Fence laws in Phoenix, Arizona
What the Phoenix municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Phoenix sets no rule of its own, the Arizona rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Phoenix, Arizona, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- A Phoenix fence may generally sit anywhere on the lot, with its position deciding how tall it may be rather than whether it is allowed. The figure is 10 feet, for setback beside a key lot on a corner.
- How tall
- Phoenix states its front yard limit in inches rather than feet, and the answer turns on the yard, the street the lot faces, and what lies on the other side. The figure is 40 inches, for fence in a required front yard setback.
- Permits
- Phoenix sets two thresholds rather than one, and the answer turns on how tall the fence is and whether a retaining wall carries a surcharge. The figure is 3 feet, for height at or below which no permit is needed.
- Pool barriers
- Arizona writes its pool fence rule straight into state law instead of leaving it to a code. The figure is 5 feet, for minimum height of the wall, fence or barrier enclosing a pool, measured on the outside face.
- Spite fences
- Phoenix has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Phoenix writes one of the most specific measuring rules in the country. The figure is 50 feet, for distance the adjacent grade is averaged over.
- Corner lots
- The Phoenix visibility rule is not in the zoning ordinance at all. The figure is 3 feet, for tallest obstruction allowed at a public street intersection.
- Retaining walls
- Phoenix treats a fence sitting on a retaining wall as one engineered thing rather than two separate ones. The figure is 3 feet, for distance from the uphill side that a fence counts as a surcharge.
- Materials
- Phoenix bans a short list of materials, and the ban is written around what can be seen rather than around where the fence stands.
- Livestock
- Arizona says exactly how to build a lawful fence. The figure is 50 inches, for height of the top wire on a lawful fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Phoenix?
Compare fences on the property line across all 50 states
Phoenix answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A Phoenix fence may generally sit anywhere on the lot, with its position deciding how tall it may be rather than whether it is allowed. One placement rule is specific and unusual. On a corner lot next to a key lot, meaning the lot whose side yard faces the corner lot street frontage, the fence on the street side has to be set back at least ten feet where it adjoins the key lot, and it has to keep that setback for twenty feet along the street. The other constraint is the utility easement, and the city describes it as a sequence rather than a rule: get a written list from Blue Stake of the utilities present, ask each one in writing whether a fence may go in, and give the city every written approval before a permit will issue. Without the Blue Stake list in writing the city requires a submission from every utility, present or not.
The fence on the street side of a corner lot adjacent to a key lot must be set back, where it adjoins the key lot, a minimum of 10 feet for a distance of 20 feet along the street (see figure 2).
10 ftsetback beside a key lot on a corner
Also on fences on the property line in Phoenix
- no rule, documents checkedArizona has no law splitting the cost of a fence on a boundary between neighbors. Arizona is an open range state, so the fence law in Title 3 is about keeping livestock out and about what is owed when animals break through. Title 33, the property title, has no fence chapter at all. Two neighbors settle the cost themselves, or a city rule covers it. A.R.S. Title 3Arizona · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Phoenix?
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Phoenix answers this, but the answer changes depending on the yard, the street the lot faces, and what lies on the other side.
Phoenix states its front yard limit in inches rather than feet. A fence in a required front yard setback stops at forty inches, and inside a Historical Preservation Overlay District it stops at three feet and needs a certificate of appropriateness or no effect. A fence in or bounding a rear or side yard reaches six feet. Three things go higher. A fence up to fifty four inches may stand in a front yard along an arterial street with a use permit. A residential development subdivided after 2 May 2008 that shares a property line with undeveloped land zoned for non-residential use has to build an eight foot solid fence or wall on that line. And where a property line abuts a freeway right of way, a noise mitigation wall may exceed the limits if the area has an approved Freeway Mitigation Specific Plan or a noise analysis shows the height is needed to bring outdoor living areas down to sixty five decibels.
Fences located within or bounding a rear or side yard are permitted at a height not to exceed six (6) feet
The answer turns on the yard, the street the lot faces, and what lies on the other side.
- a required front yard setback
- Forty inches. 40 in
- a front yard in a historic preservation overlay
- Three feet, with a certificate of appropriateness or no effect. 3 ft
- a rear or side yard
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a boundary with undeveloped non-residential land, in a subdivision after 2 May 2008
- An eight foot solid fence or wall, required rather than allowed. 8 ft
Also on fence height in Phoenix
- no rule, documents checkedArizona sets no limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. City, town or county zoning sets it, and there is no statewide building code behind that. State law has two fence heights and neither is a cap: the five foot pool fence in Title 36, which is about pool safety, and the six foot line in A.R.S. 11-861(G)(2), which only marks when a fence counts as a side structure for a county fire code rule. A.R.S. Title 3Arizona · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Phoenix?
Compare permits across all 50 states
Phoenix answers this, but the answer changes depending on how tall the fence is and whether a retaining wall carries a surcharge.
Phoenix sets two thresholds rather than one. No building permit is required for a fence of three feet or less, measured from final grade to the uppermost part, or for a retaining wall of three feet or less measured from the top of the footing, unless that wall carries a surcharge or impounds Class I, II or III-A liquids. Above three feet and up to seven, a fence needs a building permit that demonstrates compliance with the zoning ordinance and with the city drainage requirements, and nothing more: structural design calculations are not required at or below seven feet. Above seven feet a fence needs structural calculations and details. The guideline also defines the word fence broadly, covering wood, metal, masonry and concrete fences, walls, screen walls, decorative walls, landscape walls, view walls and sound walls, but treating a similar structure that supports signage as a sign structure needing two permits instead.
Fences not over three (3) feet in height (as measured from final grade to uppermost part of fence), and retaining walls that are not over three (3) feet in height measured from the top of the footing to the top of the wall, unless supporting a surcharge or impounding Class I, II or III-A liquids.
Building Construction Code Administrative Provisions 105.2.2
The answer turns on how tall the fence is and whether a retaining wall carries a surcharge.
- a fence three feet or less
- No building permit. 3 ft
- a fence over three feet and up to seven
- A building permit for zoning and drainage compliance only. 7 ft
- a fence over seven feet
- Structural design calculations and details.
Also on permits in Phoenix
- set in state lawArizona has no statewide building code and gives the job to the counties. In a county that has zoning, the board of supervisors may adopt and enforce a building code for the zoned areas outside any city, and may leave out areas zoned rural or unclassified. The code has to be adopted by reference after notice and hearings before the county planning and zoning commission and the board. The choice is limited too: a building, electrical, plumbing or mechanical code from a national code group, or the one the largest city in the county already uses. A.R.S. § 11-861(A)Arizona · Statute
- set in state lawCities and towns get the same power under a separate law. An Arizona city may adopt an existing code by reference without printing the code itself, as long as the ordinance doing it is published in full. At least three paper copies, or one paper and one electronic copy, stay on file with the city clerk for anyone to look at. So the fence permit rule in Arizona is whichever code the city or town picked. A.R.S. § 9-802Arizona · Statute
- set in state lawArizona law puts a number on an ordinary fence in exactly one place, and it is in the same county statute. A county fire code cannot make a small side building or structure put in fire sprinklers by way of a fire truck access road rule. The list of what counts as one of those side structures names a fence more than six feet high, next to barns, carports, sheds and walls that hold back earth. Six feet is not a cap on fence height. It is the line above which a fence counts as a structure for that one fire code rule. A.R.S. § 11-861(G)(2)Arizona · Statute
Pool fence requirements in Phoenix
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Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona writes its pool fence rule straight into state law instead of leaving it to a code. A pool or other held body of water at least eighteen inches deep and wider than eight feet gets a fence at least five feet high, measured on the outside face of the wall, fence or barrier. Gates close and latch by themselves, the latch sits at least fifty four inches above the ground, and the gate opens away from the pool.
This one is Arizona law, not Phoenix law. All Arizona findings
Be entirely enclosed by at least a five foot wall, fence or other barrier as measured on the exterior side of the wall, fence or barrier.
5 ftminimum height of the wall, fence or barrier enclosing a pool, measured on the outside face
Spite fence laws in Phoenix
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Phoenix law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Arizona has no spite fence law. The fence sections in Title 3 are about livestock and no fence districts, and Title 33 has no fence rules in it. Neither one sets a height that turns a fence into a nuisance, and neither one says anything about a fence put up to annoy a neighbor.
This one is Arizona law, not Phoenix law. All Arizona findings
Documents read before writing that:
- A.R.S. Title 3Arizona State Legislature
- A.R.S. Title 33Arizona State Legislature
How fence height is measured in Phoenix
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Phoenix answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Phoenix writes one of the most specific measuring rules in the country. A fence or freestanding wall is read from the higher of the two adjacent finished grade elevations, so on a slope the taller side governs rather than the owner side or an average of the two. Then it defines that grade as an average in its own right, measured perpendicular to the fence within fifty feet of it, which stops a single high or low spot from setting the answer for the whole run. Separately the city warns that the required front yard setback is measured from the property line and not from the paved part of the right of way, because in residential districts the right of way often extends past the sidewalk over ground the owner mows and treats as their own.
The height of a fence or freestanding wall shall be measured from the higher of the adjacent finished grade elevations, which elevation shall be the average measured perpendicular within fifty feet of the fence (see figure 3).
50 ftdistance the adjacent grade is averaged over
Also on how height is measured in Phoenix
- set in state lawArizona names a starting point in the one place it gives fence sizes. Section 3-1426 describes a lawful fence on open range and puts the top barbed wire fifty inches above the ground, with the other wires spaced down from it. The ground is the starting point and the law says so. That rule is there to turn livestock, not to size a fence at a house. Section 9-462.01 lets a city set the height of structures, so a fence at a house is a city matter and the city picks the surface to measure from. A.R.S. 3-1426(A)Arizona · Statute
Fence rules for corner lots in Phoenix
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Phoenix answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The Phoenix visibility rule is not in the zoning ordinance at all. It sits at Section 31-13 of the Phoenix City Code, which is the streets title, and the Street Transportation Department administers it. What the zoning handout states is the effect: a fence must not violate the visibility triangle at a street intersection or at a driveway, and at a public street intersection nothing may obstruct above three feet. So a driveway is protected on the same terms as a corner. The permit guideline repeats the same figure from the building side, saying zoning and traffic visibility requirements in most cases limit a fence to three feet in required front yards and in the visibility triangles at driveways and street intersections.
A fence must not violate the visibility triangle at street intersections or driveways. At public street intersections, there can be no obstruction higher than three feet.
Phoenix City Code Section 31-13, as stated in the Zoning Division handout
3 fttallest obstruction allowed at a public street intersection
Also on corner visibility in Phoenix
- set in state lawArizona sets no clear view rule at a corner on a private lot. What Title 28, Chapter 20 does is make it a petty offense to place or keep anything blocking a public highway. Section 28-7053 covers a structure or object of any kind placed in, under or over part of the road, which is wide enough to catch a fence. Section 28-7054 sets the notice and removal steps. The rule stops at the edge of the public road. Height and setback on the lot behind it come from city and county zoning under sections 9-462.01 and 11-812. A.R.S. 28-7053Arizona · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Phoenix
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Phoenix answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Phoenix treats a fence sitting on a retaining wall as one engineered thing rather than two separate ones. Any combination of retaining wall and fence needs structural design calculations and details, whatever its location and whatever the overall height comes to, and a combination over nine feet needs zoning approval before the permit can issue. The permit threshold for the wall alone follows the load rather than the height: a retaining wall of three feet or less needs no permit if it carries no surcharge, but does need one if it is burdened by a house, a building, a road, a swimming pool, or a fence standing on the wall or within three feet measured horizontally from its uphill side. Every retaining wall has to be shown by location and height on the grading and drainage plans.
Combinations of retaining walls and fences require structural design calculations and details for construction, complying with appropriate code requirements, regardless of their location and overall height.
Construction Guideline and retaining wall permit table
3 ftdistance from the uphill side that a fence counts as a surcharge
Also on retaining walls in Phoenix
- left to the townArizona has no statewide building code, so it has no state rule for a wall that holds back earth. Section 11-861 lets a county board of supervisors adopt a building code for the parts of a zoned county outside any city. The choice is limited to a code from a national code writing group, or the code the largest city in that county already uses. The height at which a wall of that kind needs a permit comes from whichever code the county or city picked. A.R.S. § 11-861(A)Arizona · Statute
Fence materials allowed in Phoenix
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Phoenix answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Phoenix bans a short list of materials, and the ban is written around what can be seen rather than around where the fence stands. Chain link with plastic or metal slats, sheeting, non-decorative corrugated metal, and fencing made or topped with razor wire, concertina wire or barbed wire may not be used where visible from a public street or from adjacent residential areas, which leaves all of them available in an interior yard nobody can see into. The city then names what to use instead, pointing at spiked or decorative wrought iron, high walls, and barrier type landscaping as ways to get security without what it calls an adverse image to adjoining property.
fencing made or topped with razor, concertina, or barbed wire shall not be used where visible from public streets or adjacent residential areas.
Zoning Ordinance Section 507 Tab A
Also on materials in Phoenix
- set in state lawArizona describes a lawful fence by its wire. It takes solid posts no more than thirty feet apart with at least four tight barbed wires on them. A fence built some other way still counts when it is as strong and turns livestock as well. A.R.S. 3-1426Arizona · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Phoenix
Compare agricultural fencing across all 50 states
Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona says exactly how to build a lawful fence. Posts go in the ground no more than thirty feet apart. At least four barbed wires are stretched tight and tied to those posts. The top wire sits fifty inches above the ground, and the other three sit twelve, twenty two and thirty two inches below it. Posts set more than one rod apart need stays no more than seven and a half feet from each other. Any other fence just as strong and just as good at turning livestock counts too.
This one is Arizona law, not Phoenix law. All Arizona findings
A fence shall be deemed a lawful fence when it is constructed and maintained with good and substantial posts firmly placed in the ground at intervals of not more than thirty feet, upon which posts are strung and fastened at least four barbed wires of the usual type tightly stretched and secured to the posts and spaced so that the top wire is fifty inches above the ground
50 inheight of the top wire on a lawful fence
Also on agricultural fencing in Phoenix
- set in state lawArizona is a fence out state. The landowner who wants animals kept off builds the fence, not the animal owner, and nothing is owed for a trespassing animal unless the land was already ringed by a lawful fence. A no fence district is the exception. Inside one, Section 3-1424 makes the person in charge of the livestock pay the damage and guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor for letting them run loose. A.R.S. 3-1427Arizona · Statute
Documents behind this page
10 documents, of which 2 were published by Phoenix itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Agriculture, full title listing
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 33, Property, full title listing
- City of Phoenix, Planning and Development Department, Zoning DivisionResidential Fences, setting out Zoning Ordinance Section 703.A
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 11, Chapter 6, Section 11-861, Adoption of codes by reference
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 9, Chapter 6, Section 9-802, Procedure for adoption by reference
- City of Phoenix, Planning and Development DepartmentRequired Permits for Fences and Retaining Walls, technical guideline on Phoenix Building Construction Code Administrative Provisions 105.2.2
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 36, Chapter 15, Article 5, Section 36-1681, Pools; enclosures; safety features
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Section 3-1426, Lawful fence defined
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 28, Chapter 20, Section 28-7053, Misuse of public highway or airport; violation; classification; injunction; definition
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Chapter 11, Article 4
What this page does not cover
A city ordinance is not the only rule that reaches a fence. The zoning district a parcel sits in can change the height allowed on it, and so can an overlay district, a recorded easement, a fire hazard severity zone or a coastal zone. A homeowner association can be stricter than the city and nothing in the municipal code will say so. None of those appear here.
The rules above are the ones Phoenix publishes, plus the Arizona rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Arizona has the state layer in full.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, ordinances are amended, and the date beside each finding is the date the document was read. How findings are made · What the terms mean