Timber fences and gates: what gets built and repaired
A timber paling fence is palings fixed to rails that run between posts set in concrete. A contractor licensed for fencing quotes from the length, the height, the timber and what’s there now.
Paling fences
Treated pine or hardwood palings on two or three rails, butted edge to edge or lapped for more privacy, with or without a capping rail along the top and a plinth at the bottom.
Side gates
A timber side gate on a strong frame with a diagonal brace, hung on heavy strap hinges with a latch or drop bolt that closes properly. Sagging gates are rehung, re-braced or rebuilt.
Fence repairs
Leaning or rotten posts are replaced in new concrete, broken rails swapped, and loose or missing palings refixed, without rebuilding the whole fence.
Timber screens
Slatted screens to hide bins or a hot water service, or a screen along the top of a fence. Under SA’s planning rules, screening fixed to a fence counts as part of the fence (Schedule 4 cl 4(13)(c)).
Timber fence costs in Adelaide
Timber fence prices per metre
| What’s charged | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Timber fencing, per metre installed | $150 – $250+ | Calabria Fencing Adelaide |
| Treated pine paling fence, per metre (Adelaide row) | $95 – $145 | Yakka Labour (national guide) |
Checked 28 October 2026. Calabria Fencing’s 2026 Adelaide guide (published 10 April 2026) doesn’t break timber fencing down by style. Yakka Labour’s guide (published 1 October 2026) includes GST and gives an Adelaide row. Colorbond, the most common Adelaide fence, is priced separately by both.
By our arithmetic, 20 m of timber fencing at Calabria Fencing’s $150 – $250+ per metre is $3,000 – $5,000+ (GST not stated; checked 28 October 2026), and with the cost shared equally between neighbours each pays half. Gates and fence repairs are priced after a licensed fencing contractor sees the job or photos of it, because repairs depend on how many posts, rails and palings have gone.
Dividing fences in SA: notices and sharing the cost
A fence between two properties is a dividing fence under the Fences Act 1975. The owner who wants the work serves the neighbour a notice: Form 1 for a new fence, Form 2 to replace or repair one (s 5). It gives the fence’s length, position and type, the estimated cost, the share sought, and the name and address of the contractor, so get the quote before serving it.
The neighbour has 30 days to object with a cross-notice (s 6); one who doesn’t is taken to have agreed (s 7). Work done before the owner is entitled to start can’t be charged to the neighbour (s 8(2)). Neighbours are presumed to benefit equally from an adequate fence and share its cost (s 12).
If a dividing fence is damaged and needs urgent repair, either owner can do it without notice and recover from the other half the cost, or what they’d pay towards a replacement if that’s less (s 16). The dividing fences guide covers serving the notices and what happens if you can’t agree.
Does a fence need approval in SA?
Under Schedule 4 cl 4(1)(d) of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) Regulations 2017, a fence up to 2.1 m high, measured from the lower of the two finished ground levels, is exempt from approval. The exceptions include fences in flood and some other overlays; road-boundary fences and fences in front of the building line in the Historic Area Overlay; fences over 1 m high within 6 m of a corner where both boundaries face a road, unless there’s a corner cut-off; masonry fences over 1 m; pool safety fences; and brush fences closer than 3 m to a home.
If any of those could apply, check your address with PlanSA’s approval wizard before the fence goes up.
Fencing is its own licence category in SA
Building or repairing a fence for someone else is licensed building work under the Building Work Contractors Act 1995, with no dollar threshold. Consumer and Business Services makes fencing its own licence category: “All forms of fencing and gates including plinth installation”, excluding post and wire fencing. Pool fences and safety barriers are a separate category and aren’t covered here.
What to send us
- The fence length and height, and which boundary it’s on
- What’s there now: timber, Colorbond, brush or nothing
- Photos of leaning posts, broken rails or the sagging gate
- For a gate, the opening’s width and which way it should swing
- Whether a neighbour is sharing the cost
Related guides
- Dividing fences in SA: notices, costs and the Fences Act The notice to serve your neighbour, the 30 days they have to object, how the cost is shared, urgent repairs, and when a fence needs approval.
Questions about timber fences and gates in Adelaide
What if I want a better fence than my neighbour needs?
You can build it, but under s 12(7) of the Fences Act the neighbour’s share is half the minimum cost of an adequate fence, and you pay the rest. An adequate fence is one that fits the general standard of fencing in the area and suits the neighbour’s purposes (s 12(8)).
Who pays when someone damages the fence?
The person at fault pays for the damage they caused (Fences Act s 16(2)), such as a driver who runs into it.
Can the fence contractor work from the neighbour’s side?
Under s 18 of the Fences Act, entry onto the neighbour’s land for authorised fencing work is allowed after at least two days’ written notice, except in an emergency.
What happens to old fence posts?
Ask for them to be taken away. If old posts are CCA-treated pine, EPA SA says CCA posts must go to an EPA-authorised landfill and can’t be burnt or buried on site.
Can a landlord pass fence costs on to a tenant?
As a rule, no: the Law Handbook says a landlord can’t recover fencing costs from a residential tenant.
Where this information comes from
The rules and figures on this page come from these published pages, checked on 28 October 2026.
- Fences Act 1975 (SA) · South Australian legislation, version 22 June 2023: ss 4–9, 12, 16, 18, 19
- Law Handbook: fences · Legal Services Commission of South Australia, revised 23 January 2025
- Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) Regulations 2017, Schedule 4 · South Australian regulations: Schedule 4 cl 4 (exempt decks, pergolas, fences, sheds, retaining walls)
- Calabria Fencing Adelaide: fencing cost per metre in Adelaide (2026) · Adelaide fencing contractor, price guide, published 10 April 2026
- Yakka Labour: fencing cost in Australia · Labour-hire marketplace, national cost guide with an Adelaide row, published 1 October 2026, prices include GST
- EPA SA: CCA treated timber · Environment Protection Authority South Australia, modified 25 September 2026
- CBS: building work supervisor standard registration conditions · SA Government, Consumer and Business Services: the licence categories (carpentry, decks, fencing, windows and doors)
- Building Work Contractors Act 1995 (SA) · South Australian legislation: ss 3, 6, 28–36, 47A–47D, 49 and 50
