Putting up a fence - do I need a survey?

Why the survey is cheap insurance

A fence in the wrong place is not a small problem. It can be a neighbour dispute, a title issue at resale, or a demolition. A boundary survey, or at minimum locating the existing corner markers, settles it before anyone digs.

Three checks before you buy material

1. 1Permit. Many jurisdictions require one for a fence, and it is usually inexpensive. Ask the building department with your parcel ID.
2. 2HOA. Height, material, and which side the finished face has to point — associations are specific and they do enforce it.
3. 3Easements. A utility easement across the rear means your fence may have to come out one day, at your expense.

Building it so it stays up

There is no frost line to worry about here, but there is wind, and there is sandy soil that gives up quickly. Set posts in concrete deep enough for the wind load and the fence height, use the right post spacing for the panel type, and keep the bottom rail clear of standing water.

Gates are where fences fail. Use a proper gate post, braced, and hardware rated for the leaf weight.

One more thing while you are planning

Mark irrigation lines and any low-voltage cable before post holes go in, and call for utility locates. A fence contractor who does not ask about either is telling you something about how the job will go — the verification checklist is in how to check a contractor is legitimate.

Talking to the neighbour first

Most boundary disputes are not about the boundary; they are about the surprise. A short conversation before the posts go in, with the survey in your hand, prevents nearly all of them and occasionally turns into a shared cost.

If a neighbour disagrees with the survey, stop and resolve it on paper before building. Moving a fence afterwards is expensive, and a fence built over a line becomes a title problem that surfaces when either house sells.

Gates, drainage and the mower

Leave a gate wide enough for what actually has to get through: a mower, a wheelbarrow, a skip bag, occasionally a small excavator. A single pedestrian gate at the side of a house is the most common regret.

Keep the fence line clear of the drainage route as well. A solid fence across a swale dams water, and in this climate that shows up as a wet corner of the garden after every storm.