Fence laws in White Plains, New York
What the White Plains municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where White Plains sets no rule of its own, the New York rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in White Plains, New York, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Every White Plains fence and wall stands inside the lot lines, so nothing is built on the boundary and no fence is jointly owned.
- How tall
- Four feet in a required White Plains front yard, and in any other required yard that abuts a street, with six feet in every other required yard, and the answer turns on whether the yard abuts a street, the district, and what road the yard backs onto. The figure is 4 feet, for fence in a yard abutting a street.
- Permits
- White Plains issues no fence permits at all.
- Pool barriers
- New York requires a barrier around a pool at a house, and the height is four feet. The figure is 4 feet, for permanent barrier around a residential swimming pool.
- Spite fences
- New York has a spite fence law with a ten foot trigger. The figure is 10 feet, for height above which a fence blocking light or air can be declared a private nuisance.
- Measured from what
- White Plains leaves the measuring rule to the town board, by local law or ordinance. It reaches the part of a town outside the limits of any incorporated village or city only.
- Corner lots
- White Plains leaves corner clearance to An Ordinance Regulating and Controlling Obstructions to Vision on the Corner Lots in Residence Districts in the City of White Plains, adopted 4 August 1980.
- Retaining walls
- White Plains leaves retaining walls to the Residential Code of New York State, published by the International Code Council and incorporated by reference in 19 NYCRR Part 1220.
- Materials
- Electrically charged fences, barbed wire and anything else made of sharp material are out of every White Plains residential district. The figure is 6 feet, for height above the ground at which barbed wire is allowed outside residential districts.
- Livestock
- New York prints one build in its fence article, and it is wire. The figure is 4 strands, for minimum number of wire strands in a division fence. It reaches a fence on the line between two neighbors only.
Who owns the fence between two properties in White Plains?
Compare fences on the property line across all 50 states
White Plains answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Every White Plains fence and wall stands inside the lot lines, so nothing is built on the boundary and no fence is jointly owned. Where a fence inside a required yard has a finished or more attractive side, that side faces the neighbor or the street.
All fences or walls must be inside all "lot lines."
Also on fences on the property line in White Plains
- set in state lawNew York Town Law splits a fence on the line between the two neighbors in fair shares, unless they agree on something else. The rule turns on animals. A neighbor who has kept no animals on the land in the five years before the fence was built or fixed owes nothing. A neighbor who does build or fix it can get back twenty percent of the other side's share for each year that land was used for animals. Where a stream forms the line, the fence viewers settle the split. Town Law 300New York · Statute
How tall can a fence be in White Plains?
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White Plains answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the yard abuts a street, the district, and what road the yard backs onto.
Four feet in a required White Plains front yard, and in any other required yard that abuts a street, with six feet in every other required yard. A fence of at least three quarters open construction may reach eight feet in a nonresidential district. Where the Commissioner of Building requires it for safety, a retaining wall may carry a bumper guard or a three quarters open fence standing up to four feet above those limits. And a side or rear yard that immediately abuts one of four named limited access roads may carry an eight foot sound attenuation wall, provided both of its sides are equally finished.
A fence or wall not exceeding 8 feet in height shall be permitted for purposes of sound attenuation within a required "side yard" or "rear yard" which "yard" immediately abuts the following limited access roadways: I-287, the Bronx River Parkway, the Hutchinson River Parkway, and the Central Westchester Parkway or access ramps leading thereto, conditioned that both sides of the fence or wall be equally finished.
The answer turns on whether the yard abuts a street, the district, and what road the yard backs onto.
- a required front yard, or any required yard abutting a street
- Four feet. 4 ft
- any other required yard
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a nonresidential district, at least three quarters open
- Eight feet. 8 ft
- a side or rear yard abutting I-287 or one of three named parkways
- Eight feet for sound attenuation, finished equally on both sides. 8 ft
Also on fence height in White Plains
- no rule, documents checkedNew York does not limit how tall a fence at a house can be. The fence article of the Town Law is about who pays for a shared fence and never caps the height. The only height anywhere in New York fence law is the ten feet in the spite fence section, and that is the point where a nuisance claim becomes possible, not a limit. Villages, towns and cities set the height rule. Town Law 300New York · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in White Plains?
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White Plains answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
White Plains issues no fence permits at all. The Department of Building states it plainly and then points at the zoning ordinance, so the rules on height, materials and placement still bind even though nothing is filed and nothing is inspected. Most cities on this site do the opposite and regulate through the permit.
The City of White Plains does not require fence permits.
Also on permits in White Plains
- set in state lawNew York writes one code for the whole state and then hands the permit counter to local government. Executive Law section 381 puts running and enforcing the code on every local government, lets a town pass the job to its county, and lets the Secretary of State step in when local enforcement drops below the state minimum. So whether a fence needs a permit is answered by the local code office, not by one statewide line. Exec. Law 381(2)New York · Statute
Pool fence requirements in White Plains
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New York answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
New York requires a barrier around a pool at a house, and the height is four feet. The state building standards office publishes the rules in a technical bulletin. The gap between the barrier and the ground stays under two inches, and the barrier cannot go where something next to it can be climbed to get over. While a pool is being built, a temporary barrier of at least 48 inches has to be up.
This one is New York law, not White Plains law. All New York findings
The top of the barrier must be at least 4 feet (48 inches) high.
4 ftpermanent barrier around a residential swimming pool
Spite fence laws in White Plains
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New York answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
New York has a spite fence law with a ten foot trigger. A fence, or anything built like a fence, that goes over ten feet and cuts off light or air from a building next door can be declared a private nuisance by the supreme court. The court can then order the owner to stop keeping it up. The section ends by protecting an owner who built in good faith.
This one is New York law, not White Plains law. All New York findings
Whenever the owner or lessees of land shall erect or shall have erected thereon any fence or structure in the nature of a fence which shall exceed ten feet in height, to exclude the owner or occupant of a structure on adjoining land from the enjoyment of light or air, the owner or occupant who shall thereby be deprived of light or air shall be entitled to maintain an action in the supreme court to have such fence or structure adjudged a private nuisance.
10 ftheight above which a fence blocking light or air can be declared a private nuisance
How fence height is measured in White Plains
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White Plains does not set this. It leaves it to the town board, by local law or ordinance.
New York sets no fence height for a house, so it never says where a height starts. Town Law 261 lets a town board set the height, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures by local law, and that power covers the part of the town outside any village or city. Both the height limit for a fence and the point the height is counted from are written by the town board.
This one is New York law, not White Plains law. All New York findings
the town board is hereby empowered by local law or ordinance to regulate and restrict the height, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures
The code hands this to the town board, by local law or ordinance, which is not published in the code itself.
Fence rules for corner lots in White Plains
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White Plains does not set this. It leaves it to An Ordinance Regulating and Controlling Obstructions to Vision on the Corner Lots in Residence Districts in the City of White Plains, adopted 4 August 1980.
The White Plains zoning ordinance states no distance and no height for a corner. Section 4.4.4 says only that nothing may be placed or kept inside the restricted area of a residential intersection so as to obstruct traffic visibility, and hands the geometry to a separate ordinance adopted on 4 August 1980 and titled An Ordinance Regulating and Controlling Obstructions to Vision on the Corner Lots in Residence Districts. Reading the zoning ordinance alone does not settle whether a given corner fence is allowed.
nothing shall be placed or maintained within the restricted area of an intersection in a residential district in such a manner as to obstruct traffic visibility.
The code hands this to An Ordinance Regulating and Controlling Obstructions to Vision on the Corner Lots in Residence Districts in the City of White Plains, adopted 4 August 1980, which is not published in the code itself.
Also on corner visibility in White Plains
- left to the townNew York leaves the corner to the town, village or city. Town Law section 261 lets a town board set the height of structures and the size of yards and open spaces by local law. The highway title was read as well. Highway Law section 319 treats a fence as an obstruction when it stands inside the bounds of the highway, which turns on where the right of way line falls and not on the view across a corner. N.Y. Town Law 261New York · Zoning code
Retaining wall rules in White Plains
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White Plains does not set this. It leaves it to the Residential Code of New York State, published by the International Code Council and incorporated by reference in 19 NYCRR Part 1220.
New York runs one code statewide and it prints no rule for a wall that holds back earth. For houses the rule is the Residential Code of New York State, a book published by the International Code Council and taken into Part 1220 by reference. The section listing the changes New York makes to that book was read in full, and it covers snow load, insulation, oil tanks, sewer depth and repair work, never that kind of wall.
This one is New York law, not White Plains law. All New York findings
2020 RCNYS. The publication entitled 2020 Residential Code of New York State (publication date: November 2019), published by the International Code Council, Inc. The 2020 RCNYS is incorporated by reference in Part 1220 of this Title.
The code hands this to the Residential Code of New York State, published by the International Code Council and incorporated by reference in 19 NYCRR Part 1220, which is not published in the code itself.
Fence materials allowed in White Plains
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White Plains answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Electrically charged fences, barbed wire and anything else made of sharp material are out of every White Plains residential district. In a nonresidential district barbed wire is allowed as part of a fence, and the only condition is height: it has to sit at least six feet above the ground, which is a lower bar than the eight feet several nearby cities set.
Electrically charged fences, barbed wire fences and other fences constructed of sharp materials are not permitted within residential districts. Barbed wire is permitted as a part of a fence in a non-residential district, provided such barbed wire is located at least 6 feet above the ground.
6 ftheight above the ground at which barbed wire is allowed outside residential districts
Also on materials in White Plains
- set in state lawNew York names barbed wire in its town fence law and allows it in a fence on the line as long as the fence is built a set way. It carries at least four strands, the posts stand no more than fourteen feet apart, and the town fence viewers set the spacing of the posts and supports. The owner has to fix the fence as soon as it becomes unsafe. The section does not let railroad companies string barbed wire along their lines where the railroad law bars it. N.Y. Town Law 309New York · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in White Plains
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New York answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
New York prints one build in its fence article, and it is wire. A fence on the line made of barbed or other wire carries at least four strands. The town fence viewers set how far apart the posts and supports go, and the posts may never stand more than fourteen feet apart. Past that, the fence has to be built solidly and hold the kind of animals usually pastured on either side. A town cannot ban a wire fence that meets this section.
This one is New York law, not White Plains law. All New York findings
The fence shall be of at least four strands of wire with the posts and supports of such fence, at such distances apart, as the fence viewers of the town may prescribe, but the posts thereof shall be no further apart than fourteen feet
4 strandsminimum number of wire strands in a division fence
Also on agricultural fencing in White Plains
- left to the townNew York sets no statewide standard for what makes a shared fence good enough. The voters of each town make that rule for their own town. Once a town has one, a neighbor whose fence falls short loses the right to collect for damage done by an animal that was lawfully kept next door and came through the bad fence. Where nobody raises the question, a fence is taken as good enough until someone proves otherwise. Town Law 307New York · Statute
- set in state lawNew York lets two neighbors turn the fence rule off between them. Each one normally builds and keeps up a fair share of the fence on the line, but both may agree to let the land lie open instead. While that agreement holds, neither can sue the other for damage done by animals that were lawfully on the other's land. Either one can end it with written notice, and then both go back to building their shares. Town Law 301New York · Statute
Documents behind this page
11 documents, of which 2 were published by White Plains itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- New York State SenateNew York Town Law, Article 18, Fences and Fence Viewers
- City of White PlainsZoning Ordinance, Section 4, Regulations
- New York State SenateNew York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law, Article 8
- New York State SenateNew York Executive Law, Article 18
- City of White Plains, Department of BuildingFence and wall requirements
- New York State Department of State, Division of Building Standards and CodesTechnical Bulletin, Uniform Code Swimming Pool and Spa Requirements Summary
- New York State SenateNew York Consolidated Laws, Town Law, Article 16, Zoning and Planning
- New York State Department of StateOfficial Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York, Title 19, Chapter XXXIII, Subchapter A, Part 1219, Section 1219.2 Definitions
- New York State LegislatureLaws of New York, Town Law, Article 18, Fences, Strays and Pounds, Section 309, Use of barbed or other wire for division fence
- New York State LegislatureNew York Town Law, Article 18, Fences, Strays and Pounds, Section 307, Damages for insufficient fence
- New York State LegislatureNew York Town Law, Article 18, Fences, Strays and Pounds, Section 301, Lands lying open
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 White Plains publishes, plus the New York rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in New York 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