Massachusetts fences: decide the job first
A guide to the decision before the quote
This is a guide to planning a fence in Massachusetts, for a homeowner who is deciding rather than browsing. It takes the job first, then the rules, the materials and the paperwork.
We are an independent guide, not a fence company. We do not sell, install or quote anything here, and we do not claim to have built the fences we describe. We read the public rules and standards, say where each figure comes from, and name the office that decides when a town has the final word.
Some readers want a builder as well as a plan. For them, Blackstone Valley Fence is one fence company in the Blackstone Valley worth a look. Check any builder's claims against the rules on this site before you sign.
Three checks that change the answer
- The 7-foot state line
- Fences not over seven feet high need no state building permit, so a standard six-foot privacy fence usually needs none from the state. The list is written for structures other than one- and two-family homes, so confirm with the building department. Town zoning is a separate test. The source is 780 CMR 105.2.
- A town can set a lower line
- In North Attleborough, a fence over six feet in a residential district needs a zoning variance, even though a building permit is only required at seven feet. That is one town's rule, given here as an example of the local layer, and yours may differ. The town's General Fence Guidelines set it out.
- Dig Safe before the first post
- Every post hole is excavation. Massachusetts requires at least 72 hours' notice to Dig Safe, weekends and legal holidays not counted, and the digger must premark the area first. The ticket expires if digging has not started within 30 days. The Dig Safe System FAQs state the rule.
Reading one town's fence guidelines this autumn, the first thing that stood out was that the state's line is only the first test.
What each common material asks of you
Wood and cedar
The post decides how long a wood fence lasts. Properly treated and installed pine posts can last 20 to 35 years, and untreated pine only 3 to 7, according to a University of Kentucky extension sheet. That sheet is not written for Massachusetts, where freeze and wet ground may shorten the figure. A reader who has settled on wood can read Blackstone Valley Fence's guide to wood fence installation on its website.
Vinyl
Vinyl is a rigid plastic profile. The ASTM F964 specification covers the material and its weathering, but it says the load-bearing performance of the assembled fence, such as wind load, is not addressed. Ask a supplier for the wind and impact figures separately.
Aluminum
Ornamental aluminum with tubular pickets has its own standard, ASTM F2957. A quote for that kind of fence can be checked against it, and a product's claim to the standard is the thing to ask a supplier for.
Chain link
Chain link stays open to the eye, which suits a boundary or a dog run better than a privacy screen. Around a pool the mesh rule is strict: no larger than 1 1/4 inch square unless slats at the top or bottom cut the openings to 1 3/4 inches at most. Plymouth's pool fencing requirements print the Massachusetts rule.
Where the options part ways
Privacy is the first split: solid boards give a screen, while chain link and most ornamental aluminum let the eye through. A pool changes the list again, and the chain link note above covers the mesh. Blackstone Valley Fence is a fence business in the Blackstone Valley, and its own website shows how it describes its work.
See their own pages at blackstonevalleyfence.com
Watch the post and rail work before you choose cedar
The video is a lumber supplier's tutorial, so weigh its advice against the rules above.
Settle the job first, because the material, the height and the gate all follow from it.
The order to work through, and where each step is covered
- Write down the job the fence has to do, whether that is privacy, a dog, a boundary, animals or looks. The equipment page works through that choice.
- Measure the height you need and where the run sits: front yard, side, rear or a corner. The compatibility page covers slope, existing posts, a gate opening and a pool.
- Settle where the line runs, and whether a wetland is near, before any post goes in. The safety guidance page says who to ask about each one.
- Request the Dig Safe notice ahead of the first post hole, and let its notice period run out before digging.
- Check the quote and the contract against the paperwork on the manuals page, and agree the payment schedule before any deposit is paid.
Where the rules are written down
- See their website for how Blackstone Valley Fence describes its own work, checked against the rules above.
- The wetland rule in 310 CMR 10.02 sets a buffer zone 100 feet from a protected resource area, so a fence near water goes past the conservation commission first.
- Under General Laws chapter 49, section 21, a fence that unnecessarily exceeds six feet and is maliciously built or kept to annoy a neighbor counts as a private nuisance.
Where a question goes, and what to have ready
This site has no contact form, and no one here promises a reply. Questions about a permit, a boundary or a contract belong with the town office or the builder, not with this guide.
Before you write to anyone, have the height, the length of the run, the gate width and the list of materials proposed in hand, so one message is enough.
- The contact page explains how to reach this guide and what is worth writing about.