Title: Fence on Property Line: Permits, Setbacks, and Neighbors | FOUND Description: A fence on the property line in North Carolina: the local permit and height rules, a survey before you build, a fence off the line, livestock law, and covenants. Canonical: https://lotsfound.com/insights/fence-on-property-line/ # Fences on the property line: permits, setbacks, and neighbors A fence near a property line answers to three sets of rules: the town's zoning ordinance, the recorded covenants, and the line itself. A survey shows where the line runs before the posts go in. The state's old division fence article is repealed, so neighbors settle a shared fence by agreement. [Order a parcel brief](/services/parcel-brief/) In this article 1. [What rules apply to a fence near the line](#what-rules-apply-to-a-fence-near-the-line) 2. [The local permit: one city's rule](#the-local-permit-one-citys-rule) 3. [Height and setback rules](#height-and-setback-rules) 4. [Survey before you build](#survey-before-you-build) 5. [A fence off the line](#a-fence-off-the-line) 6. [Livestock fences and Chapter 68](#livestock-fences-and-chapter-68) 7. [Covenants and owners associations](#covenants-and-owners-associations) 8. [Key recap](#key-recap) 9. [Questions](#questions) 10. [References](#references) > **Quick summary:** This guide covers a fence on or near a property line in North Carolina: the local permit, height, and setback rules, a survey before you build, a fence that sits off the line, livestock law, and covenants. It is for owners who plan a fence and buyers who find one at the edge of a lot. The key takeaway: the town sets where and how tall, the covenants can add limits, and only a survey shows which side of the line the fence is on. ## What rules apply to a fence near the line A fence near a property line answers to the town's zoning ordinance, any recorded covenants, and the line itself. Each town writes its own fence rules into its development ordinance, so the answer changes at the town limit. Three questions come before you set a post: - **Permit.** Does the town require a zoning permit for the fence? - **Placement and height.** How tall may the fence be in each setback, and what may it not cross? - **The line.** Where does the property line run on the ground? The first two come from the ordinance and the covenants. The third comes from a licensed land surveyor. ## The local permit: one city's rule Many towns require a zoning permit for a fence, and the trigger is local. The [City of Raleigh's fence permit page](https://raleighnc.gov/permits/services/fences) states that a zoning permit is required when a fence is installed on any property. Raleigh requires permits before you add or move a fence, or replace 50 percent or more of an existing fence at a residential property. A smaller repair can still need a permit. Raleigh requires one even under 50 percent if the material, the height, or the location changes. The application asks for a diagram or picture of the fence and a site plan that shows the proposed work. A commercial fence over 6 feet in height may also need a building permit. Other towns set other triggers. Ask the planning or zoning office before you order materials. ## Height and setback rules A fence can usually sit inside a setback, but the ordinance limits its height there. [Raleigh's walls and fences section](https://udo.raleighnc.gov/sec-728-walls-and-fences) sets these standards outside a protective yard or required screening area: | Location | Raleigh's limit | |---|---| | Front or side street setback | Not more than 6 and one half feet, with opacity above 4 feet not over 50 percent (except in an IH district) | | Side or rear setback | Not more than 8 feet, or 6 and one half feet when adjacent to a street | | Front or side street setback, chain-link | Not allowed (except in an IH district) | | Within 20 feet of a thoroughfare right-of-way | Under 42 inches, or set back at least 15 feet and screened with evergreen plants | The same section bars some locations outright. No wall or fence may stand in a tree conservation area. None may stand in a City of Raleigh utility easement without written approval of the Public Utilities Director, or in a required drainage easement without written approval of the Engineering Services Director. A continuous fence plane may not run more than 100 feet without a break. These numbers are Raleigh's. Your town's ordinance sets its own. For how setbacks work on a lot, see [Setback requirements: what they are and how to find them](/insights/setback-requirements/). > **Watch for:** Easements. Raleigh bars a fence in a City utility easement or a required drainage easement without written approval. The plat and the deed show recorded easements, and a survey locates them on the ground. ## Survey before you build A survey shows where the line runs before the first post goes in. A county GIS map is not a survey, and an old fence is not the line. Under the surveying rule, [21 N.C. Admin. Code 56 .1602](http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2021%20-%20occupational%20licensing%20boards%20and%20commissions/chapter%2056%20-%20engineers%20and%20surveyors/21%20ncac%2056%20.1602.pdf), a licensed surveyor places metal stakes or comparable markers at all corners. The surveyor investigates each line for encroachments, gaps, and lappages, and locates any visible encroachment or easement. The rule also covers a corner that falls on a fence post. In that case the surveyor places one or more monuments in the boundary so the point can be found on the ground and the map. Ask the surveyor to flag the line where the fence will run. See [How to find property lines](/insights/how-to-find-property-lines/). > **Take action:** Before you set posts or buy a lot with a fence at its edge, pull the deed, the recorded plat, any survey, and the recorded covenants. Start with [One parcel. Everything the record says, in order.](/services/parcel-brief/) ## A fence off the line A fence that sits off the line does not move the line. A fence on the neighbor's side of the line is an encroachment. See [Encroachment: when a fence, drive, or building crosses the line](/insights/encroachment/). Time can change the answer. A fence that has stood for years may support a possession claim under North Carolina's possession statutes. See [Adverse possession in North Carolina](/insights/adverse-possession-north-carolina/). Neighbors who agree on where the line runs can record that agreement with a surveyed plat. See [Boundary line agreements between neighbors](/insights/boundary-line-agreement/). A North Carolina real estate attorney answers which path fits your facts. ## Livestock fences and Chapter 68 North Carolina's fence statute is now a livestock statute. [Chapter 68 of the General Statutes](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByChapter/Chapter_68.html), "Fences and Stock Law," shows Article 1 (lawful fences) and Article 2 (division fences) as repealed by session laws of 1969 and 1971. The chapter now has no article on division fences between neighbors. What remains is the livestock law in Article 3: - **Running at large.** Allowing livestock to run at large is a Class 3 misdemeanor under [N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-16](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-16.html). - **What counts as livestock.** [N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-15](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-15.html) includes equine animals, bovine animals, sheep, goats, llamas, and swine, without limit to those. - **Impounding.** Under [N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-17](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-17.html), any person may take up and impound livestock running at large, and may recover reasonable costs and damages from the owner. The duty falls on the owner of the animals to keep them in. A farm lease or a written agreement between neighbors can say who builds and maintains a shared fence. A North Carolina real estate attorney drafts it. ## Covenants and owners associations Recorded covenants can limit a fence more than the zoning does. A declaration can set height, material, color, and location, or require design review before you build. A covenant binds later owners, and a zoning permit answers only the town's rules. Read the declaration and the plat notes at the register of deeds before you build. See [Restrictive covenants: what they are and how to find them](/insights/restrictive-covenants/). ## Key recap - A fence near the line answers to the zoning ordinance, the recorded covenants, and the line itself. - Raleigh, as one example, requires a zoning permit for a fence on any property and limits height by setback. - A licensed surveyor sets markers at all corners and locates visible encroachments and easements. - A fence off the line does not move the line. Encroachment, possession, and boundary line agreements decide what follows. - Chapter 68's division fence article is repealed. Its livestock law makes letting livestock run at large a Class 3 misdemeanor. ## Questions ### Do I need a permit to build a fence in North Carolina? It depends on the town. Raleigh requires a zoning permit when a fence is installed on any property. Other towns set their own triggers, so ask the planning or zoning office first. ### Can I build a fence right on the property line? The town ordinance and the covenants decide where a fence may stand, and a survey shows where the line is. A fence that lands on the neighbor's side is an encroachment. A North Carolina real estate attorney answers what an agreement with the neighbor should say. ### Does my neighbor have to pay for half the fence? North Carolina's division fence article in Chapter 68 is repealed, and the chapter now has no article on division fences. Neighbors can agree in writing on who builds and maintains a shared fence. An attorney drafts the agreement. ### Who has to fence in livestock in North Carolina? The owner of the animals. Allowing livestock to run at large is a Class 3 misdemeanor under § 68-16, and a person who takes up livestock at large may recover costs and damages from the owner under § 68-17. ## References Primary sources cited on this page, in APA style. - 21 N.C. Admin. Code 56 .1602 (2026). [http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2021%20-%20occupational%20licensing%20boards%20and%20commissions/chapter%2056%20-%20engineers%20and%20surveyors/21%20ncac%2056%20.1602.pdf](http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2021%20-%20occupational%20licensing%20boards%20and%20commissions/chapter%2056%20-%20engineers%20and%20surveyors/21%20ncac%2056%20.1602.pdf) - City of Raleigh. (2026, July 14). *Fences*. City of Raleigh permits. [https://raleighnc.gov/permits/services/fences](https://raleighnc.gov/permits/services/fences) - City of Raleigh. (n.d.). *Sec. 7.2.8. Walls and fences*. Raleigh Unified Development Ordinance. Retrieved October 3, 2026, from [https://udo.raleighnc.gov/sec-728-walls-and-fences](https://udo.raleighnc.gov/sec-728-walls-and-fences) - N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-15 (2025). [https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-15.html](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-15.html) - N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-16 (2025). [https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-16.html](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-16.html) - N.C. Gen. Stat. § 68-17 (2025). [https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-17.html](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_68/GS_68-17.html) - N.C. Gen. Stat. ch. 68 (2025). [https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByChapter/Chapter_68.html](https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/ByChapter/Chapter_68.html) ## Buying land: records, survey, and title - [One parcel. Everything the record says, in order.](/services/parcel-brief/) - [Start with the right parcel](/what-we-check/parcels-and-boundaries/) - [Every search starts at the county tax office](/insights/county-records-first/) - [A land due diligence checklist for North Carolina](/insights/land-due-diligence-checklist/) - [ALTA survey vs boundary survey: what each one shows](/insights/alta-survey/) - [Plat map: what it is and how to read one](/insights/plat-map/) - [How to find property lines](/insights/how-to-find-property-lines/) - [Land survey cost: what drives the price](/insights/land-survey-cost/) - [How to find the owner of a property](/insights/find-owner-of-property/) - [Title search for land: what it finds and who does it](/insights/title-search-for-land/) - [Acreage that holds up after the survey](/services/land-and-acreage/) - [How to buy land](/insights/how-to-buy-land/) - [Land loans: how financing raw land works](/insights/land-loan/) - [Metes and bounds: how to read a land description](/insights/metes-and-bounds/) - [Topographic survey: what it shows and when you need one](/insights/topographic-survey/) - [What is a parcel number, and how do you find one](/insights/what-is-a-parcel-number/) - [Restrictive covenants: what they are and how to find them](/insights/restrictive-covenants/) - [Easement by necessity: access for landlocked land](/insights/easement-by-necessity/) - [Prescriptive easement: how long use becomes a right](/insights/prescriptive-easement/) - [Warranty deed vs quitclaim deed: what each one conveys](/insights/warranty-deed-vs-quitclaim-deed/) - [Adverse possession in North Carolina](/insights/adverse-possession-north-carolina/) - [How to read a land survey](/insights/how-to-read-a-land-survey/) - [Right-of-way vs easement: what the difference means for land](/insights/right-of-way-vs-easement/) - [Private road maintenance agreements: who pays for the road](/insights/private-road-maintenance-agreement/) - [Encroachment: when a fence, drive, or building crosses the line](/insights/encroachment/) - [Lis pendens: what a notice of a pending lawsuit does to land](/insights/lis-pendens/) - [Deed of trust: how a loan is secured by land in North Carolina](/insights/deed-of-trust/) - [Tenancy in common: owning land with other people](/insights/tenancy-in-common/) - [Quiet title action: how a court settles who owns land](/insights/quiet-title-action/) - [Chain of title: how ownership passes from deed to deed](/insights/chain-of-title/) - [Boundary line agreements between neighbors](/insights/boundary-line-agreement/) - [Selling land under a power of attorney in North Carolina](/insights/power-of-attorney-real-estate/) - [Boundary disputes in North Carolina: how a line gets settled](/insights/boundary-dispute-north-carolina/) - [Shared driveway agreements: access, upkeep, and recording](/insights/shared-driveway-agreement/) - [Trees on the property line: who owns them and who answers](/insights/tree-on-property-line/) Send the requirements. We reply with how we would run the search. [Order a parcel brief](/services/parcel-brief/) ## Tell us what the project needs Load, acreage, counties, and timeline. We reply with how we would run the search and where we would start. [Start a site search](/contact/) [Try the calculators](/tools/) Transactions are handled through a licensed North Carolina real estate brokerage.