Start with the line itself, not the fence
Every fence dispute, permit problem and expensive rebuild starts the same way: somebody assumed where the property line was. A fence built even a few inches onto a neighbour's land can have to be moved at the builder's cost, and a fence built inside your own line quietly gives away land you may struggle to reclaim. Before any posts, panels or contractor quotes, establish the line in documents: your closing paperwork and plat, any existing survey, and the iron pins or markers surveyors leave at corners. If none of those settle it, a professional survey is the definitive answer — and it is far cheaper before the fence than after it. This checklist pairs with our fence replacement cost guide: price the project once the line, the permit and the underground picture are all confirmed.
The permit question, asked properly
Fence rules are local — city or county ordinances typically govern height (commonly different limits for front and back yards), materials, and sometimes which side the finished face must point to. Many jurisdictions require a permit for a new fence and allow like-for-like repairs without one, but "typically" decides nothing: call or check your local building department's own published rules before work starts, and get the answer for your address, not a neighbour's memory of theirs. If a homeowners' association covers your street, its rules sit on top of the city's — both approvals may be needed, and the stricter rule governs.
Talk to the neighbour before the contractor
A five-minute conversation over the existing fence prevents most boundary misery. Share the plan, the line evidence and the timeline; agree in writing who pays for what if the fence is shared; and photograph the existing fence and line markers together before anything is removed. Our guide to finding a fence repair company covers vetting the contractor; the neighbour conversation is the step that protects the relationship the contractor cannot.
Call 811 before any digging — every time
Before any digging — post holes included — call 811 or use your state's 811 centre online, at least a few business days ahead. The free service arranges for underground utilities — gas, electric, water, communications — to be marked, and hitting an unmarked-by-you line is dangerous as well as expensive. This applies to a full replacement and to a single replacement post alike: the hole does not know it is a small job. Wait for all utilities to respond, respect the marks while digging, and hand-dig carefully near marked lines. Our how to build a fence guide walks the build itself once the marks are down.
Shared fences and good faith
Where a fence sits on the line itself, many areas treat it as a shared structure with shared responsibilities — which is another reason the documents matter more than assumptions. If you and your neighbour disagree about the line or the cost split, stop before building, not during: a mediator or a surveyor is a modest expense compared with moving a finished fence, and a disagreement conducted in writing, before any work, stays a disagreement about paper. Everything in this checklist is cheaper in that order — line first, feelings consulted early, concrete last.
The checklist, in order
- Line: plat and survey checked; corners found or a survey booked.
- Permit: local height, material and placement rules confirmed for your address; HOA approval if applicable.
- Neighbour: plan shared, cost-sharing in writing if shared, existing fence photographed.
- 811: called, utilities marked, marks respected — before the first hole.
- Only then: quotes, using DIY or hire a pro? to decide who does the work.
None of this paperwork is the project anyone dreams about — but every hour of it is spent once, while a fence on the wrong line is paid for twice.