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Fence Companies for Installation and Repair in Windham, NH
Windham requires a permit for every fence, and the town asks you to get it before the fence is ordered, with a sketch showing how far the fence sits from lot lines, buildings, streets and water. Call (978) 800-2452 or use the form. A person reads every request and replies with what happens next.
- Free for homeowners
- Windham fence rules on this page
- Cobbetts Pond to Windham Depot
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Fences in Windham
What kind of fence are you planning?
Wood Fences
Privacy, picket, stockade and split-rail fences in cedar or pressure-treated lumber, new or replaced.
Vinyl Fences
Low-upkeep PVC privacy, semi-privacy and picket fences, with matching gates.
Chain Link & Aluminum
Galvanized or coated chain link and ornamental aluminum, including pool enclosures built to code.
Fence Repair
Leaning or rotted posts, sagging gates, storm-damaged sections and broken pickets or panels.
Corner lot, pool or historic district?
(978) 800-2452Tell us the street and the fence you have in mind, and we'll connect you with a company that knows Windham's fence application.
Permits
Fence permits in Windham
All fences. Windham's Residential Fences page is plain about it: "a permit is required for all fences." It tells homeowners to apply before ordering, noting that fence companies often expect the owner to have the permit in hand, and it points to Community Development at 3 North Lowell Road, open weekdays from 8 to 4 (Residential Fences). Permits can also be started on the town's online permitting portal once staff approve your account (Building Inspections).
What to send. The Fence Permit Application, dated June 2018, asks for a sketch, diagram or plot plan showing lot lines, existing buildings, abutting streets and any water body, where the fence will go, how far it sits from each of those, and how tall it will be. Its fee line reads only "Application Fee- see schedule," so ask Community Development for the current amount (Fence Permit Application).
- Permit for a fence
- Required for all fences
- When to apply
- Before ordering the fence
- Drawing
- Sketch or plot plan with distances and height
- Fee
- Not posted (“see schedule”); ask
- Pool fence
- Through the pool building permit
- Office
- Community Development, 3 N Lowell Rd
New Hampshire basics. Towns issue permits under RSA 155-A:2. The 2024 state codes have applied since July 1, 2026, with the older set also accepted until December 31, 2026. In New Hampshire "contractors do not need to be licensed," per the Attorney General, who recommends references, proof of insurance and a written contract before any payment, and flags deposits above 50% (NH AG). See our New Hampshire rules page.
Dig Safe. State law calls for notice at least 72 hours before digging post holes, not counting weekends or holidays, with the area marked in white first; tickets run 30 days (RSA 374). Dig Safe says property owners and contractors are both required by law to notify it (Dig Safe), and its homeowner brochure lists fencing among the projects to call about; call 811 (Dig Safe homeowner brochure). The notice rule in RSA 374:51 covers digging within 100 feet of an underground facility.
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by January 2027. New England Fence Pros is a referral service: we don't build fences or pull permits, and the company you hire handles the paperwork.
Height and placement
Height limits, setbacks and corner lots in Windham
A dated source. The rules below are printed on the Fence Permit Application dated June 2018, which reproduces Section 710 and Section 702.2 of the Zoning Ordinance (Fence Permit Application). The ordinance may have changed since then, so confirm the current rule with Community Development before you order materials. The town's fence page today still describes a maximum of 6 feet, "lower in some areas of the yard."
Heights (§ 710.3). In the Residence A, B and C, Rural, Village Center and Historic Districts, a fence within the minimum required front yard may not exceed 4 feet, and fences within the minimum required side and rear yards top out at 6 feet. Fences enclosing sports courts can reach 20 feet with Planning Board approval.
Placement (§ 710.4). "No fence shall be erected within five feet (5') of any public or private road," and none may stand in the public right-of-way. A fence can't go between a fire hydrant or cistern and the street, within 6 feet of one, or in front of a Fire Department water connection. "The finished side of the fence must face the abutting property," with posts and bracing on the inside. Sheet metal, plywood, rolled plastic, razor wire and debris are banned as fence material, and barbed wire, chicken wire and electric fencing along property lines are allowed only on agricultural land (or commercial land with site plan approval).
Corners and driveways (§ 702.2, § 710.3.2). On a corner lot, nothing more than 3 feet above street grade may stand inside the triangle formed by the two street lines and a line joining points 25 feet back from their intersection; that includes fences, walls, hedges and trees. Fences and plantings in every district must also keep driveway and road sight lines clear. Where the property line itself is uncertain, a survey or the town can confirm it, and under RSA 476:1 a fence unnecessarily over 5 feet that is kept up to annoy a neighbor is a private nuisance.
Pool fences
Pool fences in Windham
Windham's fence page says "All swimming in ground pools and above ground pools less than 4 feet tall require a fence," and that the fence "must meet the New Hampshire State Building Code" (Residential Fences). A pool fence is permitted with the pool's building permit, not on the separate fence application. The town's own swimming pool ordinance was rescinded on March 11, 2014 (Local Ordinances), so the state code is the rulebook; CPSC guidance, which is advisory, describes a 48-inch minimum barrier with no gaps a 4-inch sphere can pass (CPSC Pub. 362).
Historic and wetlands
Historic districts and wetlands in Windham
Ten historic districts. Windham's districts are Town Center, Windham Depot, Searles School & Chapel, Union Hall, Fessenden Mill, Gage Lands Sheep Pen, Simpson Cellar Hole, Stickney Cellar, Indian Rock and the Governor Dinsmore Plaque. The town mentions the "complex of impressive stone walls" at Searles School & Chapel and the Gage Lands Sheep Pen as a stone enclosure (Windham Historic Districts). The Historic District Commission's Rules of Procedure, dated October 16, 2020, require review of new construction or exterior changes in a district before a permit issues and list "signs, fences, walls, terraces, walks, driveways, light fixtures and the like" among the features considered; there is no application fee (HDC Rules). The commission's web page says certificates apply to "all applications other than individual residences," so ask the commission whether a fence at a house in a district needs one (Historic District/Heritage Commission). It meets on the first Thursday of the month.
Wetland and watershed districts. The Wetland and Watershed Protection District reaches 150 feet from Beaver, Golden and Flat Rock Brooks, 100 feet from other brooks, streams, ponds and wetlands of an acre or more, and 50 or 25 feet from smaller wetlands, plus 100 feet more on slopes of 12% or steeper; certain uses that excavate, fill or otherwise alter the land there need a Planning Board special permit (Zoning Ordinance). Around Cobbetts Pond and Canobie Lake, the Watershed Protection Overlay District has a $25 minor application (WPOD application). Neither district names fences, so ask before setting posts inside them.
Windham's homes
Newer subdivisions in stone-wall country
Windham had 5,753 housing units in September 2022, 86.7% of them single-family, and 2,248 were built between 1990 and 2020, roughly 39% of the total (Master Plan 2023).
Older Windham survives alongside those subdivisions. The Historical & Cultural Resource List of August 2023 includes the 1798 town hall, a gambrel-roofed house from 1815, a farmhouse from about 1820 and a Greek Revival house from about 1840, along with stone walls and cellar holes (resource list). Former summer cottages that become year-round homes go through their own town process (Seasonal Conversions).
FAQ
Windham fence questions
Does every fence in Windham need a permit?
Yes. The town's Residential Fences page says a permit is required for all fences and suggests applying before you order, since fence companies often expect the homeowner to have it. Community Development at 3 North Lowell Road handles it, Monday to Friday, 8 to 4.
How tall can a fence be in Windham?
The zoning text printed on the June 2018 fence application limits fences within the minimum required front yard to 4 feet in the residence, rural, village center and historic districts, and fences within the minimum required side and rear yards to 6 feet. Confirm the current figures with Community Development, since the ordinance may have changed since that form was printed.
Which way does the good side of the fence face?
Outward. The 2018 application text says the finished side must face the abutting property, with posts and bracing on the owner's side.
Does a pool fence need its own fence permit?
No; Windham handles a pool fence through the pool building permit. The town says in-ground pools, and above-ground pools under 4 feet tall, need a fence that meets the state building code.
What does it cost me to use New England Fence Pros?
Nothing. Asking is free for homeowners; the contractor prices the job, and the price and contract are between you and them.
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