San Jose, California
San Jose is the biggest part of our service area and the most varied. Willow Glen and Rose Garden lots want fences that match houses with real architecture. Almaden and Blossom Valley are mostly replacement work on fences that went in thirty years ago and have reached the end.
The height rule is straightforward until you are on a corner. Three feet in a front yard, seven in a side or rear yard, permit above that. On a corner lot the side that faces the street counts as a front yard, so the 3 foot limit follows it around the corner and catches people who assumed the whole side return was rear yard.
San Jose also has a soil problem worth knowing about. The city's own General Plan describes much of the soil here as moderately to highly expansive, meaning it swells and shrinks with moisture. That is why so many fences in this city lean the same direction, and it is a post depth and drainage question rather than a fence quality one.
Local rules
| Front yard | 3 ft |
|---|---|
| Side and rear | 7 ft |
| The rule | Up to 3 feet in a front yard and up to 7 feet in a side or rear yard without a planning permit. Above those heights you are into both a building permit and a planning permit. |
Worth knowing. Corner lots are the trap. The side yard that faces the street is treated as a front yard, so the 3 foot limit follows it around the corner.
Source: City of San Jose, Fences and Retaining Walls. Cities change these. We check your specific address before we quote.
What we build here
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