FENCE RULES – WASHINGTON (COUNTY), NEBRASKA
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within Washington County, subject to local regulations.
This page applies to properties in the unincorporated areas of Washington County; incorporated municipalities regulate fences under their own ordinances.
Washington County regulates fences through the Washington County Zoning Resolution No. 2005-19, zoning permit materials, building permit materials, subdivision regulations, and floodplain management materials. The county does not publish one consolidated residential fence code; fence rules appear mainly in the zoning provisions for required yards, visual obstruction, corner lots, residential animal keeping, and floodplain review.
This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing, including rural residential and agricultural residential contexts where applicable. If the jurisdiction’s adopted materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one.
Compiled From Washington County Planning & Zoning materials, Washington County Zoning Resolution No. 2005-19, Washington County Subdivision Regulations, Washington County Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3, Douglas County-Washington County Stormwater Management Policies, Washington County Building Inspections, Required Documents & Permit Details, Washington County Zoning Permit Application, and Washington County Erosion Control Permit Application as of May 2026.
GOVERNANCE
Washington County administers zoning, building permits, floodplain management, and land-use review through the Washington County Planning Department. The county’s public Planning & Zoning materials identify the Planning Administrator, Building Inspector, and permit and inspection materials for county-administered development.
The Washington County Zoning Resolution applies to unincorporated areas of Washington County, except areas where cities or villages have been permitted to extend and are exercising zoning jurisdiction. Where a city or village exercises zoning control over an unincorporated area, its regulations supersede Washington County’s regulations for that area.
The controlling county materials for residential fence orientation are the Washington County Zoning Resolution No. 2005-19, Washington County Zoning Permit Application, Required Documents & Permit Details, Washington County Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3, and the Washington County Subdivision Regulations where platted lots, easements, rights-of-way, or subdivision approvals are involved.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Local Fence Permit: Washington County does not publish a separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences. Washington County publishes that it adopted and enforces the 2018 IBC and 2018 IRC, effective August 1, 2020. Under the adopted building-code framework used for this page, fences not more than 7 feet high are exempt from building permits. Washington County does not publish a stricter local fence-specific permit threshold for standard residential fences.
• Zoning Compliance: Building permit requirements are separate from zoning, setback, or plat requirements. Confirm any applicable zoning conditions, setbacks, and plat requirements with Washington County Planning Department before construction.
• Zoning Permit Materials: Washington County publishes zoning permit materials for structures, but those materials do not name standard residential fences as a separate zoning-permit category.
• Floodplain Development Permit: The Washington County Zoning Permit Application lists a Floodplain Development Permit as an additional submittal if located in a floodplain. Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3 requires a separate development permit for floodplain development and states that no development is permitted in covered flood hazard areas except upon issuance of a floodplain permit.
• Municipal or Extraterritorial Jurisdiction: Washington County permit materials identify separate zoning review for certain city, village, or one-mile or two-mile jurisdiction areas. This page is limited to Washington County’s unincorporated county jurisdiction.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Yards: The Washington County Zoning Resolution states that fences or walls, subject to applicable height restrictions, are permitted in all yards.
• Property Lines: The ordinance does not state a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.
• Subdivision and Plat Limits: Where a residential lot is part of a subdivision, Washington County subdivision materials require plats to show property lines, rights-of-way, easements, and setback lines. These recorded lot, right-of-way, and easement conditions operate separately from the general yard language for fences and walls.
• Floodplain Areas: In areas covered by Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3, no floodplain development is permitted except upon issuance of a floodplain permit. The resolution defines development broadly to include man-made changes to real estate, including buildings or other structures, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations, or storage of equipment or materials.
• Floodway Areas: In the Floodway Overlay District, new structures for human habitation are prohibited, and encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements, and other development, are prohibited unless the required professional certification demonstrates that the development will not result in any increase in water surface elevations along the floodway profile during the base flood discharge.
• Utility Safety: Nebraska law requires notice through Nebraska 811 before excavation begins. For fence projects that involve digging, including fence post holes, notice generally must be given at least 2 full business days and not more than 10 business days before excavation begins, subject to limited exceptions.
FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES
• General Fence Height: The code does not specify a general maximum height for standard residential fences.
• Building-Code Exemption Height: Under the adopted building-code framework used for this page, fences not more than 7 feet high are exempt from building permits.
• Yard Height Reference: The zoning resolution states that fences and walls are permitted in all yards subject to applicable height restrictions, but the residential fence provisions do not publish a single general fence-height table for ordinary residential fences.
• Corner Lots: On a corner lot in any district, nothing may be erected, planted, or allowed to grow in a manner that materially impedes vision between 2.5 feet and 8 feet above the grades of the centerline of the intersecting street, from the point of intersection 120 feet in each direction, measured along the centerline of the street.
• Visual Obstruction Definition: Washington County defines a visual obstruction as any fence, hedge, tree, shrub, wall, or structure exceeding 2 feet in height, measured from the crown of intersecting or intercepting streets, alleys, or driveways, that limits visibility for persons in motor vehicles. Trees trimmed of branches below a minimum height of 8 feet are excluded from that definition.
• Floodway Visibility and Flow Context: Floodway review is not a fence-height rule, but structures or encroachments in a floodway are subject to flood-flow standards under Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• General Materials: The code does not specify permitted or prohibited materials for standard residential fences.
• Finished Side: The code does not specify a finished-side or orientation requirement for standard residential fences.
• Chain Link, Wood, Vinyl, Masonry, Barbed Wire, and Electric Fence: The code does not publish a standard residential material rule for chain link, wood, vinyl, masonry, barbed wire, or electric fencing in the ordinary residential fence provisions.
• Residential Animal Keeping: Where Washington County’s residential animal keeping provisions apply, fencing must be adequate to keep animals from infringing on adjacent property and must be selected and maintained for safety according to accepted standards, with lockable gates appropriate to the animals and the conditions under which they are kept.
• Screening Standards for Nonresidential Uses: The zoning resolution includes screening fence standards for uses such as junkyards, extractive industries, industrial development, and certain nonresidential storage or disposal areas. Those nonresidential screening standards are not stated as ordinary single-family residential fence material rules.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
Private restrictions operate independently from Washington County zoning and building rules. These may include subdivision covenants, HOA rules, deed restrictions, private easements, shared driveway agreements, agricultural agreements, drainage easements, or private boundary agreements.
Private restrictions may be more restrictive than county rules. Washington County’s zoning materials also recognize that easements, covenants, and private agreements may continue to operate independently unless county regulations impose greater restrictions within the county’s authority.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• Building-Code Exemption Boundary: Under the adopted building-code framework used for this page, fences not more than 7 feet high are exempt from building permits.
• Yard Placement: Fences and walls are permitted in all yards, subject to applicable height restrictions.
• Corner-Lot Visibility: Corner-lot fences, walls, hedges, trees, or other obstructions may not materially impede vision between 2.5 feet and 8 feet above the grades of the centerline of the intersecting street within the 120-foot visibility area measured along the centerline of the street.
• Visual Obstruction: A fence, hedge, tree, shrub, wall, or structure exceeding 2 feet in height may be treated as a visual obstruction if it limits visibility at intersecting or intercepting streets, alleys, or driveways.
• Floodplain Review: A fence project located in a mapped floodplain may require floodplain review when the work qualifies as floodplain development under Floodplain Management Resolution 60.3.
• Floodway Encroachment: Encroachments or other development in a Floodway Overlay District are restricted unless the required certification demonstrates no increase in water surface elevations along the floodway profile during the base flood discharge.
• Residential Animal Keeping: Where residential animal keeping is allowed, fencing used to contain animals must meet the county’s animal-keeping fencing standard.
• Plat, Right-of-Way, and Easement Conflicts: Fence placement may be reviewed where a fence conflicts with recorded subdivision plats, rights-of-way, easements, drainage areas, or other recorded site limitations.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within Washington County, based on publicly available materials reviewed as of May 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Nebraska laws apply statewide. See Statewide Fence Laws in Nebraska.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, rural or agricultural context, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants or private agreements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with Washington County Planning Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from Washington County staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.