Fence laws in Lynwood, California
What the Lynwood municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Lynwood sets no rule of its own, the California rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Lynwood, California, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Where land in Lynwood is developed for parking next to a residential use, a masonry wall is required along the common property line, at least six feet for most of its length and stepped down to thirty six inches as it nears a public street. The figure is 200 feet, for radius of the resident census for the wall height.
- How tall
- Lynwood allows six feet along a side or rear lot line, provided the fence does not run into the required front yard or into the side yard along the street on a corner lot, and the answer turns on the district, the yard, the shape of the lot, and how close the fence is to a dwelling. The figure is 6 feet, for fence, wall or hedge on a side or rear lot line.
- Permits
- Nobody in Lynwood may erect, construct, enlarge, alter or repair a fence or wall without first getting a separate building permit for each one from the Building Official, and repair is named alongside new construction, and the answer turns on the material the fence is made of.
- Pool barriers
- Lynwood requires a pool enclosure of exactly six feet, setting it at not less than six and, except where a building wall forms part of it, not more than six. The figure is 5 inches, for widest opening allowed in a pool enclosure.
- Spite fences
- A fence over ten feet tall in California is a private nuisance when it was put up or kept there to annoy the neighbor and the extra height serves no purpose. The figure is 10 feet, for spite fence threshold, with malice required.
- Measured from what
- Lynwood measures from the natural level of the ground rather than from finished grade, and repeats that phrase for both the six foot general limit and the forty two inch front yard limit.
- Corner lots
- Lynwood builds its clear corner area by a four step construction rather than by a plain triangle. The figure is 30 feet, for distance measured back along the bisecting line at a street.
- Retaining walls
- Lynwood leaves retaining walls to Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations, the California Building Standards Code, which tracks the International Building Code and the International Residential Code.
- Materials
- The Lynwood prohibition is one sentence and it covers the whole city with no district carved out and no security exception.
- Livestock
- California calls a fence lawful when it is strong enough to keep livestock from getting in or out. The figure is 4 feet, for height of the top wire on a lawful wire fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Lynwood?
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Lynwood answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Where land in Lynwood is developed for parking next to a residential use, a masonry wall is required along the common property line, at least six feet for most of its length and stepped down to thirty six inches as it nears a public street. The height above six feet is settled in an unusual way. For a lot with more than twenty five spaces the City Manager takes a census, which may be verbal, of every adult resident reachable in one visit or one letter within two hundred feet of the applicant’s property lines, asking whether they would prefer six feet or eight. The result is expressly not determinative, and the City Manager then negotiates a written agreement with the applicant if eight feet is chosen. The wall may never exceed eight feet or fall below thirty six inches, and it may not extend into a required front or side yard setback on the residential side.
If the sketch or plan submitted to the Building Official in connection with an application for a building permit, or a site plan filed with the City Manager, provides for more than twenty-five (25) parking spaces, the City Manager or any other employee of the city designated by him shall take a census, which may be verbal, of all adult residents whom he is able to contact on one (1) visit, or by one (1) written communication, who resides within two hundred (200') feet of the property lines of applicant’s property, to determine whether they prefer a wall having a minimum height through most of its length of six (6') feet or eight (8') feet
200 ftradius of the resident census for the wall height
Also on fences on the property line in Lynwood
- set in state lawTwo neighbors split the cost of a fence on the line in California. The law starts from the idea that both get the same benefit from it, so both owe the same share of building it, keeping it up and replacing it. A neighbor about to spend that money gives the other one thirty days written notice first. Either neighbor can show the even split is wrong, and a court can then order less than half or nothing at all. Civ. Code 841California · Statute
- set in state lawThe notice has to say six things: that the law starts from an even split, what is wrong with the fence now, what is planned instead, what it is expected to cost, how the cost gets shared, and when the work happens. Civ. Code 841(b)(1)California · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Lynwood?
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Lynwood answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district, the yard, the shape of the lot, and how close the fence is to a dwelling.
Lynwood allows six feet along a side or rear lot line, provided the fence does not run into the required front yard or into the side yard along the street on a corner lot. In the residential districts the same six feet is stated as a ceiling and then cut back twice. Nothing over forty two inches may go in a front yard or in the street side yard of a corner lot, and nothing over four feet six inches may stand where the distance measured at right angles from the side of the fence to any dwelling is less than three feet. Two exceptions restore six feet along the street line of a corner lot, starting opposite the rear line of the main building, with a reversed corner lot required either to stop ten feet short of the neighbor’s line or to turn away at forty five degrees. Outside the residential districts the only stated limit is the same four feet six inches within three feet of a door or window of a ground floor residence.
No fences shall be greater than four feet six (4'6") inches in height in any area where the distance, measured at right angles, from the side of the proposed fence to any dwelling is less than three (3') feet.
The answer turns on the district, the yard, the shape of the lot, and how close the fence is to a dwelling.
- a side or rear lot line
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a front yard, or the street side yard of a corner lot
- Forty two inches. 42 in
- within three feet of a dwelling
- Four feet six inches. 3 ft
- along the street line of a corner lot, behind the rear line of the house
- Six feet. 6 ft
Also on fence height in Lynwood
- no rule, documents checkedCalifornia sets no limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. Cities and counties write that in their zoning codes and the answer changes a lot from one town to the next. The one height in state law is the ten feet in the spite fence rule, and that only matters when the fence was put up to annoy a neighbor. It is not a building limit. Civ. Code 841California · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Lynwood?
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Lynwood answers this, but the answer changes depending on the material the fence is made of.
Nobody in Lynwood may erect, construct, enlarge, alter or repair a fence or wall without first getting a separate building permit for each one from the Building Official, and repair is named alongside new construction. The city then splits the fee by material rather than by height or cost. No fee is charged for a chain link metal post fence, a wooden fence or a post and slab fence. Every other type pays the fee set in the Building Code the chapter adopts.
No person shall erect, construct, enlarge, alter or repair any fence or wall in the City, or cause this type of work to be done, without first obtaining a separate building permit for each fence or wall from the Building Official.
The answer turns on the material the fence is made of.
- any fence or wall, new or repaired
- A separate building permit from the Building Official.
- a chain link metal post, wooden, or post and slab fence
- No fee.
- any other type of fence
- The fee set in the adopted Building Code.
Also on permits in Lynwood
- set in state lawCalifornia does not write its own building code from scratch. Section 17922 adopts Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations and requires it to ask for much the same things as the International Building Code and the International Residential Code, with state additions and cuts. So the permit rule for a fence starts out as outside code text that California then edits. Health & Saf. Code 17922California · Statute
- set in state lawA California city or county can make the statewide building code stricter, but not quietly. Section 17958.7 makes the city council say in writing why each change is needed because of local weather, ground or land shape. That finding goes to the California Building Standards Commission, and the change does nothing until it is filed. The finding is a public record, which is why a local permit line can sit well below the statewide one. Health & Saf. Code 17958.7California · Statute
Pool fence requirements in Lynwood
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Lynwood answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Lynwood requires a pool enclosure of exactly six feet, setting it at not less than six and, except where a building wall forms part of it, not more than six. Openings may be no wider than five inches. A door or gate into the pool area needs self-closing and self-latching devices arranged so they cannot be operated or opened from below four feet six inches above the finished grade, and designed to be out of reach of small children from the outside. No hedge or other plant material may be used as the fence. A pool is any structure holding water more than three feet deep at any point. Public pools charging admission, and pools at religious and educational institutions, apartment houses, motels and hotels, are exempt where a competent person watches the water at all times or an approved cover is in place whenever the pool is unused.
The fence or wall shall have no openings more than five (5") inches in width, and shall be not less than six (6') feet high and, except where the wall is also the wall of a building, shall not be more than six (6') feet high.
5 inwidest opening allowed in a pool enclosure
Also on pool barriers in Lynwood
- set in state lawA pool fence in California stands at least sixty inches high. No more than two inches may be left between the ground and the bottom of it, and no gap in it may pass a four inch ball. The outside face has no handholds or footholds a child under five could climb. Gates open away from the pool and close and latch by themselves, with the latch set no lower than sixty inches above the ground. Health & Saf. Code 115923California · Statute
Spite fence laws in Lynwood
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California answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A fence over ten feet tall in California is a private nuisance when it was put up or kept there to annoy the neighbor and the extra height serves no purpose. Height on its own is not enough. The case turns on proving why the fence is there. The rule covers anything built like a fence, not only a fence.
This one is California law, not Lynwood law. All California findings
Any fence or other structure in the nature of a fence unnecessarily exceeding 10 feet in height maliciously erected or maintained for the purpose of annoying the owner or occupant of adjoining property is a private nuisance.
10 ftspite fence threshold, with malice required
How fence height is measured in Lynwood
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Lynwood answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Lynwood measures from the natural level of the ground rather than from finished grade, and repeats that phrase for both the six foot general limit and the forty two inch front yard limit. Because the datum is the natural level, earth added under a fence does not raise the allowance, and the reading does not depend on whose side of the line is used. The one place the code switches datums is the required parking lot wall, where the eight foot portion has to stand at least six feet above the surface of the parking lot and at least eight feet above the surface of the adjoining property, so both faces are specified.
No fence shall be greater than six (6') feet above the natural level of the ground in any area.
Also on how height is measured in Lynwood
- left to the townCalifornia gives a fence height and never says what it is measured from. Civil Code section 841.4 makes a fence over ten feet a private nuisance when it is kept up to annoy a neighbor. It does not say whether the ten feet starts at bare dirt, at the finished yard, or at the high side of a slope. Government Code section 65850 is why the state stops there: it lets any county or city set the place, height and size of structures. So the number and the surface it starts from are both written into local zoning. Cal. Gov. Code 65850(c)(1)California · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Lynwood
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Lynwood answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Lynwood builds its clear corner area by a four step construction rather than by a plain triangle. The right of way lines are extended to their point of intersection, a distance is measured back along the line that bisects the angle they form, ten feet for a driveway and thirty for a street, a perpendicular is drawn from that point out to the curbs or driveway edges, and the area enclosed is the clear corner area. Nothing may be placed or allowed to grow there in a way that obstructs visibility or threatens vehicle or pedestrian safety, as the city engineer determines, and the engineer may require a larger area where road geometry or traffic calls for it. Traffic control devices, signs, utility poles, transformers and street furniture over thirty inches may stand inside it. Separately, where an alley meets a street or another alley, no fence may project into a corner cut off drawn between points six feet either side of the intersection.
Nothing shall be placed or allowed to grow in the clear corner area in a manner which obstructs visibility or threatens vehicular or pedestrian safety, as determined by the city engineer.
30 ftdistance measured back along the bisecting line at a street
Also on corner visibility in Lynwood
- set in state lawCalifornia writes no clear view triangle into state law. The Streets and Highways Code counts a fence as an encroachment once it stands in, under or over any part of a state highway right of way. Section 670 then makes putting one there without a written permit from the department a misdemeanor. That covers the public strip, not the corner of a private yard. Government Code section 65850 gives every city and county the power to set the height and place of structures, and that is where a corner triangle gets written in California. Cal. Sts. & Hy. Code 660California · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Lynwood
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Lynwood does not set this. It leaves it to Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations, the California Building Standards Code, which tracks the International Building Code and the International Residential Code.
California has no rule of its own in statute for a wall that holds back earth. The rule is in Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations, which section 17922 adopts by reference and requires to match the newest editions of a named list of outside codes, the International Building Code and the International Residential Code among them. The same section leaves setbacks, side yards, rear yards and property line rules entirely to cities and counties.
This one is California law, not Lynwood law. All California findings
The building standards and rules and regulations shall impose substantially the same requirements as are contained in the most recent editions of the following international or uniform industry codes as adopted by the organizations specified:
The code hands this to Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations, the California Building Standards Code, which tracks the International Building Code and the International Residential Code, which is not published in the code itself.
Fence materials allowed in Lynwood
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Lynwood answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The Lynwood prohibition is one sentence and it covers the whole city with no district carved out and no security exception. No barbed wire or other sharp pointed fence, and no electrically charged fence, may be erected, constructed or maintained anywhere in Lynwood. Because maintained is included, an existing fence of either kind is caught as well as a new one. Plant material is separately ruled out as a pool enclosure, so a hedge cannot serve where the code requires a fence around water.
No barbed wire or other sharp pointed fence and no electrically charged fence shall be erected, constructed, or maintained in the City.
Also on materials in Lynwood
- set in state lawCalifornia sets a wire standard for a lawful fence in grazing counties. A wire fence takes three tight barbed wires on solid posts set no more than a rod apart, with one wire at least four feet up. Any fence as strong and as tall as that one counts too. Cal. Food & Agric. Code 17121California · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Lynwood
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California answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
California calls a fence lawful when it is strong enough to keep livestock from getting in or out. A wire fence gets real numbers: three tight barbed wires on posts set no more than one rod apart, with one of those wires at least four feet off the ground. Any other fence as tall, as strong and as good at holding animals counts too, and so does a cattle guard wide and deep enough to turn them.
This one is California law, not Lynwood law. All California findings
No wire fence is a good and substantial fence within the meaning of this article unless it has three tightly stretched barbed wires securely fastened to posts of reasonable strength, firmly set in the ground not more than one rod apart, one of which wires shall be at least four feet above the surface of the ground.
4 ftheight of the top wire on a lawful wire fence
Also on agricultural fencing in Lynwood
- depends, see the pageCalifornia answers this one county by county. Section 17123 names Siskiyou, Lassen and Modoc, plus parts of Trinity and Shasta, as land used mainly for grazing. Section 17124 lets the board of supervisors of any county put the same label on the county or part of it. Where the label applies, the land has to be fully fenced before the person on it may take in a stray animal or hold it for payment. Cal. Food & Agric. Code 17122California · Statute
Documents behind this page
11 documents, of which 2 were published by Lynwood itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- California LegislatureCalifornia Civil Code Section 841, Good Neighbor Fence Act of 2013
- City of LynwoodMunicipal Code, Chapter 11, Section 11-12, Fences
- California LegislatureCalifornia Civil Code Section 841.4, spite fences
- California LegislatureCalifornia Health and Safety Code Section 17922, adoption of building standards
- California LegislatureCalifornia Health and Safety Code Section 17958.7, local modification of building standards
- California LegislatureCalifornia Health and Safety Code Section 115923, enclosure requirements
- California LegislatureCalifornia Government Code, Title 7, Division 1, Chapter 4, Article 2, Section 65850
- California LegislatureCalifornia Streets and Highways Code, Division 1, Chapter 3, Section 660
- City of LynwoodMunicipal Code, Chapter 25 Zoning, Article 10, Section 25-10-8, Clear Areas
- California LegislatureCalifornia Food and Agricultural Code, Division 9, Part 2, Chapter 3, Article 5
- California LegislatureCalifornia Food and Agricultural Code, Division 9, Part 2, Chapter 3, Article 5
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 Lynwood publishes, plus the California rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in California 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