Fence laws in Bayonne, New Jersey
What the Bayonne municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Bayonne sets no rule of its own, the New Jersey rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Bayonne, New Jersey, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Bayonne asks for a setback and asks for it in inches: all fences have to be set back at least three inches from the property line, and the answer turns on what is already on the line and how tall the fence is. The figure is 3 inches, for setback from the property line.
- How tall
- In a Bayonne residential district a fence or wall on a side or rear property line may not exceed six feet, and one on a front property line may not exceed four feet, and the answer turns on the district, the line and where along it the fence runs. The figure is 6 feet, for fence on a residential side or rear property line.
- Permits
- Bayonne names no fence permit, and puts the control a step earlier, and the answer turns on which chapter the rule comes from. The figure is 2 feet, for height above which a fence is an accessory use.
- Pool barriers
- Bayonne sets no statewide pool barrier rule. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Spite fences
- Bayonne has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Bayonne leaves the measuring rule to a municipal zoning ordinance adopted under the Municipal Land Use Law.
- Corner lots
- Bayonne repeats the same requirement three times, once for each kind of district, and never puts a number on it, and the answer turns on whether the fence blocks the view in fact. The figure is 36 inches, for height limit along the rest of a corner lot line.
- Retaining walls
- New Jersey writes its own rule for a wall that holds back earth instead of leaving it to the national code. The figure is 4 feet, for retaining wall height at or above which a construction permit is required.
- Materials
- No fence in a Bayonne residential district may contain barbed wire, and the development regulations go wider, barring any fence or wall constructed with barbed wire, metal spikes or other dangerous material, or built in a way that is dangerous to animals or humans, and the answer turns on the district and what the fence abuts.
- Livestock
- New Jersey sets one height for a lawful fence and one job for it to do. The figure is 50 inches, for minimum height of a lawful fence, which the statute states as four feet and two inches.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Bayonne?
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Bayonne answers this, but the answer changes depending on what is already on the line and how tall the fence is.
Bayonne asks for a setback and asks for it in inches: all fences have to be set back at least three inches from the property line. Three inches is enough to keep the structure and its footings on the owner side of the line and no more, which is the point. The 2024 amendment added a second rule about the line that catches a common situation: in every district only one border fence is permitted per parcel, and before a new one is installed the existing border fence and its support structures have to be removed. That ends the double fence that appears when an owner builds inside a neighbor fence. The finished or better side has to face the street or the adjacent property, and a fence of four to six feet is permitted only in the rear and side yards, up to and behind the front facade of the principal building.
All fences shall be set back at least three inches from the property line.
The answer turns on what is already on the line and how tall the fence is.
- any fence
- Three inches off the line. 3 in
- an existing border fence
- It comes out first.
- four to six feet
- Behind the front facade only.
- the finished side
- Faces the street or the neighbor.
Also on fences on the property line in Bayonne
- set in state lawNew Jersey only splits a fence on the line when at least one of the two neighbors is pasturing or keeping animals. Each neighbor who uses the land that way builds and keeps up a fair share. A neighbor who leaves the land empty and open, or who keeps no animals, owes nothing toward it. That is narrower than most states, where both sides share the cost whatever the land is used for. N.J.S.A. 4:20-7New Jersey · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Bayonne?
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Bayonne answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district, the line and where along it the fence runs.
In a Bayonne residential district a fence or wall on a side or rear property line may not exceed six feet, and one on a front property line may not exceed four feet. A corner lot gets a rule written in lot depth rather than in feet from the street: six feet is allowed for half the lot depth along the side property line that relates to the principal entrance of the house, and the rest of that line, and the front line, is held to thirty-six inches. A commercial lot may go to ten feet at the sides and rear, with frontages along a street right-of-way limited to four feet and required to be of decorative material. An industrial lot may go to twelve feet in any yard, and that twelve feet includes any additional apparatus such as barbed wire, so the wire counts toward the limit rather than sitting above it.
Fences and walls on corner lots may be a maximum of six feet for 1/2 the lot depth constituting the side property line relating to the principal entrance to the building and further provided that the remainder of fencing along such lot line or front lot line shall not exceed 36 inches in height.
The answer turns on the district, the line and where along it the fence runs.
- a side or rear line
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a front line
- Four feet. 4 ft
- the rest of a corner lot line
- Thirty-six inches. 36 in
- an industrial lot
- Twelve feet, wire included. 12 ft
Also on fence height in Bayonne
- no rule, documents checkedNew Jersey does not limit how tall a fence at a house can be. State law gives that job to the towns, which may set the size, height and shape of fences between neighboring lots. Height is a town rule in every New Jersey town. R.S. 40:48-1(29)New Jersey · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Bayonne?
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Bayonne answers this, but the answer changes depending on which chapter the rule comes from.
Bayonne names no fence permit, and puts the control a step earlier. The Zoning Officer is the administrative officer responsible for administering and enforcing the zoning chapter, and the first listed duty is to review applications for development and issue zoning permits prior to the issuance of construction permits, provided the proposed construction, alteration or occupancy accords with the zoning ordinance or the right approvals have been granted. A fence over two feet is an accessory use under the development regulations, so that order applies to it. The Zoning Officer also investigates violations, issues written notices, and may issue a summons returnable in Municipal Court. The City Engineer, working with the City Planner, administers the planning and development chapter, which is where the three inch setback and the material rules live.
Review applications for development and issue zoning permits prior to the issuance of construction permits, provided that the proposed construction, alteration and/or occupancy is in accordance with the Zoning Ordinance, or appropriate approvals have been granted.
The answer turns on which chapter the rule comes from.
- the order of approvals
- Zoning permit, then construction permit.
- a fence over two feet
- An accessory use under the rules. 2 ft
- the zoning chapter
- Enforced by the Zoning Officer.
- the development chapter
- Enforced by the City Engineer and Planner.
Also on permits in Bayonne
- set in state lawNew Jersey runs one construction code for the whole state. The Commissioner of Community Affairs adopts it after a public hearing, and it covers building work everywhere in the state. The list of work that needs a permit, and the list of work that does not, sit inside that code at N.J.A.C. 5:23 and not in the statute. N.J.S.A. 52:27D-123New Jersey · Statute
Pool fence requirements in Bayonne
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Bayonne law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
New Jersey does have a pool barrier rule. It sits in the state construction code at N.J.A.C. 5:23-3.21, which takes in the International Swimming Pool and Spa Code and then changes parts of it. The Department of Community Affairs publishes that rule only as a PDF and its text could not be read, so no height is claimed here. The numbers live in the national code rather than in New Jersey text.
This one is New Jersey law, not Bayonne law. All New Jersey findings
Documents read before writing that:
- N.J.A.C. 5:23-3.21New Jersey Department of Community Affairs
- N.J.S.A. 52:27D-123New Jersey Legislature
Spite fence laws in Bayonne
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Bayonne law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
New Jersey has no statewide spite fence law. A spite fence is one built to bother a neighbor rather than to do a job. Title 4, Chapter 20 covers fences on the line and says nothing about spite. State law instead lets each town set the size and height of fences between neighbors, so the answer is a town rule.
This one is New Jersey law, not Bayonne law. All New Jersey findings
Documents read before writing that:
- N.J.S.A. 4:20-7New Jersey Legislature
- R.S. 40:48-1(29)New Jersey Legislature
How fence height is measured in Bayonne
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Bayonne does not set this. It leaves it to a municipal zoning ordinance adopted under the Municipal Land Use Law.
New Jersey states a fence number and never says where to measure it from. The state construction code says no permit is needed for a fence six feet or less in height, and it never says six feet above what. The Municipal Land Use Law fills the gap by handing the bulk, height, number of stories, direction and size of buildings and other structures to a town zoning rule. The town decides where the measuring starts.
This one is New Jersey law, not Bayonne law. All New Jersey findings
Regulate the bulk, height, number of stories, orientation, and size of buildings and the other structures; the percentage of lot or development area that may be occupied by structures; lot sizes and dimensions
The code hands this to a municipal zoning ordinance adopted under the Municipal Land Use Law, which is not published in the code itself.
Also on how height is measured in Bayonne
- no rule, documents checkedThe fence rules state four feet, six feet, ten feet, twelve feet and thirty-six inches and never say what any of them is measured from. No grade is named, a berm is not addressed, a fence on a retaining wall is not addressed, and no allowance is made for a post cap. Retaining walls are lifted out of both fence sections by name, so the combination is not answered either. What the code does measure carefully is horizontal: the corner lot rule runs off half the lot depth, the setback is three inches from the property line, and the four to six foot band is tied to the front facade of the principal building rather than to a setback line. One nearby rule shows the code thinking about ground level, requiring grades on a lot with new construction to be comparable with existing grades and to slope away from walls. Section 35-4.14Bayonne · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Bayonne
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Bayonne answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence blocks the view in fact.
Bayonne repeats the same requirement three times, once for each kind of district, and never puts a number on it. A residential front yard fence may not impede safe sight distance around the corner, a commercial fence on a corner lot may not impede safe sight distance around a corner, and industrial fencing on a corner lot may not impede or obscure sight distance around a corner. No triangle is drawn, no distance from the intersection is given, and no protected band of heights is stated, so the test is a judgment rather than a measurement. The development regulations add a general rule in the same spirit, that no fence or wall may be constructed or installed so as to constitute a hazard to traffic or safety. What does put a number on a Bayonne corner is the height rule, which drops the fence to thirty-six inches beyond half the lot depth.
Fences and walls on any front property line shall not exceed four feet in height, nor impede safe sight distance around the corner.
Section 35-4.14(a)(3), (b)(4) and (c)(3)
The answer turns on whether the fence blocks the view in fact.
- a residential corner
- Safe sight distance, no triangle given.
- a commercial corner
- The same words, again.
- an industrial corner
- May not impede or obscure the view.
- what is measured instead
- Thirty-six inches past half the lot depth. 36 in
Also on corner visibility in Bayonne
- set in state lawNew Jersey protects the driver view in its highways title, and only for signs that need a state permit. Section 27:5-9 sets the conditions on that permit, and one of them is that the sign may not block a clear view of the road ahead or of official signs and signals. Nothing there reaches a fence at a house. A town gets the power to draw a corner sight triangle, the clear space kept open where two streets meet, from the Municipal Land Use Law. N.J.S.A. 27:5-9New Jersey · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Bayonne
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New Jersey answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
New Jersey writes its own rule for a wall that holds back earth instead of leaving it to the national code. A construction permit is needed to build, enlarge, change, rebuild or tear down such a wall four feet or taller, and also a shorter one that hurts a foundation. The four feet counts every wall on the same slope added together, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. Walls the town already reviewed in subdivision and site plan work, and walls a county engineer or the state transportation department reviews, are left out.
This one is New Jersey law, not Bayonne law. All New Jersey findings
No person shall construct, enlarge, alter, reconstruct, or demolish a retaining wall or series of retaining walls having a total height four feet or greater, or a retaining wall less than four feet having a negative impact on a foundation, without first obtaining a construction permit.
4 ftretaining wall height at or above which a construction permit is required
Fence materials allowed in Bayonne
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Bayonne answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district and what the fence abuts.
No fence in a Bayonne residential district may contain barbed wire, and the development regulations go wider, barring any fence or wall constructed with barbed wire, metal spikes or other dangerous material, or built in a way that is dangerous to animals or humans. An industrial lot may carry barbed wire, but the twelve foot limit is inclusive of it. Commercial frontages along a street right-of-way have to be of decorative material. Chain link gets two different treatments: in an industrial district chain link abutting a street right-of-way has to be visually obscured by planting material, and the development regulations add that conspicuous chain link without screening or landscaping is not encouraged. Where a commercial lot abuts a residential one the fence has to be solid material intended to screen the commercial use from the house.
No fence or wall shall be constructed with barbed wire, metal spikes or other such dangerous material or constructed in such manner as to be dangerous to animals or humans.
Section 33-10.16(b), with Section 35-4.14(a)(2)
The answer turns on the district and what the fence abuts.
- a residential district
- No barbed wire.
- an industrial lot
- Wire allowed, inside the twelve feet.
- chain link at a street
- Screened by planting.
- a business beside a house
- Solid material that screens the use.
Also on materials in Bayonne
- set in state lawNew Jersey calls an electric security fence a perimeter fence intrusion protection system, and it sets nine things such a fence has to do. It ties into an alarm somebody watches. It cannot go on land a town has set aside for homes only. It runs off a storage battery of no more than 12 volts and meets the international standard for the charger. It stands behind a fence or wall with no current in it at least five feet tall, stops at ten feet, carries warning signs no more than 40 feet apart, and is put in by somebody trained or certified to install it. N.J.S.A. 45:5A-54New Jersey · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Bayonne
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New Jersey answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
New Jersey sets one height for a lawful fence and one job for it to do. It stands four feet and two inches from the surface of the ground, and it has to be close, strong and tight enough that horses and cattle cannot get through or under. Where the fence sits on the line and either neighbor works the land, it also has to be tight enough to stop sheep. Low meadow along a stream or river that floods is left out of that last part.
This one is New Jersey law, not Bayonne law. All New Jersey findings
if four feet and two inches high measuring from the level or surface of the earth, and close, strong and sufficient to prevent horses and cattle from going through or under it.
50 inminimum height of a lawful fence, which the statute states as four feet and two inches
Also on agricultural fencing in Bayonne
- set in state lawNew Jersey ties the damage claim to the fence. When horses, cattle or sheep get over, push through or break down a fence the chapter calls lawful, the owner of the animals pays the hurt neighbor for all of it. Two neutral people from the neighborhood set the amount, one picked by each side, and each has to own the same sort of property that was damaged. If the animal owner will not pick, the hurt neighbor picks both. If the two cannot agree, they bring in a third. N.J.S.A. 4:20-22New Jersey · Statute
- set in state lawNew Jersey bans barbed wire between neighbors unless the neighbor agrees to it. A fence on the line made of barbed wire, or of wire with barbs or points strung on it, is not a lawful fence without the next door owner's consent, and the statute forbids it outright without that consent. Most farm states treat barbed wire as the normal build. New Jersey does the opposite. N.J.S.A. 4:20-3New Jersey · Statute
Documents behind this page
14 documents, of which 3 were published by Bayonne itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes (Unannotated), Title 4, Section 4:20-7, Duty to make and maintain portion of partition fence
- City of BayonneGeneral Ordinances of the City of Bayonne, Chapter 33, Planning and Development Regulations, Section 33-10.16, Fences or Walls
- New Jersey LegislatureAssembly Bill A697 (2022 session), reproducing R.S.40:48-1 paragraph 29, Fences
- City of BayonneGeneral Ordinances of the City of Bayonne, Chapter 35, Zoning Regulations, Section 35-4.14, Fences, Walls and Buffers
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes (Unannotated), Title 52, Section 52:27D-123, State Uniform Construction Code; adoption
- City of BayonneGeneral Ordinances of the City of Bayonne, Chapter 33, Planning and Development Regulations, Section 33-3.1, Zoning Officer
- New Jersey Department of Community AffairsN.J.A.C. 5:23-3, Uniform Construction Code subcodes (PDF, could not be read)
- New Jersey Business Action Center, Department of StateMunicipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes, Title 27, Highways, Chapter 5, Roadside Sign Control and Outdoor Advertising
- New Jersey Department of Community AffairsNew Jersey Administrative Code, Title 5, Chapter 23, Uniform Construction Code, Subchapter 2, Administration and Enforcement
- New Jersey LegislatureP.L.2021, Chapter 2, An Act concerning perimeter fence intrusion protection systems and other alarm systems
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes (Unannotated), Title 4, Agriculture and Domestic Animals, Section 4:20-1, Sufficiency of fences in general
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes (Unannotated), Title 4, Agriculture and Domestic Animals, Section 4:20-22, Damages by animals breaking through lawful fences
- New Jersey LegislatureNew Jersey Statutes (Unannotated), Title 4, Agriculture and Domestic Animals, Section 4:20-3, Partition fences of barbed wire
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 Bayonne publishes, plus the New Jersey rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in New Jersey 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