Fence laws in Mooresville, North Carolina
What the Mooresville municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Mooresville sets no rule of its own, the North Carolina rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Mooresville, North Carolina, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Fences are permitted on the property line between two or more parcels held in private ownership, with no consent from the adjoining owner required anywhere in the section, and the answer turns on whether the fence sits on the line or in an easement.
- How tall
- Mooresville treats a fence and a wall differently at the front of a residential lot, and the answer turns on whether the thing is a fence or a wall, and which district it stands in. The figure is 4 feet, for fence in a residential front yard.
- Permits
- An above ground electrified fence in Mooresville is allowed only through a conditional use permit, and three further approvals have to be in hand before it is installed or used, and the answer turns on whether the fence is electrified and who has to approve it. The figure is 6 feet, for shortest enclosing non-electrified fence.
- Pool barriers
- The North Carolina pool safety statute is for public pools, and its scope section leaves out a private pool at a single family home used only by the people living there and their guests.
- Spite fences
- Mooresville has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Mooresville states the datum once, at the top of the height subsection, and applies it to everything below: in all cases heights are measured from natural grade.
- Corner lots
- Section 9.3.5 is a single sentence: fences and walls are placed in accordance with the sight triangle standards elsewhere in Chapter 9, and the answer turns on the sight triangle standards in Section 9.3.4. The figure is 200 feet, for longest unbroken perimeter wall plane.
- Retaining walls
- Where a fence stands on top of a wall or a berm in Mooresville, the combined height of the two may not exceed the maximum that would apply to a fence or a wall on its own, and the answer turns on whether the fence stands on a wall or a berm.
- Materials
- Fences and walls have to be built of customary materials, meaning solid wood, brick, masonry, stone, wrought iron, decorative metal or products designed to resemble those, and where specific materials are named for a screening or buffering fence, every other material is prohibited for it, and the answer turns on the material, the district and the part of the lot.
- Livestock
- North Carolina puts the duty on the livestock owner everywhere in the state.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Mooresville?
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence sits on the line or in an easement.
Fences are permitted on the property line between two or more parcels held in private ownership, with no consent from the adjoining owner required anywhere in the section. Utility easements are the opposite: a fence is prohibited inside one, and the town disclaims responsibility for damage to, or the repair or replacement of, a fence it has to remove to get at an easement, with the proviso that nothing in that rule prevents fencing around a stormwater retention or detention facility the ordinance requires. No fence may be installed so as to block or divert a natural drainage flow onto or off any other land. The good side rule sends the more finished face, meaning the one without visible support framing, to the perimeter or outside of the lot, and every fence or wall segment along a single lot side has to be of uniform material and uniform color.
Fences are permitted on the property line between two or more parcels of land held in private ownership.
The answer turns on whether the fence sits on the line or in an easement.
- a shared line between two private lots
- A fence is permitted on it.
- a utility easement
- Prohibited, and the town will not repair what it removes.
- a run along one side of a lot
- One material, one color, finished side out.
Also on fences on the property line in Mooresville
- no rule, documents checkedNorth Carolina had a boundary fence law and threw it out. Chapter 68 still prints the heading Article 2, Division Fences, and the only thing under it says sections 68-6 through 68-14 were repealed by Session Laws 1971, chapter 741. Article 1, Lawful Fences, went at the same time. Nothing took their place, so the state has no rule at all on splitting the cost of a fence on the line. N.C.G.S. ch. 68North Carolina · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Mooresville?
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the thing is a fence or a wall, and which district it stands in.
Mooresville treats a fence and a wall differently at the front of a residential lot. A fence stops at four feet in a front yard and a wall at three, which is one of the few codes in this set to separate the two. Behind the front building line both take six feet. Nonresidential and mixed use districts are stricter at the street and looser behind it: no fence or wall is permitted in a front setback area at all, six feet is the limit in front yards and within twenty linear feet of a public right-of-way in side and rear yards, and eight feet applies everywhere else. Three things sit outside the heights. Fencing meeting a screening requirement is exempt, though it may not go more than two feet above the screening limits. Customary fencing around a tennis court, athletic field or other recreational facility is exempt. And major utilities, government facilities and other public safety uses are exempt as needed for public safety.
In the residential districts, fences shall not exceed a height of four feet in front yards. Walls shall be limited to a maximum height of three feet in front yards.
The answer turns on whether the thing is a fence or a wall, and which district it stands in.
- a fence in a residential front yard
- Four feet. 4 ft
- a wall in a residential front yard
- Three feet. 3 ft
- behind the front building line
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a nonresidential lot away from the street
- Eight feet. 8 ft
Also on fence height in Mooresville
- no rule, documents checkedNorth Carolina sets no statewide limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. The fence chapter that once held fence standards was repealed, and what is left is about livestock. The building permit statute draws its line at a dollar amount and names no height at all. The city or county development rules set the limit. N.C.G.S. ch. 68North Carolina · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Mooresville?
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence is electrified and who has to approve it.
An above ground electrified fence in Mooresville is allowed only through a conditional use permit, and three further approvals have to be in hand before it is installed or used. A zoning permit from the town, with an application carrying a site plan showing where the protective barrier and the electrified fence will go. An electrical permit from Iredell County Building Standards, with the ordinance stating that exemptions to the North Carolina Building Code do not satisfy it. And approval from the Mooresville Fire Marshal. The standards that follow are detailed: a commercial storage battery of no more than twelve volts direct current, an enclosing non-electrified fence of at least six feet with a gap of four to twelve inches between the two, a ten foot ceiling, warning signs on all sides and at every entrance gate at intervals of no less than thirty feet, and a hundred and fifty foot separation from the property line of a residence, school or day care unless the outer fence prevents inadvertent contact. It may only be energized when the public has no legal access, unless staff are on site to switch it off.
Prior to the installation or use of any electrified fence, a zoning permit shall be obtained.
The answer turns on whether the fence is electrified and who has to approve it.
- an electrified fence
- A conditional use permit, a zoning permit, a county electrical permit and the Fire Marshal.
- the enclosing fence
- Six feet, four to twelve inches away. 6 ft
- near a home, school or day care
- A hundred and fifty feet, unless contact is prevented. 150 ft
Also on permits in Mooresville
- set in state lawNorth Carolina decides its home permit rule by price, not by height. Work on a single family home that costs forty thousand dollars or less and is done to the current State Building Code needs no permit. A short list of exceptions is left out of that, such as work on load bearing structures or changes to plumbing, heating or electrical systems. An ordinary yard fence costs far less than forty thousand dollars and hits none of those exceptions. N.C.G.S. 160D-1110(c)North Carolina · Statute
Pool fence requirements in Mooresville
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North Carolina answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The North Carolina pool safety statute is for public pools, and its scope section leaves out a private pool at a single family home used only by the people living there and their guests. It goes further than most states. The pool stays outside the statute even when guests book it through a rental app or pay a fee. One condition comes with that. Where money changes hands for access, the pool has to be kept in good and safe working order. The fence rule for a pool at a house comes from the North Carolina State Building Code instead.
This one is North Carolina law, not Mooresville law. All North Carolina findings
A private pool serving a single family dwelling and used only by the residents of the dwelling and their guests, regardless of whether their guests gain use of the private pool through a sharing economy platform or pay a fee for its use.
Spite fence laws in Mooresville
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Mooresville law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
North Carolina has no spite fence law. What is left of the fence chapter covers livestock running loose, penning up stray animals, and the ponies on the Outer Banks. It names no height and says nothing about why a fence went up. The building permit statute does not cover it either. A claim about a fence built to annoy a neighbor rests on nuisance law made by judges, and on city and county zoning.
This one is North Carolina law, not Mooresville law. All North Carolina findings
Documents read before writing that:
- N.C.G.S. ch. 68North Carolina General Assembly
- N.C.G.S. 160D-1110North Carolina General Assembly
How fence height is measured in Mooresville
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Mooresville answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Mooresville states the datum once, at the top of the height subsection, and applies it to everything below: in all cases heights are measured from natural grade. Natural is the word doing the work. It points at the ground as it was rather than as it is after earthworks, so bringing in fill or shaping a mound under a fence gains nothing. The ordinance never defines natural grade in the fence section, and states no rule for a fence crossing a slope, no post depth and no footing. What it does settle in the same breath is the stacking question, handled separately in its own rule about fences on retaining walls and berms.
All fences and walls shall conform to the following standards. In all cases, heights are measured from natural grade.
Also on how height is measured in Mooresville
- left to the townNorth Carolina never says where a fence height is measured from. What is left of Chapter 68 is about stock law fences and penned animals, and it carries no measuring rule. G.S. 160D-702 lets a local government set the height of buildings and other structures. The same section blocks a local government from controlling some design details of a house, and then puts height back outside that block, so height stays a local power. The point the measuring starts from goes with it. G.S. 160D-702(a)North Carolina · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Mooresville
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on the sight triangle standards in Section 9.3.4.
Section 9.3.5 is a single sentence: fences and walls are placed in accordance with the sight triangle standards elsewhere in Chapter 9. The dimensions therefore live with the street design standards rather than with the fence rules, and the ordinance carries a figure illustrating the site distance triangle alongside those standards. The practical effect is that the four foot residential front yard limit is a ceiling rather than a clearance, and a fence at a corner has to satisfy the triangle as well. A perimeter fence abutting a public right-of-way carries its own set of conditions, having to be of a uniform style, outside the right-of-way, outside any required streetscape landscaping, and broken in its wall plane at least every two hundred feet.
Fences and walls shall be placed in accordance with the standards in Section 9.3.4(10), Sight Triangles.
The answer turns on the sight triangle standards in Section 9.3.4.
- any fence or wall
- The sight triangle standards apply.
- a perimeter fence on a right-of-way
- A break in the plane every two hundred feet. 200 ft
Also on corner visibility in Mooresville
- left to the townNorth Carolina has no clear view triangle in state law. Chapter 160D gathers local development power in one place and lets a local government set the height of structures and the size of yards and open spaces, so a corner rule comes from there. Chapter 136, the highways chapter, covers something else. It talks about seeing past a sign only for political signs put in the right of way, and it sets sight distance standards for driveway permits. Neither one is a rule about a fence on private land. G.S. 160D-702North Carolina · Zoning code
Retaining wall rules in Mooresville
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence stands on a wall or a berm.
Where a fence stands on top of a wall or a berm in Mooresville, the combined height of the two may not exceed the maximum that would apply to a fence or a wall on its own. So a six foot fence on a three foot retaining wall is a nine foot structure and fails, and building up the ground first buys nothing. The rule is stated twice, once in the general requirements and again inside the height subsection, which is a sign the town expects it to be argued about. It pairs with the datum, since heights are read from natural grade, and together the two close both routes to extra height: raising the ground and standing on something.
If a fence is constructed on top of a wall or berm, the combined height of the fence and wall or berm shall not exceed the maximum height that would apply to a fence or wall alone.
The answer turns on whether the fence stands on a wall or a berm.
- a fence on a wall or berm
- The two are added together.
- the ordinary limits
- They apply to the combined structure.
Also on retaining walls in Mooresville
- left to the townNorth Carolina prints no retaining wall rule in its General Statutes. The Building Code Council and the Residential Code Council write and adopt the North Carolina State Building Code, and one of its volumes is the North Carolina Residential Code. Whether a wall that holds back earth needs a permit, and how it has to be built, both sit in that volume and not in the statute. N.C.G.S. 143-138(a)North Carolina · Statute
Fence materials allowed in Mooresville
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Mooresville answers this, but the answer changes depending on the material, the district and the part of the lot.
Fences and walls have to be built of customary materials, meaning solid wood, brick, masonry, stone, wrought iron, decorative metal or products designed to resemble those, and where specific materials are named for a screening or buffering fence, every other material is prohibited for it. Chain link and metal slat fencing are prohibited in the front yard in every residential and mixed use district, and where chain link is allowed it has to be vinyl coated in dark green, brown or black. Barbed wire and above ground electrified fences are prohibited in all districts except as needed for agriculture, major utilities, government facilities and other public safety uses, or under the electrified fence provisions, and an underground pet fence is expressly permitted. A fence of debris, junk, rolled plastic, sheet metal, plywood or waste material is prohibited unless the material has been recycled and reprocessed into a building material sold to the public that resembles new material.
Fences and walls shall be constructed of customary materials, including solid wood, brick, masonry, stone, wrought iron, decorative metal materials, or products designed to resemble these materials.
The answer turns on the material, the district and the part of the lot.
- a front yard in a residential district
- No chain link and no metal slats.
- chain link where it is allowed
- Vinyl coated dark green, brown or black.
- barbed wire or an above ground electric fence
- Prohibited outside farming, utilities and public safety.
Also on materials in Mooresville
- set in state lawNorth Carolina sets one standard for a battery charged security fence and takes the question away from cities. The fence ties into a monitored alarm, sits on land not set aside for homes, and runs off a battery of no more than 12 volts. Its charger has to meet the International Electrotechnical Commission standard. It stands inside a fence or wall that carries no current and is at least 5 feet tall, reaches 10 feet, and carries WARNING-ELECTRIC FENCE signs no more than 30 feet apart. A city may not ban one on land that is not zoned for homes only. N.C.G.S. 160A-194.1North Carolina · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Mooresville
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North Carolina answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
North Carolina puts the duty on the livestock owner everywhere in the state. Letting livestock run loose is a Class 3 misdemeanor. Livestock here means horses and other animals like them, cattle, sheep, goats, llamas and swine. Anyone may catch and pen an animal found running loose and get back the cost of keeping it plus any damage, and none of that depends on whether the land was fenced.
This one is North Carolina law, not Mooresville law. All North Carolina findings
If any person shall allow his livestock to run at large, he shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor.
Also on agricultural fencing in Mooresville
- no rule, documents checkedNorth Carolina no longer says what a lawful fence is anywhere in state law. Chapter 68 is called Fences and Stock Law, and sections 68-1 through 68-14, where the old fence specification sat, were repealed in 1969 and 1971. What is left is the livestock law, the process for penning and selling a stray animal, and the Outer Banks sections. None of them set a height, a wire count, a board count or a post spacing. Money owed under the chapter does not depend on the land being fenced, so there is nothing left for a fence standard to hang on. N.C.G.S. ch. 68North Carolina · Statute
Documents behind this page
8 documents, of which 1 was published by Mooresville itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 68, Fences and Stock Law
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 160D, Article 11, Building Permits
- Town of MooresvilleMooresville Zoning Ordinance, Chapter 9, Section 9.3, Fences and Walls
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 130A, Article 8, Part 10, Public Swimming Pools
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 160D, Local Planning and Development Regulation
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 143, Article 9, Section 143-138, North Carolina State Building Code
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 160A, Section 160A-194.1, Regulation of battery-charged security fences
- North Carolina General AssemblyNorth Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 68, Fences and Stock Law, Article 3, Livestock Law
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 Mooresville publishes, plus the North Carolina rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in North Carolina 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