Fences - not as easy as you think

You would think building a fence was a fairly straight forward part of your build. But nothing in building is straight forward: You need to know what kind of fence you want; If it is on a boundary with a neighbour, you have to be sure it is what they want too; You have to be sure you have complied with all the relevant legislation, especially if any of the fence borders a pool; You will need to know exactly where it is to go, and if it is on a boundary, that your neighbour agrees on where it is to go; And you need to work out who pays what and when. Phew!

1. What do you want?

Basically fences can be made of wood, metal, natural vegetation or stone/ concrete/ brick. Wooden fences have the advantage of looking more traditional with a renovated Queenslander, but are liable to termite attack eventually. Metal and stone fences won’t be attacked by termites, and are durable but can be less attractive (although a combination of wood and concrete/ metal can look okay). Natural vegetation fences, such as hedges have the advantage of giving different heights but need maintenance.

2. Fencing legislation

Fencing is covered by the Neighbourhood Resolutions Act 2011. The Act covers who is responsible for what and who pays for what. The Queensland Government also has useful information on its website on what is involved in fencing.

3. Special rules for pool fences

Pool fences protect the lives of young children. So fencing law has been modified to make responsibility for boundary fences which act as a pool fence on one side, to lie with the pool owner. This means you have legal responsibility for maintaining the pool fence and that you will have to pay for the section around the pool, but it also means that you only need to give the adjoining owner 14 days notice of your intention to build a fence. You can issue them with a notice 39 of your intention to carry out pool fencing work. See the Building Act amendment here.

4. Marking out boundaries

To work out where the boundary lines are for your property you will need a land surveyor to mark out the boundaries. They use specialist equipment to mark sight-lines and gauge distances. The surveyor will mark the edge of the property boundaries using a red and white stake. Note that this stake is just an “information post”which will have written on it where the actual boundary lies; the actual boundary will usually be market by a nail.So the red and white post will usually say something like “boundary at nail in peg in ground”. It is the nail location that shows you your property boundary.Try to make sure your surveyor puts the nail in a peg in the ground rather than the existing fence boundary as this is easier to work around if you get the fence replaced. It is worth asking for pegs to go in at different points along the fence line, as well as the corners, to be sure that it is in the right place.

5. Who pays what and when?

Usually neighbours split the cost of building a fence 50/50. The exception is when a fence acts as a pool fence as mentioned above. You can either agree with a neighbour that you will each be invoiced by the fencing contractor for half the fee, or that one of you will pay the bill and the other will then pay the difference directly to the neighbour who has paid the bill. If you go for this latter option is it worth getting your neighbour to sign a document saying they agree to pay half and how much that is. See the Queensland Government’s website for form 2 “Notice to contribute for fencing repairs” has been prepared for this purpose. If they refuse to sign or are in disagreement over the works, do not go ahead with the work (see disputes below) unless it is a pool fence which you are legally responsible for.

6. Disputes

If you want to carry out fencing work, by law you need to give your neighbour a month’s notice of your intention to carry out the work. You should provide at least one quote and detail what work is to be done, and how you propose it should be paid for. If you and your neighbour can’t agree on what kind of fence, who should pay and so forth then you can get an arbitration panel to make a decision for you. Go to the QCAT website for more information. Do not pay for or get any work done before their decision is made. You can not go to QCAT or a Magistrates court for arbitration if you have not issued a Notice to Contribute for Fencing Repairs (as mentioned above).