Do I Need a Permit for a Fence in Aurora, CO?

Aurora's fence permit process is surprisingly nuanced for a project that seems simple: Colorado's Good Neighbor Fence Law governs shared-boundary disputes, HOA architectural rules often override city height limits, and properties near Cherry Creek or Sand Creek may need floodplain review before a single post goes in the ground.

Aurora fence permit rules — the basics

Aurora's Building Division administers fence permits through its Permit Center at 15151 E. Alameda Parkway, Suite 2400, Aurora CO 80012. Permits can be applied for online through the Aurora4Biz.org portal, in person at the permit counter, or by email to permitcounter@auroragov.org. The main phone line is 303.739.7420. For a residential fence, the application requires a site plan showing the fence location relative to property lines, the proposed fence height, the materials to be used, and the project cost estimate (which determines the permit fee).

Aurora's height rules are zone-dependent, but the baseline residential standard permits fences up to 6 feet in rear and side yards and up to 4 feet in front yards (generally the area between the house and the street). A 6-foot privacy fence along the backyard boundary—the most common Aurora fence project—requires a permit because it hits the maximum allowed height. Fences between 4 and 6 feet in the front yard require both a permit and a variance or approval from Aurora's Board of Adjustment and Appeals. Electric fences require additional documentation per ANSI/CPLSO 60335-2-76 standards and must be disclosed in the permit application.

Permit fees for Aurora fences run $50–$150 for most residential projects, with the exact amount determined by the project valuation (materials plus labor cost). A typical 150-foot wood fence valued at $4,500 would generate a permit fee near the lower end of that range; a longer vinyl or ornamental iron fence with higher material costs generates fees toward the upper end. Additional fees may apply if the property is within a FEMA-designated floodplain (which triggers Aurora Water's floodplain review) or within a historic district (which requires a Certificate of Appropriateness from the city's Historic Preservation Commission). In those cases, total government fees can reach $200–$350.

Before any excavation, Aurora homeowners are required to call Colorado's Utility Notification Center at 811 (or 1-800-922-1987) to have underground utilities marked. Digging without this call is illegal and dangerous—Aurora has natural gas, electric, telecommunications, and water/sewer lines buried throughout its residential neighborhoods, and unmarked utility strikes are a real risk in a city with as much infrastructure density as Aurora. The 811 call should be made at least three business days before you plan to dig, and the marking is free. Document that you made the call by keeping the ticket number the utility notification service provides.

Why the same fence in three Aurora neighborhoods gets three different outcomes

Aurora's 163-square-mile footprint encompasses dramatically different regulatory environments depending on which part of the city your property sits in. A 6-foot cedar privacy fence that costs $6,000 to build and takes six weeks from permit to final approval in one neighborhood may take four months and cost $1,000 more in another neighborhood just three miles away—because of HOA review requirements, floodplain overlays, or historic district restrictions.

Colorado's Good Neighbor Fence Law — and why it matters in Aurora

Colorado's Good Neighbor Fence Law (C.R.S. § 35-46-111 et seq.) gives Aurora homeowners specific rights and obligations when building a fence on or near a shared property line. The law generally holds that a fence that benefits both neighbors—one that provides mutual privacy or security—creates a shared obligation for both parties to contribute to its cost. In practice this means that if your fence is on or near the shared boundary between your property and your neighbor's, your neighbor has a legal interest in the fence's location, materials, and cost. You are required to notify them in writing before construction, providing the planned location, materials, dimensions, and estimated cost. Your neighbor then has 30 days to respond. If they agree, you can proceed on the shared line. If they do not respond or object, you must place the fence entirely within your own property, set back from the line.

The practical implication for Aurora homeowners is that before you finalize any fence design that runs along a shared property boundary, you should either obtain written consent from your neighbor or be prepared to set the fence back from the line by a few inches to stay clearly within your property. If you build on the shared line without consent and the neighbor later objects, you may face a civil dispute about cost-sharing obligations or fence location that Aurora's Building Division cannot resolve—it is a private property matter handled through Arapahoe County courts or mediation. The city's permit process does not verify neighbor consent; it only verifies that the fence placement as shown on the site plan is within the property boundary of the permit applicant.

Fence disputes are among the most common neighbor-relations issues Aurora's code enforcement staff deals with. Common problems include fences built slightly over the property line (discovered years later during a survey), fences that block drainage flows between lots, and fences that were built without the 30-day notification required under state law. Avoiding these disputes requires, at minimum, having a current property survey or reviewing your recorded plat before placing any fence post. Aurora's GIS portal can help you identify your approximate property boundaries, but a licensed surveyor's stake is the only definitive determination of where your property line actually sits. In neighborhoods where lots were subdivided decades ago and fences have been rebuilt multiple times, the "existing fence line" and the legal property line are often not the same.

What the inspector checks in Aurora

Aurora does not always require a scheduled inspection for a fence permit the way it does for a deck or room addition—in many cases, a fence permit is issued after plan review and the work is completed without a formal inspection visit. However, the city reserves the right to inspect fence work, and if a neighbor or code enforcement officer flags a concern, an inspector may visit to verify compliance. The most common compliance issues inspectors check for in Aurora are: fence height (measured from grade to the top of the fence, not the top of a post cap), setback from property lines (fences must stay within the applicant's property boundary), sight triangle compliance on corner lots, and clearance from fire hydrants and Fire Department Connections.

For fences in floodplain areas, Aurora Water's floodplain administrator conducts a separate review and may conduct a site visit to verify that the fence installation does not obstruct drainage flows or violate the conditions of the floodplain permit. Similarly, for properties in historic districts, the Historic Preservation Commission may review photos of the completed fence to confirm it matches the approved Certificate of Appropriateness. Fences that don't match what was approved—different height, different material, different color than shown in the permit application—can result in a notice of violation and a requirement to modify or remove the fence.

What a fence costs in Aurora

Aurora fence contractors typically quote projects by the linear foot, with the cost per foot varying by material. Wood (cedar or pressure-treated pine) privacy fences run $20–$40 per linear foot installed, putting a typical 150-linear-foot backyard fence at $3,000–$6,000. Vinyl privacy fences run $28–$55 per linear foot installed, or $4,200–$8,250 for 150 linear feet. Ornamental iron or aluminum fencing runs $35–$80 per linear foot depending on the design complexity, or $5,250–$12,000 for 150 linear feet. Chain-link fencing—still used for utility yards and dog runs in Aurora—runs $12–$25 per linear foot installed for residential projects.

Post depth is a material cost factor unique to Aurora and Colorado's high desert climate: posts must be set 24–30 inches deep in concrete to be stable, and the expansive clay soils common in Aurora require well-mixed concrete (not just dry-poured mix) to prevent heave. Budget for concrete and post-setting labor running roughly $8–$15 per post beyond the fence panel cost itself. City permit fees add $50–$150 to the project total. HOA fees (if applicable) add $50–$200 in review and application fees. Total out-of-pocket cost including permit for an average Aurora residential fence project: $4,000–$13,000 depending on material choice and linear footage.

What happens if you skip the permit in Aurora

Aurora's code enforcement staff receives complaints about unpermitted fences routinely, often from neighbors who object to a fence's height, location, or materials. When code enforcement investigates, they verify permit status through the city's permit database. If no permit is on file, the homeowner receives a Notice of Violation and a deadline (typically 30–60 days) to either obtain a retroactive permit or remove the fence. The retroactive permit process requires submitting a full permit application after the fact, and the fee will typically include an investigation or penalty fee on top of the standard permit cost.

Fences that were built without permits and don't meet current code requirements present the hardest situation. If the fence is at a height that isn't allowed under current zoning, or is positioned in a sight triangle, or violates a drainage easement, the homeowner must modify the fence to comply before a certificate of completion can be issued—regardless of how long the fence has been standing. Aurora's code enforcement takes fence violations seriously in part because non-compliant fences create genuine public safety risks (sight triangle blockages) and drainage problems (solid fences impeding creek-level flows during storm events) that affect the surrounding community.

Real estate disclosures in Colorado require sellers to disclose known code violations. An unpermitted fence that has received a Notice of Violation is a known violation that must be disclosed when the property is listed for sale. Buyers' lenders and title companies will flag unpermitted structures as a condition of closing, and resolving a fence code violation during a real estate transaction—when timelines are compressed—is far more stressful and expensive than simply pulling the permit before construction begins. The permit process for a standard Aurora fence is straightforward, inexpensive, and typically adds only two weeks to the project timeline. There is no good reason to skip it.