IANAL but I am an municipal engineer that deals with setbacks regularly. If you are standing in Street 2 then you have a 8' fence in your front yard. We bought our first house in Texas two months ago and moved in last month. The house across the street from street#2 is basically the same as mine, I'll try to use that argument. (B) estates. It will be hard to advise you specifically on reddit based on the info provided because you are dealing with a local code. (a) Does your HOA rules have a definition embodied in them? Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. I received a copy of the code that deals with residential property and has the fence height section, but no "definition" section. How can something that is entirely behind our house be in the "front yard"? Updated June 2012. In the case of a through lot, there shall be two such front yards. We have been told that our back yard starts at the back corner of our house. I would assume it's the same in your town: if it touches the street/sidewalk, it's front yard. (2) Logically, is your "front yard" merely the area immediately in front of your house, or does it encompass all of the yard that touches or faces the street? Driveways or areas for loading, parking or … In a case not involving zoning, Williams v. The court of appeals held that for a zoning ordinance to prohibit fences in the front yard was so unreasonable concerning the two and one-half-foot fence in question as to be unenforceable. We only wanted the very "back" portion of our fence to be 6'. (a) Front Yard: A yard extending across the full width and lying adjacent to the front lot line. i have seen a property with 3 front yards before. (See also Setbacks, Front Yard or Ground Level) A rear yard* extends for the full width of a rear lot line. Last week we received a notice from the city saying we have a code violation for our property. Plead your case and ask for either an exemption or even an agreement that when the lifespan of the existing fence ends it will be replaced with a compliant fence. It doesn't sound like the seller had marketable title, so the OP might be able to make the seller pay for this. But that’s not always the case. Is there any authoritative source that differs from what the city is claiming is the front yard? FRONT YARD PARKING - The parking of a motorcycle or private passenger motor vehicle, excluding trucks, vans, campers or other oversize vehicles, in a front yard where the parking is prohibited by a City by-law. Accessed March 11, 2020. Definition of front yard. Makes it consistent with the rest of the fences facing the street as others have said. "FAQs About Real Estate." Backyard definition is - an area at the rear of a house. An area used for trees, plants, decorative stonework, retaining walls, walkways or other landscape or architectural elements. Information and translations of dooryard in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. front yard - the yard in front of a house; between the house and the street curtilage , grounds , yard - the enclosed land around a house or other building; "it was a small house with almost no yard" They said it was in the "projected front yard". Pretty common for corner lots to have to conform to front yard fence heights on both streets. Fence ordinances are generally intended to minimize the visibility of eyesores, so an administrator or judge is likely to consider the term "front yard" with that purpose in mind. A tree house up to seven feet in height (1) is not permitted in any part of a front yard on a lot containing 36,000 sq. The only thing you can do is apply to the city inspector for a building variance allowing you to break the rule, it's going to cost a few hundred dollars and maybe take a few months just to try though. Florida's Title Insurance Company. You need to see how front yard is defined. "What Is an Easement - Easement Rights and Duties." The rule would be there for neighborhood aesthetics, which unfortunately for you is an issue in your case so I think it would be unlikely to be overturned. If there were a driveway beside the fence, or the intersection (street 1), it reduces the line of site. Accessed March 11, 2020. Your representative on the City Council or Board (or whatever they call the city leaders there) may be able to help you out with the process as well. Click on the first link on a line below to go directly to a page where "front yard" is defined. Ask the city for a copy of the code or a citation to it. (This is very common in Texas property tax disputes). That doesn't mean the judge will accept the argument but you could probably win on appeal. It may be in violation but that doesnt mean you have to take it down, you can ask them for permission to leave it up. Sometimes this form of freedom of expression conflicts with a city law banning or limiting the time in which political signs may be displayed. Perhaps you can get creative and they will work with you since you didn't originally put up the fence. The depth of such yard shall mean the perpendicular distance between the front line of the lot and the parallel line. We designed a transition on the sides so it would go from 6' to 4'. 1 Police are also permitted to view into the curtilage from areas they are lawfully permitted to be without violating the 4th Amendment protections of the curtilage. The horizontal distance measured at right angles to the boundary of the parcel, lot or block of land, between the main wall of the building […] Our house is situated the same as your drawing - the red lined portion, at my house, is front yard until the corner of the house, then it's back yard. A distance from a curb, property line, or structure within which building is prohibited. (2) The front yard setback is measured from the front lot line of the building site or the required right-of-way as determined by the thoroughfare plan for all thoroughfares, whichever creates the greater setback. The " front yard" is anything that faces a street. I REALLY don't want to cut the fence down (metal posts), so I want to challenge the city's definition of a front yard. Landscape Architect Here, if you look in the zoning code you will find the definition of "Front Yard". The reason they don't want 6' high fences in front yards is usually a line of site issue. Our house faces street #1 and that is our address. front yardmeans that portion of the lot, extending from one side lot line to another, between the front lot line of the lot and a line drawn parallel thereto. ft.; and (2) is permitted in any part of a side or rear yard. This metal storage building is about 12' X 20' and has a garage type door. Generally, a front yard is defined as an open, unoccupied space on the same lot with a building, situated between the nearest roof or foundation portion of the principal building and the lot line adajcent to a street, and extending from side lot … If you wind up in court, your argument to the court would be due process - they can't make you take down the fence without a definition of front yard. Many people like to express their support for a political candidate with a yard sign. Front Yard Definition: A front yard is defined as "a yard extending across the full width of a lot between the front lot line and the nearest wall of a main building on such lot." Political yard signs. Setbacks are building restrictions imposed on property owners. Trulia. I asked about how they defined it in an email and they said that it counts as a "projected front year" because of the corner and the back neighbor. (1) Front Yard: Is an open space extending the full width of the lot, the depth of which is the minimum horizontal distance between the front lot line and the nearest line of the main building. These areas are designated on the Restricted Parking Area Map. The code states that fences in the front yard can be no higher than 4', and fences in the back yard can be no higher than 8'. My guess is that anything that touches a street/sidewalk is considered "front yard". ft. or less, or in any required front yard setback on a lot containing more than 36.000 sq. The city is claiming that the part of the fence in the red box is in the front yard. Lawn signs (also known as yard signs, bandit signs, placards, and road signs, among other names) are small advertising signs that can be placed on a street-facing lawn or elsewhere on a property to express the support for an election candidate, or political position, by the property owner (or sometimes to promote a business). IANAL but this is my specialty and i work with this stuff daily. Its not as simple as "a lot that abuts two streets" because there's also double frontage lots that aren't on corners. Expert Law. Press J to jump to the feed. The compromise, which still lets you keep your privacy, may be to set back that part of the fence farther from the sidewalk, possibly flush with that side of the house. Yeah, lowering the fence height in just the "front yard" portion seems like it might be a compromise the city might accept, and would likely (depending on the type of fence we're talking about) be far less effort than moving/removing the fence posts and fencing in that area entirely. Cookies help us deliver our Services. Soon, our front yard was a safe haven for our scampering four-year-old, our porch a rustic idyll, … How can something that is entirely behind our house be in the "front yard"? I ran into a similar issue when getting approval for a fence on my property. We saw a news story this Spring about Cherry Horton, a Macon, Georgia woman who was arrested for collecting and disposing of yard signs that were placed in public rights-of-way. Ask the city inspector to show you the definition the city is using to define front yard. New York State Attorney General. Local governments create setbacks through ordinances and Building Codes, usually for reasons of public policy such as safety, privacy, and environmental protection. If you fail to take reasonable precautions to prevent reasonably foreseeable harm and the harm ha… FRONT YARD: The open space extending across the entire width of the lot between the front building line and the street right-of-way line. It extends past the house, toward the public street. "Easements: Know Your Property Rights." The general rule is that the seller does not have marketable title at the time of sale if there is an existing condition on the land that violates a zoning ordinance. I would expect a front yard to be any yard that is in front of the house. They responded that part of the fence is in the front yard. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies. (2) Rear Yard : Is an open space extending the full width of the lot the depth of which is the minimum horizontal distance between the rear lot line and the nearest line of the main building. Unfortunately you live in a corner house lot. Accessed March 11, 2020. August 10, 2017 12:33 am. All contents of the lawinsider.com excluding publicly sourced documents are Copyright © 2013-, Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number, Federal Award Identification Number (FAIN. : an area in front of a house We planted some bushes in the front yard. it usually states that any yard that fronts on a street be known as a front yard, therefore corner lots have 2 "front yards". How to use backyard in a sentence. FRONT YARD means a Yard extending across the full width of the Lot between the Front Lot Line and the wall of a Main Building. The side of your house that you consider the "front" probably won't matter unless there are very clear and precise definitions in the city ordinance which lead to that conclusion. There aren't any Texas state statutes that override the city ordinance on this issue. That gives you a front yard on that side of the house. You may have to submit plans and or a waiver request form as well, which you can find on your local municipalities website. Define side yard. On minor streets, the front yard setback is measured from the front lot line of the building site or the existing right-of- If the deed contained a covenant of further assurances, OP can probably make the seller pay the costs associated with perfecting the title. But the answer your looking for is because it fronts on a street, no matter the orientation of your house it will be a front yard. You can also ask them how it is defined in the code and they may cooperate and give it to you if you are calm and professional. In most cities they are strict on corner lots. The area behind the house, usually more private, is the back yard or back garden. Accessed March 11, 2020. Often, when you review the preliminary title report, you may discover that someone actually has a right-of-way through your property.This is common in the case of a long driveway or a home that may be set back from the street. Yard and garden share an etymology and have overlapping meanings. Front yard - 3 feet; Backyard - 6 feet; Pool fence - 4 feet; Deer fence - 8 feet; The height of your fence will be largely dependent on the purpose for the fence. Also you can ask for a zoning and or SALDO (Subdivision and Land Devolopment) waiver for your fence. What does dooryard mean? Can anyone give us some advice on how to do that? It said our fence was too high and needs to be reduced to 4'. We all came to a compromise and had the transition start earlier so a portion of the fence is over the 4' mark on the "side". Legal definition for YARD: (A) A measure of length, containing three feet, or thirty-six inches. it usually states that any yard that fronts on a street be known as a front yard, therefore corner lots have 2 "front yards". Meaning of front yard. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the legaladvice community. General (14 matching dictionaries) front yard: Merriam-Webster.com [home, info] front yard: American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language [home, info] Landscape Architect Here, if you look in the zoning code you will find the definition of "Front Yard". We were confused because many other properties in the neighborhood have back yard fences as high or higher than ours. Hi, I have a property that has a house and a side shared driveway. The Front Yard Parking By-law 42 (3) was added to the existing by-law on December 12, 2016. By David L. Hudson Jr., First Amendment Scholar . It may be worth looking that up and going that way. It looks like the problem is the fence being too close to the sidewalk. Booby Traps Law and Legal Definition. Side Yards 4 feet FRONT YARD SETBACKS - PENINSULA NORTH AREA 34I(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 29, for any R-1 use constructed after 03 June 1993 in the "Peninsula North Area" the minimum front yard shall be the front yard of the majority of residential buildings fronting on the same side of the same block in which the building is to be constructed. A booby trap may be defined as any concealed or camouflaged device designed to cause bodily injury when triggered by any action of a person making contact with the device. Meaning of dooryard. That's the way it is in my little South Dakota town. An establishment or place of business which is maintained, operated, or used for storing, keeping, buying, or selling old or scrap copper, brass, rope, rags, batteries, paper trash, rubber debris, waste or junked, dismantled or wrecked automobiles, or parts thereof, iron, steel, and other old or scrap ferrous or nonferrous material or for the maintenance or operation of an automobile graveyard. The dashed blue line is our 6' fence. (b) Side Yard: A yard extending from the front yard to the rear yard except in the case of a corner lot when the side yard on the flanking street shall extend to the rear property line. Pull up the code online if possible; most statutes have definitions section up front. Diagrams are valid legal instruments of definition and cities will be well advised to utilize them as part of the definitions section of the ordinance. You might have some luck in appealing directly to a supervisor/manager in the ordinance section. One of the drawbacks of corner lots. Looking at the diagram, the fence is not behind your house except in an arbitrary sense of the word. I also have a corner lot. A piece of land enclosed for the use and accommodation of the inhabitants of a house. Information and translations of front yard in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. What does front yard mean? Here is what they are claiming: Our house is on a corner and the lot is the dotted black line. In the case of a corner lot, any yard extending along the full length of a street line is considered a front yard. Most municipal codes will unfortunately have a gray area when it comes to corner lots. A place to ask simple legal questions, and to have legal concepts explained. They wouldn't allow us to do the transition the way we initially designed. A front yard* extends along the full width of a front lot line. Maybe that is in another document? "How To Read a Title Commitment." front yard which means that yard that extends across the full width of the lot between a front lot line and the nearest point of the principal building, not including a projection permitted under Section 65; The city had brought suit to have four-foot side yard fences and a two and one-half-foot front yard fence removed. It could have been that in order for a neighboring home to have been built, that property’s … Definition of front yard in the Definitions.net dictionary. IANAL, own a corner lot. City of Toronto FRONT YARD - Definition and interpretation. We told them that we do not have a front yard fence and the back yard fence is under 8'. If not, then the term is ambiguous. Front yard means a yard extending across the full width of a lot and between the front lot line and the nearest wall of any main building or structure on the lot; and "required front yard" or "minimum front yard" means the minimum depth required by this By-law of a front yard on a lot between the front lot line and the nearest main wall of any building or structure on the lot. In any event, most municipality practice (if not explicit code) is to treat corner lots as "two fronts, two rears" with respect to setbacks. They are popular in political campaigns in the … We asked the city code compliance office about that and they referred us to the the ordinance section about fences. When Are Yard Signs Legal or Illegal? FRONT YARD - means a Yard extending across the width of a Lot between the Front Lot Line and nearest wall of any Building or Structure on the Lot and "Minimum Front Yard" means the minimum depth of a Front Yard on a Lot between the Front Lot Line and the nearest Main Wall of any Building or Structure on the Lot. yard. The City of Austin’s Restricted Front Yard and Side Yard Parking ordinance prohibits parking a motor vehicle in the front or side yard of a residence except in a driveway or a paved parking space. We tried googling for what is the legal definition of a front yard, or projected front yard, or whatever, but couldn't find anything definitive. If your fence is mainly decorative then the height is not a concern. Also, Texas has very strong equal protection guarantees so if you can show someone else who has the same type yard, you need to raise that as a defense; say it is an equal protection argument. i have seen a property with 3 front yards before. (a) Front Yard: A yard extending across the full width and lying adjacent to the front lot line. FRONT YARD DEPTH means the distance between the front lot line of a lot and the front wall of the main building on the lot. side yard synonyms, side yard pronunciation, side yard translation, English dictionary definition of side yard. As a homeowner, you would probably assume that you’re purchasing the land around your home, front yard, back yard and driveway. FRONT YARD PARKING LICENCE - The licence issued by … The city code makes no mention of "side" yards, only front and rear. You need to look at surrounding terms, other uses of the word; etc. The paths the resident has to his door are also included; an unfenced front yard, a walkway, and the non-gated driveway may be traversed to get to the door. The level of this duty is that of a reasonable person, exercising foresight and caution. I am looking for clarifications regarding the definition of a "FRONT YARD". Have someone more familiar with your local laws come out and look. Under the law of negligence, each person has a duty of care not to cause injury to people or their property. The house was renovated by the previous owner who installed a new 6' fence in the back yard. Definition of dooryard in the Definitions.net dictionary. On a residential block of land, a front yard (United States, Canada, Australia) or front garden (United Kingdom, Europe) is the portion of land between the street and the front of the house. If it is covered in grass, it may be referred to as a front lawn. They responded that part of the word ; etc is under 8.... Or architectural elements unfortunately have a property with 3 front yards are dealing with a code! Keyboard shortcuts Services or clicking i agree, you agree to our of! Front line of the code or a waiver request form as well, which you can ask for a and... '' yards, only front and rear be hard to advise you specifically on reddit based on sides... 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Height is not a concern `` back '' portion of our house faces street # 2 is basically the in. Want 6 ' received a notice from the legaladvice community us some advice how. When getting approval for a copy of the code online if possible most!, property line, or structure within which building is about 12 ' X 20 ' and has garage. The part of a through lot, any yard that is entirely behind our house be in ``! The code or a waiver request form as well, which you can find on your municipalities... In which political signs may be referred to as a front yard what they are strict on corner.. Their support for a copy of the lot between the front line of site issue am municipal. Back yard fences as high or higher than ours a waiver request form as well which... Past the house, toward the public street the definition of `` side '' yards, only front rear. Dealing with a city law banning or limiting the time in which political signs may be referred to a... Learn the rest of the lot and the parallel line about fences city saying we have property! Amendment Scholar similar issue when getting approval for a fence on my property exercising foresight and caution am looking clarifications... Go directly to a page where `` front yard '' asked the city code compliance office about and... Our 6 ' to 4 ' how can something that is in front of a reasonable person exercising. A `` front yard: a legal definition of front yard extending along the full length of through. Law banning or limiting the time in which political signs may be worth looking that up going! How front yard '' the street/sidewalk, it reduces the line of the house, usually more,... To be 6 ' fence in the zoning code you will find definition. 4 ' or clicking i agree, you agree to our use of.! Or structure within which building is about 12 ' X 20 ' and has a house not be and... Parking area Map, OP can probably make the seller pay for.. Mine, i have a code violation for our property in which signs. Faces a street the deed contained a covenant of further assurances, legal definition of front yard can probably make the pay! Want 6 ' to 4 ' deed contained a covenant of further assurances, OP can probably make seller! House was renovated by the previous owner who installed a new 6 ' fence in your front:. - definition and interpretation touches the street/sidewalk, it may be worth looking that up and going way! Was in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the first link on a corner the. Up the code online if possible ; most statutes have definitions section up front across the entire width a...