Fence contractors serving Los Angeles and the surrounding metro, listed below with address, phone and website. Los Angeles has one of the strictest front-yard fence limits of any large U.S. city — 3 feet 6 inches in residential zones — and a separate permit trigger for masonry, so it pays to talk to someone who works here regularly. Compare a few, then price the job with our fence cost estimator or read the wood, vinyl and aluminum guides. Also see San Jose and every California fence company in the directory.
Fence height limits and permits in Los Angeles
These are the rules that decide what your contractor can actually build. Confirm them for your parcel before you sign — the city applies them by zone, and hillside and historic parcels follow different ones.
- Front yard: 3 ft 6 in. In R (residential) zones, fences and walls in the required front yard are capped at 42 inches. Going to 8 feet requires a Zoning Administrator determination.
- Side and rear yards: 6 ft. LADBS states 6 feet is the standard limit in residential areas, with 8 feet available in some situations depending on lot size and location. Height is measured from the natural ground level next to the fence.
- Corner lots. Within 5 feet of the side-street lot line, the limit drops back to 3 ft 6 in.
- Intersection visibility. Citywide, nothing over 3 feet may obstruct the view inside the triangle formed 45 feet back from the intersecting curb lines (LAMC Sec. 62.200).
- Permits: material matters more than height. A masonry or concrete fence needs a building permit above 3 ft 6 in. A wood or wrought-iron fence of the same height does not — the building-permit exemption runs to 10 feet for non-masonry fences, though the zoning limits above still apply on their own. Retaining walls are not exempt.
- Pool barriers. A residential pool enclosure must be at least 60 inches high, with no more than a 2-inch gap at the bottom, gates that open away from the pool, and a self-closing, self-latching gate with the latch no lower than 60 inches.
Because masonry crosses the permit line at 42 inches, LADBS publishes a hybrid detail that stays permit-exempt to 6 feet: masonry or concrete pilasters up to 6 feet, masonry infill capped at 3 ft 6 in between them, and open wrought iron, wood or other lightweight material above that. If a contractor quotes you a 6-foot block wall with no permit line item, that detail is the reason to ask which one they are building.
Hillside lots and HPOZ parcels
In a designated Hillside Area, the by-right 8-foot side and rear allowance goes away and the fence conversation usually turns into a retaining-wall conversation. LAMC 12.21 C.8 allows one freestanding retaining wall up to 12 feet, or two walls up to 10 feet each separated by at least 3 feet horizontally; walls 8 feet and over need a landscape plan that hides the wall from view. LADBS also requires seismic design for walls retaining more than 6 feet of backfill, and a geotechnical investigation whenever the wall retains sloping ground. That is real engineering cost, and it is the single biggest reason hillside fence bids come in far above flatland bids.
If your property sits in a Historic Preservation Overlay Zone, every exterior alteration needs HPOZ approval — including work that would not otherwise need a building permit. Ask a contractor whether they have taken a fence through HPOZ review before, not just whether they have heard of it.
What Los Angeles does to a fence
Long dry summers and intense sun are hard on finishes: unsealed wood greys and checks quickly, and dark stains fade. Vinyl and powder-coated aluminum hold color better with less maintenance. On sloped lots, ask whether the fence will be stepped or racked — racking follows the grade and leaves no gaps underneath, which matters if you have a dog. And in a city this dense, confirm the property line from a survey rather than from the old fence; the old fence is frequently in the wrong place.
Rules change. Verify current requirements with LA Department of Building and Safety and LA City Planning before you build. Nothing here is legal advice.
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