Fence laws in Rancho Cordova, California
What the Rancho Cordova municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Rancho Cordova sets no rule of its own, the California rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Rancho Cordova, California, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Two neighbors split the cost of a fence on the line in California.
- How tall
- Rancho Cordova allows three feet in a required front yard and seven along rear, interior side and street side yards, which is a foot more than most California cities give without an application, and the answer turns on the yard, how far the fence is set back, and how much can be seen through it. The figure is 3 feet, for front yard fence on the property line.
- Permits
- A new fence or wall in Rancho Cordova needs a zoning certification unless it is exempt, and the chapter then exempts most ordinary residential work, and the answer turns on the height of the fence and whether it falls in one of the exemptions. The figure is 7 feet, for height allowed on a home by right.
- Pool barriers
- A pool fence in California stands at least sixty inches high. The figure is 60 inches, for minimum height of 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
- Rancho Cordova reads height from the finished grade at the base of the fence to the top edge of the fence material, and then closes the obvious workaround in a second sentence: grade may not be modified in order to increase fence height.
- Corner lots
- The clear visibility area in Rancho Cordova is not limited to street corners. The figure is 30 inches, for fence height inside the clear visibility area.
- Retaining walls
- Rancho Cordova is unusually specific about stacking a fence on a retaining wall. The figure is 3 feet, for separation required once the wall or fence passes its limit.
- Materials
- Barbed wire, electrified fence, razor wire and concertina wire are prohibited in every zone in Rancho Cordova, whether attached to a fence or standing alone, unless the approval authority allows them for a security need or another law requires them.
- 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 Rancho Cordova?
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California answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Two 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.
This one is California law, not Rancho Cordova law. All California findings
Adjoining landowners are presumed to share an equal benefit from any fence dividing their properties and, unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in a written agreement, shall be presumed to be equally responsible for the reasonable costs of construction, maintenance, or necessary replacement of the fence.
Also on fences on the property line in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova?
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Rancho Cordova answers this, but the answer changes depending on the yard, how far the fence is set back, and how much can be seen through it.
Rancho Cordova allows three feet in a required front yard and seven along rear, interior side and street side yards, which is a foot more than most California cities give without an application. The front figure rises to five feet where the fence is set at least three feet back from the property line and stays visually open and transparent, such as a picket, open slat or open wrought iron fence. Anything over three feet has to take that same three foot setback, while a fence of three feet or less may sit on the line. Above seven feet the approval authority may allow more through design review, on the condition that the part above seven feet is at least fifty percent transparent. Inside a clear visibility area the limit drops to thirty inches.
The height of the front yard fence may be increased to five feet when the fence is located a minimum setback of three feet from the property line and remains visually open and transparent (e.g., picket fence, open wood slats, open wrought iron). Fences that are three feet or less may be located at the property line.
The answer turns on the yard, how far the fence is set back, and how much can be seen through it.
- a required front yard
- Three feet at the line. 3 ft
- a front yard fence set three feet back and transparent
- Five feet. 5 ft
- a rear, interior side or street side yard
- Seven feet. 7 ft
- above seven feet through design review
- More, if the part above seven feet is at least half transparent. 50%
Also on fence height in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova?
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Rancho Cordova answers this, but the answer changes depending on the height of the fence and whether it falls in one of the exemptions.
A new fence or wall in Rancho Cordova needs a zoning certification unless it is exempt, and the chapter then exempts most ordinary residential work. A residential fence under seven feet built to the height table needs none, and neither does a retaining wall under thirty six inches, although a building permit may still apply to either. A fence over seven feet needs an administrative use permit. Fences and walls required by a state or federal agency, or by the city for public safety, fall outside the chapter altogether, with sound walls still held to the screening standards.
Unless otherwise exempt in RCMC § 23.731.030 (Exemptions), a zoning certification shall be required for new fences and walls. Residential fences, up to seven feet in height, are allowed by right. Fences over seven feet in height require an administrative use permit.
The answer turns on the height of the fence and whether it falls in one of the exemptions.
- a residential fence under seven feet built to the table
- No zoning certification, though a building permit may apply. 7 ft
- a retaining wall under thirty six inches
- Exempt from the zoning certification. 36 in
- a fence over seven feet
- An administrative use permit.
Also on permits in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova
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California answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A 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.
This one is California law, not Rancho Cordova law. All California findings
An enclosure shall have all of the following characteristics: (a) Any access gates through the enclosure open away from the swimming pool, and are self-closing with a self-latching device placed no lower than 60 inches above the ground. (b) A minimum height of 60 inches. (c) A maximum vertical clearance from the ground to the bottom of the enclosure of two inches. (d) Gaps or voids, if any, do not allow passage of a sphere equal to or greater than four inches in diameter. (e) An outside surface free of protrusions, cavities, or other physical characteristics that would serve as handholds or footholds that could enable a child below the age of five years to climb over.
60 inminimum height of a pool enclosure
Spite fence laws in Rancho Cordova
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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 Rancho Cordova 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 Rancho Cordova
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Rancho Cordova answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Rancho Cordova reads height from the finished grade at the base of the fence to the top edge of the fence material, and then closes the obvious workaround in a second sentence: grade may not be modified in order to increase fence height. Where the finished grade within six feet of the base differs from one side to the other, as at the top of a slope or on a retaining wall, the measurement is taken from the side with the highest natural grade, so the drop is not available as extra height.
Fence height shall be measured as the vertical distance between the finished grade at the base of the fence and the top edge of the fence material. Grade may not be modified in order to increase fence height.
Also on how height is measured in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova
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Rancho Cordova answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The clear visibility area in Rancho Cordova is not limited to street corners. The height table applies a thirty inch cap at intersections of streets, alleys and driveways alike, so a fence beside an ordinary residential driveway is caught by the same rule as one on a corner lot. The geometry of the area is defined in the general definitions chapter rather than in the fence chapter, and safeguarding against visual obstruction at street intersections and driveway locations is written into the purpose clause as one of the reasons the chapter exists.
The purpose of this chapter is to regulate the height and location of fences, walls, and screening to provide light, air, and privacy without obstructing views, to establish buffers between certain land uses, and to safeguard against visual obstructions at street intersections and/or driveway locations.
23.731.040, Table 23.731-1, and 23.731.010
30 infence height inside the clear visibility area
Also on corner visibility in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova
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Rancho Cordova answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Rancho Cordova is unusually specific about stacking a fence on a retaining wall. The wall may reach six feet and the fence on top seven, measured from the highest finished grade. Once the wall passes six feet, or the fence passes seven, the fence has to move back from the wall by at least three feet horizontally with landscaping in the gap, so the combined mass is broken up rather than allowed to rise as one face. A retaining wall under thirty six inches is exempt from the zoning certification entirely, although a building permit may still be needed.
If a fence is located on top of a retaining wall, the maximum height of the retaining wall shall be six feet in height and the maximum height of the fence shall be seven feet in height measured from the highest finished grade.
3 ftseparation required once the wall or fence passes its limit
Also on retaining walls in Rancho Cordova
- left to the townCalifornia 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. Health & Saf. Code 17922(a)California · Statute
Fence materials allowed in Rancho Cordova
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Rancho Cordova answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Barbed wire, electrified fence, razor wire and concertina wire are prohibited in every zone in Rancho Cordova, whether attached to a fence or standing alone, unless the approval authority allows them for a security need or another law requires them. Chain link survives only inside a commercial or industrial property, and only where it cannot be seen from a residential zone or the public right of way. Every fence or wall next to a public right of way in any zone carries a permanently maintained graffiti-resistant coating.
Chain link fencing may be used internally for commercial and industrial zoned properties if it cannot be seen from adjacent residentially zoned properties or the public right-of-way.
Also on materials in Rancho Cordova
- 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 Rancho Cordova
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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 Rancho Cordova 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 Rancho Cordova
- 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
10 documents, of which 1 was published by Rancho Cordova itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- California LegislatureCalifornia Civil Code Section 841, Good Neighbor Fence Act of 2013
- California LegislatureCalifornia Civil Code Section 841.4, spite fences
- City of Rancho CordovaMunicipal Code, Title 23, Chapter 23.731, Fences, Walls and Screening
- 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
- 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 Rancho Cordova 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