Fence Company in Charleston, SC

In Charleston, the historic district may decide your fence for you

Most of the Lowcountry lets you pick a material and go. The Charleston peninsula does not. If your property sits inside the Old and Historic District, the Old City District, a Landmark Overlay Zone, or a Historic Corridor District, your fence goes before the Board of Architectural Review, and the BAR has firm views about what it will approve.

From the city's published fence and sitework submittal requirements:

• Chain link, aluminum, vinyl and PVC are not appropriate and will not be approved.
• Metal fences must be hot-rolled steel or wrought iron, with welded joints and concealed fasteners. Pre-manufactured aluminum panels are generally rejected.
• Masonry walls must be modular brick or three-coat stucco on block.
• Designs that read as "fortress-like" get turned down.
• Removing an existing historic wall is generally not permitted.

This is precisely why we run our own ironworks shop. Hot-rolled steel and wrought iron with welded joints and concealed fasteners isn't a special order for us — it's what we fabricate. If you have been told your downtown fence "has to be custom," that's the reason, and we can make it.

Permits, easements and the four-week surprise

A fence permit is required. The city's application package asks for a plat showing your property lines, residence and easements, a completed building permit application, HOA approval where one applies, and a BAR application if you're within BAR purview — all submitted through the city's CSS portal.

The detail that catches people out: if your fence crosses a drainage easement, you need a separate encroachment application (a $25 fee) that the city notes can take up to four weeks to process. Discovering that after you've scheduled installation is how a project slips a month.

Corner lots and the sight triangle

Charleston's zoning prohibits any fence, wall, shrub or sign obstruction between three and fifteen feet in height, within fifteen feet of an intersection of two street rights-of-way (or a street and a railroad). If you're on a corner, this governs where your fence can actually go.

Flood zones are a fencing problem, not just a building problem

In a designated flood hazard area, a fence can be treated as an obstruction. The city requires certification from a South Carolina–registered professional engineer that the fence won't cause wave run-up or deflection. On V, VE and AE zone properties near the water, plan for that step rather than being surprised by it.

The same water that triggers those rules eats hardware. Salt air is why we specify hot-dip galvanized or stainless fasteners here — a fence is only as durable as the screws holding it together.