Fence laws in Pontiac, Michigan
What the Pontiac municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Pontiac sets no rule of its own, the Michigan rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Pontiac, Michigan, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Pontiac gives two positions and only two, and the answer turns on whether the adjoining owners consent in a notarized writing.
- How tall
- In the R-1 and R-2 districts a front or side street yard fence has to be both short and open: decorative and non-opaque, such as a wood picket or wrought iron looking fence, and no more than four feet above immediate ground level, and the answer turns on the district and which yard the fence stands in. The figure is 4 feet, for residential front yard fence.
- Permits
- The enforcement side of the Pontiac fence rule is specific about time and money, and the answer turns on whether the fence is permanent or temporary construction fencing. The figure is 20 days, for time to comply with a removal order.
- Pool barriers
- Michigan puts no pool fence height in its own statute.
- Spite fences
- Pontiac has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Every residential height in Pontiac is read above immediate ground level, a phrase the section uses twice and never defines, and the answer turns on which district the figure comes from.
- Corner lots
- Pontiac states its corner rule by reference and then adds a broader one in its own words, and the answer turns on what the fence would block.
- 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
- The Pontiac materials rule is unusual in being drawn by distance, and the answer turns on how close the fence is to a residential district. The figure is 200 feet, for distance from housing the materials list reaches.
- Livestock
- Michigan sets no height, wire count, board count or post spacing for a farm fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Pontiac?
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the adjoining owners consent in a notarized writing.
Pontiac gives two positions and only two. A fence sits completely within the boundaries of its own lot, or it sits on the common property line with the written and notarized consent of the adjoining owners. Notarization is a higher bar than the written consent several nearby cities ask for, and it is the only route onto the line. Within a residential district the location rule is otherwise open, allowing a fence in any required or non-required yard. Where a fence has a single finished or decorative side, that side faces outward toward adjacent parcels or street rights-of-way, away from the interior of the lot it belongs to. The city also reserves a power to push a fence back, being able to require a minimum setback from a driveway or property line when enforcing the rule against obstructing an adjacent parcel.
Fences shall be located completely within the boundaries of the lot to which they are associated, or on a common property line with the written and notarized consent of adjacent property owners.
The answer turns on whether the adjoining owners consent in a notarized writing.
- no consent
- Wholly inside the lot.
- written and notarized consent
- On the common property line.
- a fence with one good side
- The good side faces out.
Also on fences on the property line in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac?
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district and which yard the fence stands in.
In the R-1 and R-2 districts a front or side street yard fence has to be both short and open: decorative and non-opaque, such as a wood picket or wrought iron looking fence, and no more than four feet above immediate ground level. There is no solid option at the front at any height. Behind the house the character requirement falls away and a decorative, concealing or opaque fence or wall may reach six feet in a side or rear yard. Industrial districts run three feet in a required front yard and eight feet in side yards, rear yards and non-required front yards. Mixed use districts take three feet in front and six in side and rear yards, with a separate six foot figure for anything between the building wall plane and the street, and everything in those districts has to be decorative in nature.
Front or Side Street Yards. In any R-1 and R-2 district, decorative, non-opaque fences such as wood picket fences or wrought iron-appearing fences not exceeding four feet in height measured above immediate ground level are permitted in front yard.
The answer turns on the district and which yard the fence stands in.
- a residential front or side street yard
- Four feet, decorative and see through. 4 ft
- a residential side or rear yard
- Six feet, solid allowed. 6 ft
- an industrial side or rear yard
- Eight feet. 8 ft
- an industrial or mixed use front yard
- Three feet, decorative. 3 ft
Also on fence height in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac?
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence is permanent or temporary construction fencing.
The enforcement side of the Pontiac fence rule is specific about time and money. A damaged or illegal fence has to be repaired or removed by the property owner immediately, and once the building official identifies one, an order issues giving the owner twenty days to remove it or make the necessary repairs. If nothing is done in that time the city may remove the fence at the owner expense, then place a lien on the property and add the removal cost to the tax bill. Temporary construction fencing is handled separately and is required rather than merely permitted, going in at the start of any site grading, excavation, construction, renovation or demolition on any residential or nonresidential site, maintained throughout, and removed before the Building and Safety Department issues a certificate of occupancy.
Upon identification of a damaged or illegal fence, the building official shall order the property owner to remove such fences or make necessary repairs within 20 days.
The answer turns on whether the fence is permanent or temporary construction fencing.
- a damaged or illegal fence
- Twenty days to repair or remove it. 20 days
- the deadline missed
- The city removes it and liens the tax bill.
- a construction site
- Temporary fencing is required until occupancy.
Also on permits in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac
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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 Pontiac 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 Pontiac
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Pontiac 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 Pontiac law. All Michigan findings
Documents read before writing that:
How fence height is measured in Pontiac
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on which district the figure comes from.
Every residential height in Pontiac is read above immediate ground level, a phrase the section uses twice and never defines. Immediate points at the ground directly beneath rather than at an average, a curb or a shared datum, which makes a fence on a slope follow the land and puts no ceiling on what a raised bed or a berm underneath could achieve. The industrial and mixed use figures are stated without any datum at all. Nothing in the section sets a post depth, a footing or a spacing, and nothing addresses a fence standing on a retaining wall. The one ground related requirement is about water rather than height: a fence may not be erected in a manner that obstructs the free flow of surface water or causes damage to underground utilities.
Rear or Interior Side Yards. Decorative or concealing or opaque type fences or walls not exceeding six feet in height above immediate ground level are permitted in side or rear yards.
The answer turns on which district the figure comes from.
- a residential fence
- Above immediate ground level.
- an industrial or mixed use fence
- No datum stated.
- below ground
- No post depth or footing anywhere in the section.
Also on how height is measured in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on what the fence would block.
Pontiac states its corner rule by reference and then adds a broader one in its own words. No fence may be erected within the public right-of-way or in any corner clear vision area, which Section 2.303 of the zoning ordinance describes rather than this section. Alongside it sits a standard that reaches beyond the corner: no wall or fence may be built where it would prevent or unreasonably obstruct the use of any adjacent parcel, or the safe use of an existing driveway or other means of access to an adjacent parcel. That is written about the neighbor rather than about traffic, and it gives the city a remedy short of refusal, allowing it to require a minimum setback from a driveway or property line when enforcing the provision. A fence also may not obstruct the free flow of surface water or damage underground utilities.
No wall or fence may be erected where it would prevent or unreasonably obstruct the use of any adjacent parcel, nor shall a wall or fence be erected where it would prevent or unreasonably obstruct the safe use of an existing driveway or other means of access to any adjacent parcel.
The answer turns on what the fence would block.
- a corner clear vision area
- No fence, as Section 2.303 describes the area.
- a neighbor driveway or access
- It may not be unreasonably obstructed.
- surface water or buried utilities
- Neither may be obstructed or damaged.
Also on corner visibility in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac
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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 Pontiac 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 Pontiac
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Pontiac answers this, but the answer changes depending on how close the fence is to a residential district.
The Pontiac materials rule is unusual in being drawn by distance. Any fence or wall within two hundred feet of a residential district, whatever district it is actually in, has to be built of wood, brick, masonry, wire mesh, metal bars of no more than an inch and a half in diameter, or another durable and weather-resistant material the building official approves. So an industrial fence a block from housing is held to a residential standard. Barbed wire and other similar hazardous materials are prohibited in residential districts outright, and prohibited again in the mixed use districts alongside a requirement that every fence there be decorative in nature. A wall used for screening has to be masonry, architecturally compatible with the facade of the principal building on the site, and concrete block may be used for a screening wall only in a rear yard.
Materials used for fences and walls located within 200 feet of a residential district shall consist of wood, brick, masonry, wire mesh, metal bars not exceeding one and one-half inches in diameter or other durable and weather-resistant materials which may be approved by the building official.
The answer turns on how close the fence is to a residential district.
- within two hundred feet of housing
- Only the listed materials, or what the building official approves. 200 ft
- a residential or mixed use district
- No barbed wire or other hazardous material.
- a screening wall
- Masonry matching the building, with block only at the rear.
Also on materials in Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac
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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 Pontiac 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 Pontiac
- 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 Pontiac itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Michigan LegislatureMichigan Compiled Laws, Chapter 43, Fences and Fence Viewers, Act 34 of 1978
- City of PontiacPontiac Zoning Ordinance, Section 4.103, Fences or Walls
- 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 Pontiac 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