Under Michigan’s fence act, the owner who builds a fence pays for building it and keeping it up, and a neighbor owes a share only if they use it to hold in livestock (MCL 43.53). No state law says how far a fence must sit from the property line. Your city, village or township sets it, and some want the neighbor’s written consent or a survey before a fence goes on the line. Michigan has no spite fence statute, but its courts can order down a fence built purely out of malice that does its owner no good. And after 15 years, a fence both neighbors treated as the line can become the line.
This is general legal information for planning a fence, not legal advice. A disagreement about where the line runs is a job for a licensed surveyor and an attorney. MISS DIG, sales tax, post depth and contractor licensing are on our Michigan fence rules page.
Who pays, and what a fence viewer does
The act, MCL 43.51 to 43.60, counts a fence as a barrier able to hold in livestock, meaning cattle, horses, sheep, swine, mules, burros and goats (MCL 433.11). If your neighbor or their tenant starts using your fence to restrain or contain them, your neighbor owes you a proportionate share of its current value, or can build a fence of their own. On an ordinary house lot, your neighbor owes nothing toward your fence and you owe nothing toward theirs.
Arguments over that share go to a fence viewer. The township board appoints at least 1, and you engage one in writing by paying $25 a day to the township treasurer. The viewer gives both owners 5 days’ written notice, decides the share or the damage animals did to a fence, and does not settle boundary disputes (MCL 43.54 and 43.55). Cities and villages appoint one only for a fence on a township border. An unpaid share becomes a lien collected with the property taxes (MCL 43.58), and a written agreement recorded with the clerk or the register of deeds binds later owners (MCL 43.57).
How far from the property line
No state law sets a distance. Michigan’s Zoning Enabling Act lets each local government regulate the location and height of structures (MCL 125.3201), so the answer is in your town’s zoning ordinance.
| Town | A fence on the property line |
|---|---|
| Ann Arbor | Allowed, with the whole fence on your side |
| Adrian | Allowed along any lot line |
| Dundee | Allowed at the side and rear; a front yard fence stays 4 feet back |
| Erie Township | Neighbor’s signed agreement or a certified boundary survey |
| Pittsfield Township | Neighbor signs the form for a fence within 6 inches of the line |
| City of Ypsilanti | Notarized letter from the neighbor |
| Milan and Dexter | Written consent of all the neighbors, or a surveyor’s letter or certified survey |
| Tecumseh | Wholly inside your lot, shown by a survey, pins or a notarized neighbor letter, or kept 3 feet inside |
Tecumseh’s section, and the Bedford Township rule letting a fence run along the line in Temperance and Lambertville, come from a third-party copy of the code, so confirm both with the office.
How tall a privacy fence can be
The state building code exempts a fence of 7 feet or less from a building permit, but height is set by local zoning. Side and rear limits run 6 feet in Erie Township, 6.5 feet in the City of Monroe, and 6 feet at the side and 8 feet at the rear in Ann Arbor. Under MCL 125.3407, a structure put up in violation of a zoning ordinance is a nuisance per se, meaning a nuisance by law, and the court shall order it abated, meaning removed or fixed.
Spite fences
Michigan has no spite fence statute, but its courts treat a spite fence as a nuisance. The Michigan Supreme Court upheld an order to remove a board fence about 10 feet high that a neighbor built along the line, on their own land, to darken the house next door. The Court of Appeals asks whether a fence or other obstruction went up, serves no useful purpose to its owner, and was built with malicious intent. A fence that serves a purpose is not a spite fence even if spite played a part. In one recent case the court upheld the dismissal of a claim because the fence gave privacy, though it blocked the neighbors’ view of a lake.
Surveys and pins
A county parcel map is a tax map. Washtenaw County’s map viewer says it is “not to be used for property descriptions, or determination of legal title” and “should never be substituted for survey or deed information.” Ann Arbor will not locate your lines. A licensed professional surveyor can find or set the corner pins. Erie Township, Milan and Dexter take a survey in place of the neighbor’s signature.
When a fence has stood for 15 years
MCL 600.5801 gives an owner 15 years to sue to recover land. Two doctrines can move a line after that.
- Adverse possession, meaning gaining title by using land as your own, needs clear and cogent proof of actual, visible, open, notorious, exclusive, continuous and uninterrupted possession for the full 15 years.
- Acquiescence, meaning both neighbors went along with a line, needs only proof that they treated it, often a fence, as the boundary for 15 years. Earlier owners’ years count, and once the 15 years have run the line is fixed.
Neither runs against public land. MCL 600.5821 bars both claims against a city, village, township, county or county road commission, so a fence in the road right-of-way never makes that strip yours.
Trees on the line
MCL 600.2919 makes anyone who cuts down or injures trees on another’s land without permission liable for 3 times the actual damages, or the actual damages alone if the trespass was casual and involuntary or the person had good reason to think the land was theirs. Get your neighbor’s permission in writing before anyone clears their side of the line.
HOA rules and deed restrictions
If your subdivision is set up as a condominium, every co-owner must follow the master deed, bylaws and rules (MCL 559.165), and the association can sue for an injunction or damages, or levy fines after notice and a hearing where its documents allow (MCL 559.206). Other subdivisions have deed restrictions. A zoning permit is not the association’s approval, although Pittsfield Township asks for the association’s letter and Chelsea for its written consent.
Who to call
- Your city, village or township zoning office, for the distance and the height. Our permit pages list the numbers.
- The township office, to engage a fence viewer for a livestock fence.
- A licensed professional surveyor to find the line, and an attorney if a neighbor disputes it.
See your price range
Treated pine privacy fence runs $28 to $42 a foot installed near Ann Arbor, and Monroe County and the border towns use the Toledo numbers, $25 to $35. The Ann Arbor and Toledo cost pages have every style. Put your runs into the estimator and request a quote, and if the fence goes on a shared line, bring your neighbor’s signed letter to the township.
Questions people ask
Does my neighbor have to pay for a fence in Michigan?
No, unless they use it to hold livestock. Under MCL 43.53 the owner who builds a fence pays for building and keeping it up, and a neighbor owes a share of its current value only if they use it to restrain or contain animals such as cattle, horses, sheep, swine or goats.
How far does a fence have to be from the property line in Michigan?
There is no state distance, so each city, village and township sets its own. Ann Arbor and Adrian allow a fence right on the line, while Erie Township, Milan, Dexter and the City of Ypsilanti want the neighbor’s written consent, or in some towns a survey, before a fence goes on it.
Is there a spite fence law in Michigan?
There is no spite fence statute, but Michigan courts treat a spite fence as a nuisance and have ordered one removed. The claim needs a fence that serves no useful purpose to its owner and was built out of malice, so a fence that gives privacy does not qualify even if spite played a part.
How tall can a privacy fence be in Michigan?
Your city or township sets the height, not the state. The state building code exempts a fence of 7 feet or less from a building permit, and local zoning caps side and rear fences at 6 feet in Erie Township, 6.5 feet in the City of Monroe and 8 feet in Ann Arbor’s rear yards.
Can a neighbor's fence change my property line in Michigan?
It can after 15 years. Michigan courts fix the boundary at a fence when both neighbors treated it as the line for 15 years, counting earlier owners’ time, and adverse possession also takes 15 years under MCL 600.5801. Neither works against land owned by a city, village, township or county road commission.
What does a fence viewer do in Michigan?
A fence viewer is appointed by the township board. For $25 a day paid to the township treasurer, the viewer decides what share a neighbor who uses a fence for livestock must pay, or the damage animals did to a fence. A fence viewer does not settle boundary disputes.