may need a building permit depending on its height, administered…

Hendersonville requires a Zoning Permit before building or replacing a fence in any front or corner side yard of a…

Knox County's Zoning Ordinance requires a written building permit from Code Administration and Inspections before…

Knoxville caps privacy fences and walls at 42 inches within five feet of the front building line and in corner side…

In unincorporated Shelby County fences must comply with the Unified Development Code and are reviewed by the Division…

Unincorporated Williamson County treats a fence as a regulated structure: Section 8.01(B) of the Zoning Ordinance bars…

Chattanooga's zoning code permits fences and walls right up to the lot line and defers height, materials, and…

Nashville does not currently require building permits for fence construction. Fences must comply with zoning height and…

Tennessee's partition fence statute requires adjoining landowners using land for crops or livestock to share fence…

The Unified Development Code sets fence heights and materials but not private cost-sharing; in unincorporated Shelby…

In Hendersonville, Tennessee, the property owner and their contractor, not the city, are responsible for confirming a…

Nashville's Metro Code has no minimum setback requirement from a neighboring property line for fences. There is no…

Chattanooga sets no blanket retaining-wall height cap in its zoning code, but walls tied to fill and slope work near…

Franklin caps residential retaining walls at 2 feet in front yards and 6 feet in side and rear yards, with taller or…

Hendersonville regulates retaining walls through Zoning Ordinance Section 10.4.21. A wall over five feet tall must sit…

Knoxville permits retaining walls within utility and drainage easements only at the owner's risk and with City…

Metro Nashville requires retaining walls that stabilize graded slopes on multifamily hillside development to be…

Retaining walls are allowed within required yards in all Rutherford County zoning districts as a permitted obstruction…

Any retaining wall over 4 feet tall in unincorporated Sumner County needs engineered plans sealed by a Tennessee…

Williamson County sets a minimum five-foot setback, or the wall's full height if greater, for any retaining wall on…

Retaining walls in Memphis and unincorporated Shelby County are carved out of the Unified Development Code's fence and…

Clarksville has no chapter devoted to retaining walls. The zoning ordinance exempts them from the corner sight-triangle…

The Memphis and Shelby County Unified Development Code exempts retaining walls from the fence height and setback…

Murfreesboro outlaws barbed wire fences citywide, declaring them public nuisances that owners must remove within five…

Franklin prohibits chain-link fencing citywide except in the LI and HI industrial districts, and allows wire or…

Knoxville bans barbed-wire or spiked fences near sidewalks unless the barbs sit seven feet up, and prohibits…

Within Memphis's Central Business Improvement District, no fence may be built with razor wire, ribbon wire, concertina…

Sumner County bans barbed wire, razor wire, and electrified fencing on residential property, along with flammable…

In Chattanooga's Downtown Form-Based Code zones, fences must be wrought iron, composite, or aluminum, wood only away…

Clarksville bans barbed wire outright on residential property and requires five feet of clearance on commercial lots…

Hendersonville's Zoning Ordinance does not let a fence be built from just anything. Section 10.4.11.5 lists the only…

Metro Nashville limits fences to specific materials, chain link, wrought iron, wood/vinyl/metal slats, masonry, treated…

In unincorporated Rutherford County, the Zoning Ordinance bans barbed wire, razor wire, concertina wire and electrified…

The Unified Development Code requires fences in unincorporated Shelby County to use high-quality materials such as…