Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: fence

If the fence is on a common property line, then yes.

Re: fence

I respectfully disagree; I think Mr. Hoffman's answer is incorrect, although I must say I'm not very confident that I'm right.

California has one ancient statute on this subject, Civil Code section 841, enacted in 1872 and never amended. It reads, in pertinent part:

"Coterminous owners are mutually bound equally to maintain:

(1) The boundaries and monuments between them;

(2) The fences between them, unless one of them chooses to let his land lie without fencing......."

There are precious few appellate cases interpreting CC 841, and I have skimmed them in the past and about all I can glean from them that is applicable here is that, unless your house is surrounded by fences, walls, hedges and/or the equivalent on all other sides, you don't have to participate in the cost to build or maintain boundary fences.

The law was obviously written when the main use of fences was to keep livestock in, or keep them out, depending upon whether you were running stock or growing crops on your farm. In an urban setting, the law makes less sense, but it's still the law, and as far as I know, the only one that applies to your situation.

Based on the number of questions we get about this topic, and the lack of a clear, modern law or precedents, I think the legislature needs to step in and bring boundary fence law into the 21st Century.