Privacy Fences in West Chester, PA

A privacy fence is the fence most people picture when they call us: solid boards or panels, no gaps, tall enough that you stop noticing the neighbor’s kitchen window. In West Chester, PA the style itself is simple. What takes thought is where it is allowed to stand, how tall it can go and which way it has to face, because those rules change every time you cross a township line. This page walks through the choices in the order 76 FENCE West Chester walks through them at an estimate.

How tall can a privacy fence be around West Chester, PA?

Six feet is the practical ceiling for a residential privacy fence in side and rear yards across the area. West Goshen, Westtown, Thornbury and East Whiteland all land at or near that figure for homes, and the borough caps fences at 6 feet in required side and rear yards in the districts we found in its code.

The details differ. Westtown lets decorative post tops reach 7 feet. Thornbury holds residential fences to 6 feet in any yard. East Bradford does not require a township permit at all unless a fence goes over 6 feet, and at that point it needs a building permit and engineered plans. If you are hoping for 7 or 8 feet of screening, plan on a conversation with the township first, or let a row of evergreens do the last two feet.

Front yards are a different conversation

Solid privacy fencing is almost never permitted in a front yard here. West Goshen limits front-yard fences to 4 feet with at least as much open space as structure; Westtown allows 5 feet but only for an open fence; Uwchlan’s front-yard limit is 36 inches. If the goal is screening the street, a semi-privacy or picket fence in front with full privacy behind the house is the usual answer. Our front-yard fence page covers those limits township by township.

Which side of a privacy fence faces the neighbor?

In several nearby townships the finished side has to face out, toward the neighbor or the road. That is written into code in Westtown, Thornbury and East Whiteland, so the posts and rails end up on your side.

Even where the code is silent, facing the good side out is the neighborly default and it is what most HOAs expect. If you want both sides to look finished, board-on-board cedar and most vinyl privacy panels solve the problem without a variance. Thornbury adds one more wrinkle: the fence must sit at least 6 inches inside your property line unless you have a written agreement with the neighbor. Our guide to which side faces the neighbor goes deeper.

Which privacy fence material makes sense here?

All three common materials hold up in Chester County’s freeze-thaw winters and humid summers; the difference is upkeep and look.

Does a privacy fence work in a borough twin or rowhome yard?

Yes, and it is one of the most common jobs in the borough. West Chester Borough is mostly twins and rowhouses on narrow lots with an alley grid behind them, so the fence often does three jobs at once: privacy from the house next door, a lockable gate onto the alley, and a screen for trash cans.

The borough requires a $50 zoning review for fences, according to its fee schedule at the time of writing. Because so many rear yards share a line with the attached neighbor, it pays to talk before the crew arrives about who owns the existing fence and whether the new one replaces it or sits beside it. Our West Chester Borough page and the guide to shared fences between twins cover both.

Do you need a permit for a privacy fence?

Most likely yes. West Goshen requires a zoning permit for every fence regardless of height, Westtown requires one for fences over 40 feet of total length, Thornbury and Pocopson require one for any fence, and the borough runs a zoning review.

Uwchlan asks for an HOA approval letter with the application if your community has an association. When you hire us, 76 FENCE handles the permit, the HOA paperwork and the PA One Call (811) request. The details for each municipality are in the West Chester fence permit guide.

How long does a privacy fence take to install?

With materials on hand, a privacy fence for a typical lot goes up in a day or two of crew time. Weather can shift the schedule, and rock in the post holes, common in the schist uplands around West Chester, can add time.

The longer part is usually the lead-up: the walkthrough, permit review, HOA sign-off and the 811 waiting period. Once those are done, the build itself moves quickly.

Rules change, so confirm with the township. When you hire us, we pull the permit. Call or text 484-999-0965 to set up a free on-site walkthrough.