Fence Contractors in Portland, OR

If privacy is the whole point, our board on board fence page covers the style that stays solid instead of opening gaps as the cedar dries. Once you have picked a material, the next questions are usually about the line and the rules. Here is what Portland and Vancouver allow on a property line, and how a good neighbor fence differs from board on board if both sides need to look finished. Adding a powered gate brings its own permit rules, covered in our automatic gate guide. And once the fence is up, timing the stain around Portland rain is the difference between a finish that lasts and one that has to be redone.

Colorbond is a steel fence panel with a baked-on factory colour. It does not need staining, it will not rot, and we build it on a cedar kickboard so the steel never sits in wet ground. See colours, what is included and the warranty on our Colorbond steel fence page.

Two separate rules decide what you can build inside the City of Portland, and a fence has to pass both. The zoning code caps the height, and the building code decides when you need a permit.

• Front setback: fences can be no taller than 3 feet 6 inches.
• Side and rear setbacks: up to 8 feet.
• No building permit for a wood fence up to 7 feet, masonry up to 4 feet, or chain link and woven wire up to 8 feet.
• Pool barriers always need a permit, whatever the height.
• Height is measured from the ground at the base of the fence to the very top, so lattice, trellis and post caps all count.

That is why 6 feet is the standard backyard privacy fence here: it clears the side and rear limit and stays under the height where a wood fence needs a permit. Suburbs write their own rules, and several differ from what you will read online. Our guide to Portland fence code and property lines covers Gresham, Happy Valley, Camas and Washougal line by line.