Which fence does it for you?
This is from my tour with Gordon in Lake City a couple of weeks ago. Which fence do you like better, and do you know why they were built at different heights? (by the way - both developments are two different 5 unit townhouse sites)
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I have no idea why people build fences like the one on the right. To keep their children from ever coming into contact with the outside world? Vicious high-jumping dogs? Nudists?
On a side note, while we were working thru the design review process with a neighboring developer we joked how we were all going to rent our houses to sunbathing nudists for our new neighbors to watch. You’d be surprised how that helped us get some additional privacy considerations.
Great photo. I’m with Matt, I can’t imagine why someone would want the tall fence though I grew up within sea of them in Texas (though they were in the backyards).
I have a question..what would prevent the new owners of the house on the left from building a fence similar to its neighbor?
Realistically, how much influence does the builder of the left set of townhouses really have on setting a neighborhood tone or trend? I will give the shorter fence an “A” for effort, though. And if I were buying, I would prefer the house on the left and enjoy the openess and pleasing scale of the fence until I got tired of Lake City detritus blowing into my front yard. Fortunately for my imaginary neighbors, I am not a nudist.
Well…the answer is…the owners of the units were the ones who can make the call. So, on the right, the tenants wanted a private yard (I think so that they could let their dogs out to do their business) - keep in mind that the other side of their units are reserved for parking.
The tenants on the left were convinced by the developer (Gordon) that a lower fence would be more appealing and be better for getting to know their neighbors. Of course, if they had demanded an enclosed fence they probably could have convinced him to do this.
So…the answer is - if they’re in agreement - it’s the townhouse owner’s call!
We’ve found that most owners who have the streetside units with front doors opening to the street (as opposed to the parking courtyard as many do) see the benefit of the more open fence — it’s trying to be a “front porch” to the neighborhood. On this project, the alley-side units have front doors on the parking courtyard and yards on the alley that we went ahead and fenced in with the 6′ solid cedar fencing so they could have that privacy. I’m convinced that the street side units are generally more appealing, although some of my brokers disagree and thing that most buyers prefer private yards. On this project, all three street side units sold before any of the alley units…I’m convinced townhome owners really don’t want any yard at all and this “open space” thing the city mandates should be kept simple and low maintenance for our buyers.
As a new townhome convert (I formerly owned a 1/4 acre lot with a 1929 farmhouse), I don’t mind yard as long as it is common area and is maintained by the landscaping service that I am paying as a part of my monthly dues. You give up some privacy to not have as much responsibility. It just comes down to lifestyle choice. I got sick of being a slave to my yard and wanted to get my life back.
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