Fence laws in Farmington Hills, Michigan
What the Farmington Hills municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Farmington Hills sets no rule of its own, the Michigan rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Farmington Hills, Michigan, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Section 34-5.12 allows a residential fence along a property line so long as the rest of the section is satisfied, and adds no consent requirement, no notarized signature, no setback from the line and no rule about which side the posts face.
- How tall
- Farmington Hills splits its residential rule by the size of the lot rather than by the yard alone, and the answer turns on the size of the lot and which yard the fence stands in. The figure is 6 feet, for side or rear fence on a smaller lot.
- Permits
- In the RA and RP residential districts a permit is required before building any fence over three feet in height and over sixteen feet in total length, and the answer turns on the district, and the height and length of the fence together. The figure is 16 feet, for length above which a residential permit is needed.
- Pool barriers
- Michigan puts no pool fence height in its own statute.
- Spite fences
- Farmington Hills has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- The ordinance text says heights are measured from the surface of the ground and stops there.
- Corner lots
- The corner clearance rule is its own section and is written to catch anything, not just a fence: no fence, wall, shrubbery, sign or other obstruction to vision above thirty inches is permitted inside the triangle, and the answer turns on the distance from the intersection and the level of the curb. The figure is 30 inches, for height limit in the corner triangle.
- Retaining walls
- A retaining wall in Michigan needs no building permit if it is four feet tall or less, measured from the bottom of the footing up to the top of the wall. The figure is 4 feet, for height at or below which a retaining wall needs no building permit. It reaches one and two family homes and townhouses under the Michigan residential code only.
- Materials
- On a residential lot of less than two acres the prohibition covers four things in one sentence: barbed wire, razor wire, electric current, and any charge of electricity, and the answer turns on the size of the lot and the district.
- Livestock
- Michigan sets no height, wire count, board count or post spacing for a farm fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Farmington Hills?
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Farmington Hills answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Section 34-5.12 allows a residential fence along a property line so long as the rest of the section is satisfied, and adds no consent requirement, no notarized signature, no setback from the line and no rule about which side the posts face. The city form does add one practical warning in its own voice, that the property line is not the same thing as the edge of the street and that there is usually a grassy right-of-way between the two, which is the mistake that puts a fence on public land. The same form notes that a homeowners association may require its own permission on top of the city approval, which is a private matter the ordinance does not reach.
Residential fences may be located along a property line if the other provisions of this section are met.
Also on fences on the property line in Farmington Hills
- set in state lawIn Michigan the owner who builds a fence on the line pays for it and for keeping it up, and the neighbor owes nothing. Most states split that cost. The neighbor starts owing a share of what the fence is worth now only when that neighbor or their renter begins using it to hold animals, and even then the neighbor can build a separate fence instead. The whole act covers only fences that hold animals, because section 43.51 defines a fence that way. MCL 43.53(1)Michigan · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Farmington Hills?
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Farmington Hills answers this, but the answer changes depending on the size of the lot and which yard the fence stands in.
Farmington Hills splits its residential rule by the size of the lot rather than by the yard alone. On a zoning lot of less than two acres with less than two hundred feet of street frontage, a fence enclosing the property or standing in a required side or rear yard stops at six feet measured from the surface of the ground, and may not run nearer the front of the lot than the front of the house or the required minimum front yard, whichever gives the greater setback. In a required front yard or exterior yard setback the figure drops to three feet. A lot of two acres or more is treated like everything else in the city instead, allowing eight feet in any yard except the minimum front yard setback and the minimum setback of a yard abutting a street. A fence around a public or institutional park, playground or landscaped area may also reach eight feet, on condition that it does not obstruct vision over more than a quarter of its total area.
Fences, not to exceed eight (8) feet in height, may be located within any yard except the minimum front yard setback or the minimum setback of a yard abutting a street.
34-5.12(2)(B), with 34-5.12(1)(C) and (D)
The answer turns on the size of the lot and which yard the fence stands in.
- a lot under two acres, side or rear yard
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a required front yard on a smaller lot
- Three feet. 3 ft
- a lot of two acres or more, or any other district
- Eight feet outside the minimum setbacks. 8 ft
- a fence round a public park
- Eight feet, and at least three quarters see through. 25%
Also on fence height in Farmington Hills
- no rule, documents checkedMichigan sets no statewide limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. The state fence act defines a fence by what it holds in, not by height, and names no number. The seven feet in the residential code rules is the point where a permit starts being needed, not a cap. The city, village or township sets the limit. MCL 43.51Michigan · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Farmington Hills?
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Farmington Hills answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district, and the height and length of the fence together.
In the RA and RP residential districts a permit is required before building any fence over three feet in height and over sixteen feet in total length. Both conditions have to be met, so a six foot panel ten feet long is outside the requirement and so is a two foot border running the length of the lot. Outside those districts the threshold disappears entirely and a permit is required for any fence regardless of size. The application itself is a short form taking the parcel number, the owner and the fence company, the type and height of fence, whether the lot is a corner, whether the fence will be in a front yard, and a sketch showing the fence and any existing fence with the streets and alleys labeled. A fence enclosing a pool needs a final inspection from the Building Division, and the form warns in its own words that failing to have one can lead to legal action. The fee on the December 2023 revision is a hundred dollars.
A permit shall be required prior to the construction of any fence, regardless of size.
34-5.12(2)(A), with 34-5.12(1)(A)
The answer turns on the district, and the height and length of the fence together.
- a fence in the RA or RP districts
- A permit once it is both over three feet and over sixteen feet long. 16 ft
- a fence in any other district
- A permit whatever its size.
- a fence enclosing a pool
- A final inspection from the Building Division.
Also on permits in Farmington Hills
- set in state lawA fence in Michigan seven feet tall or shorter needs no building permit. The state writes that number into its own rule rather than taking the model code as it comes. Rule 505 replaces section R105.2 of the residential code. The same no permit list also covers a separate shed up to 200 square feet, a retaining wall under four feet with no extra weight on the soil behind it, and a store bought pool less than 24 inches deep. Skipping the permit does not make legal any work that breaks the code or a city rule. R 408.30505Michigan · Building code
Pool fence requirements in Farmington Hills
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Michigan answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Michigan puts no pool fence height in its own statute. The state construction code act builds the Michigan code out of the national model codes, including the International Residential Code, plus whatever changes the director makes. So the fence rule for a pool at a house comes from that model code. The same act says a Michigan version of a code has to be free to the public before anyone can enforce it.
This one is Michigan law, not Farmington Hills law. All Michigan findings
The code shall consist of the international residential code, the international building code, the international mechanical code, the international plumbing code, the international existing building code, and the international energy conservation code published by the international code council and the national electrical code published by the national fire prevention association, with amendments, additions, or deletions as the director determines appropriate.
Spite fence laws in Farmington Hills
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Farmington Hills law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Michigan has no spite fence law. The state fence act covers who pays, who the fence viewer is, and what a fence viewer can decide, and section 43.55 says plainly that a fence viewer does not settle boundary arguments. Nothing in the act turns on why a fence went up or how tall it is. A claim about a fence built to annoy rests on ordinary nuisance law made by judges, and on city zoning.
This one is Michigan law, not Farmington Hills law. All Michigan findings
Documents read before writing that:
How fence height is measured in Farmington Hills
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Farmington Hills answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The ordinance text says heights are measured from the surface of the ground and stops there. The Zoning Division answers the rest on the permit application itself, in a footnote attached to the height box: height is measured from grade to the top of the highest post or finial. That settles the question a homeowner actually runs into, which is whether the decorative cap counts, and the answer is that it does. It is guidance from the office issuing the permit rather than ordinance text, so it carries less weight than the section it explains, but it is the city own statement of how the figure on the form will be read. The corner clearance section uses a different datum again, the top of the curb at street level.
Height is measured from grade to the top of the highest post or finial.
Height footnote on the application form
Also on how height is measured in Farmington Hills
- left to the townMichigan never says where a fence height is measured from. Section 125.3201 of the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act lets a local government limit the height of buildings and other structures, and stops there. The state fence law says even less. Section 43.51 calls a fence anything good enough to hold an animal, with no number and no starting point. So the county, township or city writes both the limit and the way it is measured. MCL 125.3201(4)Michigan · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Farmington Hills
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Farmington Hills answers this, but the answer changes depending on the distance from the intersection and the level of the curb.
The corner clearance rule is its own section and is written to catch anything, not just a fence: no fence, wall, shrubbery, sign or other obstruction to vision above thirty inches is permitted inside the triangle. Two details make it stricter than it first looks. The thirty inches is measured from the top of the curb at street level rather than from the ground the obstruction stands on, so a lot sitting above the road loses height before anything is built. And the triangle is drawn from the street right-of-way lines, including proposed ones, at twenty-five feet along each from their point of intersection, which is the line the city may one day widen to rather than the pavement edge today. The three foot front yard allowance in the fence section is expressly made subject to this rule.
No fence, wall, shrubbery, sign or other obstruction to vision above a height of thirty (30) inches from the top of curb at street level shall be permitted within the triangular area formed at the intersection of any existing or proposed street
The answer turns on the distance from the intersection and the level of the curb.
- inside the triangle
- Thirty inches above the top of the curb. 30 in
- the size of the triangle
- Twenty-five feet along each right-of-way line. 25 ft
- a planted obstruction
- Shrubbery is named alongside fences and walls.
Also on corner visibility in Farmington Hills
- set in state lawMichigan has a 1925 law about fences that sit in the road. Act 368 of 1925, in Chapter 247 of the Michigan Compiled Laws, lets the commissioner in charge of a road order an owner to pull back any fence, building or other thing that crosses into a public highway, and gives the owner thirty days. The order has to state how wide the road is and where the fence sits compared to the center line. An owner who ignores it owes a dollar a day. The law covers the road itself and nothing else. A clear view triangle at a corner comes from a city rule written under the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act. MCL 247.171Michigan · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Farmington Hills
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Michigan answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A retaining wall in Michigan needs no building permit if it is four feet tall or less, measured from the bottom of the footing up to the top of the wall. The footing sits below the ground, so the four feet starts lower than the yard does. Michigan writes this itself. Rule 505 replaces section R105.2 of the residential code. A wall holding up a surcharge needs a permit at any height. A surcharge means extra weight pressing on the soil behind the wall, such as a driveway or a building. Skipping the permit does not make legal any work that breaks the code or a city rule.
This one is Michigan law, not Farmington Hills law. All Michigan findings
A retaining wall that is not more than 4 feet (1 219 mm) in height measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, unless supporting a surcharge.
4 ftheight at or below which a retaining wall needs no building permit
Fence materials allowed in Farmington Hills
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Farmington Hills answers this, but the answer changes depending on the size of the lot and the district.
On a residential lot of less than two acres the prohibition covers four things in one sentence: barbed wire, razor wire, electric current, and any charge of electricity. Naming current and charge separately closes the gap a fence energized only intermittently might otherwise sit in. On a residential lot of two acres or more, and in every other district in the city, the list shortens to barbed wire and razor wire, so the electric prohibition is written only for the smaller residential lot. The section names no permitted materials at all, so anything not on the prohibited list is available subject to the height figures. Fence-like structures such as backstops and tennis court enclosures are excluded from the section altogether.
Fences shall not contain barbed wire, razor wire, electric current, or charge of electricity.
34-5.12(1)(C)(iii), with (1)(D)(ii) and (2)(C)
The answer turns on the size of the lot and the district.
- a residential lot under two acres
- No barbed wire, razor wire, current or charge.
- a larger lot or another district
- No barbed wire or razor wire.
- a backstop or tennis court enclosure
- Outside the section entirely.
Also on materials in Farmington Hills
- set in state lawMichigan says in its construction code act what a low voltage electric fence is. It counts as one only if it stands on land zoned for something other than homes and runs off a battery of 12 volts or less. It also has to sit inside a fence or wall that carries no current and stands at least 5 feet tall. It stops at 10 feet and carries shock warning signs no more than 60 feet apart, written in English and Spanish. A fence that meets the whole list needs no permit when a registered alarm company installs it. MCL 125.1528aMichigan · Building code
Livestock and boundary fence law in Farmington Hills
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Michigan answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Michigan sets no height, wire count, board count or post spacing for a farm fence. The fence viewers act defines a fence by what it does rather than what it is made of, so anything that holds an animal counts, and so does a natural barrier such as a river or a thick hedge. The animals it has to hold are the ones named in the running at large act: cattle, horses, sheep, swine, mules, burros or goats.
This one is Michigan law, not Farmington Hills law. All Michigan findings
means a structure or natural barrier which is sufficient to confine an animal as defined in section 1 of Act No. 328 of the Public Acts of 1976
Also on agricultural fencing in Farmington Hills
- set in state lawMichigan puts the duty on the animal owner across the whole state. An animal may not run loose anywhere in Michigan. The owner may not let it happen, and neither may anybody else who knows what they are doing. Running at large means the animal is off the owner's land and out of the owner's control. A person whose property gets damaged can ask the owner to pay, and nothing in the act asks that person to have built a fence first. MCL 433.12Michigan · Statute
Documents behind this page
10 documents, of which 1 was published by Farmington Hills itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Chapter 43, Fences and Fence Viewers, Act 34 of 1978
- City of Farmington HillsFarmington Hills Zoning Ordinance, Sections 34-5.12 and 34-5.10, reprinted on the city Residential Fence Permit Application
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Chapter 43, Fences and Fence Viewers, Act 34 of 1978
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Construction CodesMichigan Administrative Code, Construction Code, Part 5, Residential Code, R 408.30500 to R 408.30547g
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act, Act 230 of 1972
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Chapter 43, Fences and Fence Viewers, Act 34 of 1978
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Michigan Zoning Enabling Act, Section 125.3201
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Act 368 of 1925, Highway Obstructions and Encroachments, Section 247.171, Encroachments; removal order, service; temporary permit
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act, Act 230 of 1972, Section 28a
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Animals Running at Large, Act 328 of 1976
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 Farmington Hills publishes, plus the Michigan rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Michigan 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