Fence Companyin West Covina, CA
A fence company in West Covina works within the 2024 Development Code: side and rear fences between houses can reach 7 feet, while front and street side fences stop at 6 feet and must be 70 percent open above 42 inches. The Building Division exempts fences up to 6 feet from permits, so confirm 7 feet.
A fence in West Covina is a lot-line question in a city that was platted almost at once. The population went from 4,499 in 1950 to 50,645 in 1960, and the ACS 2024 five-year tables show that 64.4 percent of the 34,287 housing units are detached houses, many on postwar lots where the back fence is shared with neighbors on two or three sides. The median home value is $779,800, so owners care where the line runs and what stands on it.
The rules sit in two City documents that do not say the same thing, which is the reason to read both before ordering materials. MDG Builders (CSLB #1040337) is the general contractor: we read the zoning and the permit exemptions for your lot, write the scope, deal with the Building Division if a permit applies and schedule a licensed fencing subcontractor to build. Prices are on the fencing price page, the West Covina overview lists our other trades here, and the Pomona fence guide covers a neighboring city with different limits.
What West Covina's Development Code and Building Division say about fences
Where fencing permits come from in West Covina: City of West Covina Community Development Department, Building Division.
- The Building Division exempts fences from a building permit if they are not pool barriers and are no taller than 6 feet (masonry or concrete fences also have to be set back from public ways at least as far as their height). Retaining walls are exempt up to 4 feet measured from the bottom of the footing, unless they carry a surcharge. The City FAQ repeats that fences over 6 feet need a permit.
- The Development Code allows a freestanding fence or wall between single-family lots up to 7 feet in the side and rear yard (8 feet where a residential lot meets commercial). Because the Building Division exemption stops at 6 feet, a 7-foot fence is read here as needing a building permit; the exemption handout and the code are two separate City documents, so confirm with the counter.
- Fences in the required front setback, street side yard, or the rear yard of a through lot are limited to 6 feet and must be at least 70 percent open work above 42 inches (pilasters up to 18 inches wide allowed). A solid fence is allowed on a street side yard (not a reverse corner lot) or the rear of a through lot only if no neighboring single-family house faces that same street. Light fixtures on top of a street-facing fence or pillar must stay under 1,600 lumens, with fence plus light no taller than 6 feet 6 inches.
- Anything in a corner sight triangle is limited to 36 inches, and fences or walls along the side and rear lines of single-family lots next to a principal or minor arterial street may go to 8 feet if they meet the 70 percent open design in the street-fronting rule. Hedges have no height limit except in the front yard.
- Barbed wire, razor wire and electric fences are prohibited in residential zones, and chain link is prohibited in a front yard or anywhere visible from the public street. A fence over 6 feet within 5 feet of the property line must be finished on both sides, finished on the neighbor's side, or built of decorative block. Pool and spa fences must meet the City's Building Code.
- Retaining walls: an inward-facing retaining wall in a setback may reach 7 feet and an outward-facing one (toward a street or neighbor) 3 feet. The combined retaining wall plus fence is capped at 12 feet in the front setback and 13 feet in side and rear yards for inward-facing walls, and 9 and 10 feet for outward-facing walls. Fence height is measured from the lowest grade on either side, and a fence on top of a retaining wall counts as one structure.
Sources for these rules
How tall can a fence be in my West Covina front yard or street side yard?
Six feet is the ceiling in the front setback, on the street side of a corner lot and in the rear yard of a through lot, and the fence has to be at least 70 percent open above 42 inches, according to the City's Development Code. Pilasters up to 18 inches wide are allowed, so an open iron or slat design can still stand on masonry posts.
A solid fence on a street side yard, other than on a reverse corner lot, or along the back of a through lot is allowed only if no neighboring single-family house faces that same street. Chain link is prohibited in a front yard and anywhere it can be seen from the public street, and barbed wire, razor wire and electric fences are prohibited in every residential zone.
Two small limits catch people:
- Anything inside a corner sight triangle is capped at 36 inches.
- A light fixture on a street-facing fence or pillar must stay under 1,600 lumens, with fence and light together no taller than 6 feet 6 inches.
Open design above 42 inches and 6 feet at most: that is the front yard rule in one line.
Can I build a 7 foot fence in West Covina, and does it need a permit?
The 2024 Development Code, Ordinance 2525, took effect in March 2024 and raised side and rear fences from 6 to 7 feet. A freestanding fence or wall between single-family lots can now reach 7 feet in the side and rear yard, 8 feet where a residential lot meets commercial property, and 8 feet along an arterial street if it uses the 70 percent open design.
The building permit side is where it gets hedged. The Building Division's permit exemption handout exempts fences up to 6 feet that are not pool barriers, and the City FAQ says fences over 6 feet need a permit. Read together, a 7 foot fence would need a building permit even though zoning allows it. No City page states that sentence, so it is our reading, and we confirm it with the counter at 626-939-8425 before quoting.
Two details affect the finish. A fence over 6 feet within 5 feet of a property line must be finished on both sides, finished on the neighbor's side or built of decorative block. Masonry or concrete fences that skip the permit must also sit back from public ways at least as far as they are tall. Hedges have no height limit outside the front yard.
Fence installation around a pool: what West Covina requires
A pool barrier is never in the exempt category. The Building Division handout clears fences up to 6 feet only when they are not pool barriers, and the Development Code says pool and spa fences must meet the City's Building Code. We could not read the barrier height and gate language, so we print no number; ask the counter for the current requirement before ordering panels or gates.
State law adds a second layer. Health and Safety Code 115922 requires at least two of seven drowning-prevention features when a permit issues for a new or remodeled pool, and the enclosure itself falls under section 115923. A fence is only one piece of the pool's approval, so the pool builder and the fence builder should work from the same page of the plans.
Paperwork multiplies around a pool. The Master Fee Schedule effective January 1, 2026 allows a combined swimming pool permit at 2 times the building permit fee, and a pool or spa installation also needs a Planning Zoning Clearance at a flat $92.66. Ask who files each one.
What are the rules for fences and retaining walls on the San Jose Hills slopes?
Slope changes which number governs. A retaining wall is exempt from a building permit up to 4 feet measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, if it carries no surcharge, and the City FAQ says a wall that supports a slope needs a permit even when it is lower.
The Development Code adds height limits. An inward-facing retaining wall in a setback may reach 7 feet and an outward-facing one, toward a street or neighbor, 3 feet. A wall and the fence on top of it count as one structure, with combined caps of 12 feet in the front setback and 13 feet in side and rear yards for inward-facing walls, and 9 and 10 feet for outward-facing walls. Fence height is measured from the lowest grade on either side.
The south side adds two more limits. The Hillside Overlay keeps slopes over 45 percent ungraded, and engineering permits for grading and retaining walls require $1,000,000 of general liability insurance naming the City as additional insured. For wind, the National Weather Service forecast office for Los Angeles called for valley gusts of 35 to 55 miles per hour in October 2026, so ask each bidder how deep the posts are set, what the footings are made of and whether the panels are solid or slatted.
Who pays for a shared fence in West Covina, and who gets the finished side?
Under California Civil Code 841, adjoining owners are presumed to share equally the reasonable cost of building, maintaining or replacing a fence on their common line unless they agreed otherwise in writing, and a neighbor may try to rebut that presumption. Give each affected neighbor 30 days' written notice before you incur costs, describing the problem, your proposed fix, the estimated costs and a cost-sharing proposal.
Section 841.4 sets the outer limit: a fence unnecessarily more than 10 feet high, built maliciously to annoy a neighbor, is a private nuisance. In practice a surveyor's stakes settle the boundary question before any money is spent, since a fence built a few inches onto the neighbor's lot is a dispute no notice letter fixes.
Many lots also sit under private rules. The Development Code leaves CC&Rs in force and does not override them, and the City keeps a Planned Residential Development overlay, so an association can limit height, material and color beyond what the City asks. California Civil Code 4765 requires an association to follow a reasonable procedure and give written decisions on member requests, so ask for yours in writing.
How much does fence installation cost in West Covina, and which materials last?
No survey prices West Covina fences separately, so we print Los Angeles benchmarks from Angi, HomeGuide, Thumbtack and Fixr: about $25 to $55 per linear foot for a 6 foot wood or vinyl privacy fence, $12 to $30 for chain link and $35 to $85 for aluminum or ornamental iron. A 100 foot backyard run lands near $2,500 to $5,500. The Bureau of Labor Statistics put fence erector wages in the Los Angeles area at a mean $28.00 an hour for May 2025, which is pay rather than a billing rate.
Block walls, horizontal slat designs, gates with openers and hillside runs have no independent price, so the written proposal sets them. A block wall is masonry, a different license class from fencing, as the hiring section explains. Wood is the usual choice, and the University of California's pest program reports that drywood termites are most prevalent in southern California and attack fences, so ask whether the posts are termite-resistant wood or set on concrete footers.
How do I choose a fence company in West Covina?
CSLB class C-13 covers constructing, erecting, altering or repairing fences, corrals, runs, railings and gates, and it excludes masonry walls, which fall under class C-29. Check the number first with our contractor license guide. A fence that needs a permit is never covered by the $1,000 unlicensed-work limit, and West Covina asks a permit-holding contractor for a license card, workers' compensation proof and a current City business license.
On an MDG job the fence builder is a licensed subcontractor, and you can ask for that firm's license number and certificate of insurance before you sign; how general contractors use subcontractors explains the split. Put these questions to every bidder:
- Which CSLB license number will the work run under, and does the record check out?
- Is there a written contract that follows Business and Professions Code 7159?
- Who sends the neighbor notice and files any permit or Zoning Clearance?
- How deep are the posts, what are the footings and are panels solid or slatted?
- Does the scope list footage, height, gates, old fence removal and haul-away?
Fence and gate photos from West Covina and nearby communities
Fence scenes tied to West Covina streets and to nearby communities such as Baldwin Park and La Puente, from wood privacy runs to metal pool barriers.
Where the fence numbers come from
Every per-foot figure here is a Los Angeles benchmark, and each source is named in the table on the fencing cost page. Permit and Zoning Clearance fees are not in those numbers, and because the sources disagree at the low end, treat them as a planning range and ask for a written, measured proposal. If the yard also needs a new roof or fresh paint, the West Covina roofing guide and the painting guide cover those trades. Other cities set different limits, as the Glendale and Los Angeles guides show.
| What it covers | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Wood or vinyl privacy fence, 6 feet | $25 to $55 per linear foot |
| Chain-link | $12 to $30 per linear foot |
| Aluminum or ornamental iron | $35 to $85 per linear foot |
| Typical 100-foot backyard run | $2,500 to $5,500 total |
| Block walls, horizontal slat fences, gates and openers, hillside lots | Set by the written proposal |
Other work we manage in West Covina
West Covina fence questions, answered
How much should I pay for a fence installation in West Covina?
Use the Los Angeles planning ranges plus a measured proposal. A 6 foot wood or vinyl privacy fence runs about $25 to $55 per linear foot, chain link $12 to $30 and aluminum or ornamental iron $35 to $85, from Angi, HomeGuide, Thumbtack and Fixr. West Covina has no published fence survey, and permit fees come on top.
How much does 200 ft of fencing cost?
Multiply the footage by the per-foot range for your material, then add gates, removal of the old fence and any permit. Our sourced example is a 100 foot backyard run at $2,500 to $5,500, so 200 feet of standard privacy fence lands roughly between $5,000 and $11,000. Hillside, block and slat designs are quoted from a site visit.
Can I put up a 7ft fence in West Covina?
Yes between single-family lots in the side and rear yard, under the 2024 Development Code, but expect a building permit. The Building Division exempts fences only up to 6 feet, and no City page reconciles the two limits. The front setback and street side stop at 6 feet and must be 70 percent open above 42 inches.
Do I need a permit to build a fence in West Covina?
Not for a fence up to 6 feet that is not a pool barrier, according to the Building Division's exemption handout. Fences over 6 feet, pool barriers and retaining walls over 4 feet or supporting a slope need permits. Zoning still applies to an exempt fence, and the handout warns that Planning approval can apply too.
How tall can my front fence be in West Covina?
Six feet at most, and it must be at least 70 percent open above 42 inches, with pilasters up to 18 inches wide. A solid street side fence is allowed only when no neighboring single-family house faces that street. Chain link is banned in the front yard and anywhere it shows from the street.
Does my neighbor have to pay for half the fence in California?
Usually the law presumes so. Civil Code 841 treats adjoining owners as equal sharers of the reasonable cost of a fence on their line, unless they agreed otherwise, and a neighbor can rebut that. Send 30 days' written notice before incurring costs, and keep proof you delivered it.
What happens if I don't get a permit for a fence in West Covina?
We could not read a penalty schedule, so we quote none. The Building Division says work started before a permit issues is subject to a stop-work notice and a non-compliance fee. A permit is only needed above 6 feet or for pool barriers and larger retaining walls, so check the height first.
Is it cheaper to install a wood or vinyl fence?
Wood is usually cheaper up front. Angi's Los Angeles page lists $1,600 to $2,500 for a typical wood job and $1,850 to $3,400 for vinyl, and HomeGuide shows $20 to $50 per foot for wood against $30 to $60 for vinyl. Vinyl avoids termites and staining; wood can be restained and repaired section by section.
How do I choose a fence company or fence contractor in West Covina?
Begin at the CSLB lookup: fencing is class C-13, and masonry walls belong to another class. Ask for the written contract Business and Professions Code 7159 requires, proof of insurance, a current City business license and who will send the neighbor notice. Permit work is always outside the unlicensed-work exemption.
Plan your fence project in West Covina
Tell us the address, how much length you want to enclose and whether any of it is front yard, hillside or beside a pool. We check the height and overlay questions before we call back.