My back yard in the borough is only reachable through an alley. Can you still install a fence?

Yes. Most of the work behind the twins near Everhart Park gets done by hand. We carry the posts, panels and bagged concrete in through the alley or straight through the house, dig with a one-man auger or by hand, and mix at the curb rather than running a truck chute. It takes longer than a township job. Tell us what the access looks like when you call so we can put it in the quote.

What fence style suits a house in the West Chester historic district?

The older borough blocks tend to look right in painted wood rather than vinyl. A four-foot cedar picket suits a street-facing yard. Behind a twin, six-foot board-on-board or shadowbox gives you privacy without reading as a wall from the alley. Street-facing work in the borough's historic district can be subject to review, so we confirm what applies to your block before anything is ordered, and we build to whatever the review asks for.

We are on the Brandywine side of town and the ground is full of rock. How do you set posts there?

East Bradford and the land dropping toward the creek near Stroud Preserve sits on Piedmont schist. Where the auger stops, we switch to a rock bit or break the hole out by hand and reset the post from the bottom of the sound rock. The hole still finishes below frost depth so nothing lifts over the winter. We call 811 on every property before the first hole opens.

Do you install pool fencing that meets barrier requirements out in the townships?

Yes. We do pool fencing regularly in West Goshen and Westtown. The hardware matters more than the panel does. The gate hangs on self-closing hinges with a self-latching latch set out of a child's reach, and we keep the picket spacing and rail placement non-climbable. Confirm the current barrier requirement with your township before we order and we will build the fence to that.

Who issues my fence permit, the borough or the township?

It depends on the address. West Chester Borough has its own zoning office. West Goshen, East Goshen, Westtown, East Bradford and Thornbury each run theirs separately, and the rules on height, setback and corner sight lines are not the same from one to the next. We find out which office covers your property, confirm what it wants, and pull the permit as part of the job.

West Chester, PA

Local Fence Contractor in West Chester serving Chester County, PA: Hoff - The Fence Contractors

Residential and commercial fencing for West Chester and Chester County, PA: installation, repair, replacement, gates, and access control. Call for pricing.

Get a Free Estimate (833) 934-3569

HOFF - The Fence Contractor

433 W Market St, Suite 600
West Chester, PA 19382

(610) 472-7142 Get an Estimate

Services provided

Swimming Pool fences
Dog fences
Privacy fences
Aluminum fences
Vinyl fences
Split-rail fencing
Wood fences
Chain link fences
Agricultural fencing
Commercial fencing
Rail fencing
Security fencing

Find the West Chester team

433 W Market St, Suite 600
West Chester, PA 19382

5.0 stars from 29 Google reviews

View on Google Maps

Or call (610) 472-7142 for directions.

We work out of 433 W Market St, Suite 600, a few blocks west of the Chester County Courthouse on North High Street. West Chester is the county seat, and the fence work here splits two ways from that address. Inside the borough line the houses are nineteenth-century rowhomes and twins on lots about twenty feet wide. Cross into West Goshen or East Bradford and the same phone call is four hundred feet of split rail and a gate across the driveway.

Access is the first thing we look at on a borough job. The yards behind the twins near Everhart Park, and on the streets running off South High, are reached through a shared alley or through the house itself. No truck gets back there, so we hand-carry the posts and mix the concrete on site. Old footings from the last fence usually have to come out before the new posts go in, and that is slow going in a yard you can only reach with a wheelbarrow. The south end of the borough around West Chester University is heavy on rental property. Landlords there ask for a fence that will take a few years of tenants.

Outside the borough the ground is not the same from one township to the next. East Bradford, and the land falling toward Brandywine Creek near Stroud Preserve, is Piedmont rock under a shallow clay topsoil. Westtown and Thornbury are flatter and more open. The horse properties toward Pocopson and Unionville want ranch rail with wire behind it. In the older managed communities like Hershey's Mill in East Goshen, the association has usually settled on a style already, and we build that style. We cover all of it from Market Street, including the outer ZIP codes toward Chadds Ford and Glen Mills over the Delaware County line, which our crews reach off the Route 202 bypass.

Fence work in the borough and in the Chester County townships around it

In the borough we dig by hand or close to it. Posts are pressure-treated 4x4s set in holes dug with a one-man auger or a clamshell digger, because a power auger on a skid steer will not fit down a West Chester alley. The concrete gets mixed in a wheelbarrow at the curb and walked back. On a twin, the fence line runs along a party line that has been in the same place for a hundred years, so we string the line off the house corners and the old footings instead of guessing at it. Four-foot cedar picket is the usual choice out front. In the rear yard, where two houses look at each other, six-foot board-on-board or shadowbox is what most people end up with.

The township jobs get laid out before anything is dug. Long runs across West Goshen, Westtown and East Bradford are set out with a string line and a laser level first, because a fence line that wanders shows up over three hundred feet. On ground falling toward the creek we rack aluminum or vinyl panels where the grade is gentle and step the panels where it is not. Rock is normal here. When the auger stops on schist we go to a rock bit or break the hole out by hand, and the post still finishes below frost depth so it does not lift out of plumb over a wet January. Every property gets an 811 locate before we dig. On the parcels running out toward Lenape Road that means locating the septic field and the well line along with the utilities.

Gates get more attention than the rest of the fence. A single swing gate hangs on heavy strap hinges, and the gate post is sized for the leaf it has to carry. Wide driveway openings on the township properties take a double swing gate or a cantilever slide, and we wire the gate for an operator, an intercom and a keypad when the owner wants the drive closed. Pool gates use different hardware altogether. The gate hangs on self-closing hinges with a self-latching latch set high and out of reach, and the picket spacing and rail placement stay non-climbable. We also repair and replace what is already up. In this county that is often a twenty-year-old chain link fence that needs retensioning instead of replacing.

Fencing considerations around West Chester

Soil and frost: Piedmont schist under a shallow clay topsoil across most of Chester County, with real rock on the East Bradford and Brandywine side. Every post hole goes below frost depth so the fence does not heave.
Terrain: where the ground falls toward the creek valleys we rack the panels if the grade is gentle and step them if it is steep. Borough yards are flat, but no machine can get into them.
Lots and housing: borough twins and rowhomes sit on narrow lots with shared party lines and alley access. Township parcels run an acre or more, with long fence runs and treeline boundaries.
HOA and permits: managed communities like Hershey's Mill review the fence style before work starts. The borough and each surrounding township run their own zoning office, so which desk issues your permit depends on which side of the line your address falls on. We find that out and pull it.

Fencing Services We Provide in West Chester

Every service below is available from the West Chester, PA office.

Why West Chester Property Owners Choose Hoff

The fence contractor for all your fencing needs!

Locally-owned and family-operated
We only use the highest quality materials
We guarantee our work
We are licensed and insured
Our reputation is everything to us

Tell us about your next project

West Chester Fencing FAQs

My back yard in the borough is only reachable through an alley. Can you still install a fence?: Yes. Most of the work behind the twins near Everhart Park gets done by hand. We carry the posts, panels and bagged concrete in through the alley or straight through the house, dig with a one-man auger or by hand, and mix at the curb rather than running a truck chute. It takes longer than a township job. Tell us what the access looks like when you call so we can put it in the quote.
What fence style suits a house in the West Chester historic district?: The older borough blocks tend to look right in painted wood rather than vinyl. A four-foot cedar picket suits a street-facing yard. Behind a twin, six-foot board-on-board or shadowbox gives you privacy without reading as a wall from the alley. Street-facing work in the borough's historic district can be subject to review, so we confirm what applies to your block before anything is ordered, and we build to whatever the review asks for.
We are on the Brandywine side of town and the ground is full of rock. How do you set posts there?: East Bradford and the land dropping toward the creek near Stroud Preserve sits on Piedmont schist. Where the auger stops, we switch to a rock bit or break the hole out by hand and reset the post from the bottom of the sound rock. The hole still finishes below frost depth so nothing lifts over the winter. We call 811 on every property before the first hole opens.
Do you install pool fencing that meets barrier requirements out in the townships?: Yes. We do pool fencing regularly in West Goshen and Westtown. The hardware matters more than the panel does. The gate hangs on self-closing hinges with a self-latching latch set out of a child's reach, and we keep the picket spacing and rail placement non-climbable. Confirm the current barrier requirement with your township before we order and we will build the fence to that.
Who issues my fence permit, the borough or the township?: It depends on the address. West Chester Borough has its own zoning office. West Goshen, East Goshen, Westtown, East Bradford and Thornbury each run theirs separately, and the rules on height, setback and corner sight lines are not the same from one to the next. We find out which office covers your property, confirm what it wants, and pull the permit as part of the job.

What Hoff Customers Say

Reviews left by Hoff customers on Google.

“Absolutely recommend this company. Very quick response time to my initial inquiry with onsite evaluation completed same week. Quote/pricing was very reasonable. Their team took care of permits. Once my fencing was in the team was on site and finished the projects quicker than I had expected. The fence looks great. Whole team were friendly and professional. My dog loves his new space:)”
Heather Mascio
“Jim, the owner, was very responsive to all my questions, and took care of everything from start to finish. The material they used was clearly superior to what you would buy at a home center, or get installed from other fence companies. The price was competitive, and the finished product looks great. I would recommend them to anybody looking for a new fence.”
Chandler Liero
“Amazing work by the crew! Perfect match to my neighbors fencing! Very good value, crew showed up on time, cleaned up after the job and no issues! Kind and friendly crew”
John Hoffman

Our other Pennsylvania offices

Other areas we serve in Pennsylvania

Get an Estimate

We are your best resource for industrial, residential & commercial fences! Call us now! 1 (833) 602-3174

Get a fence quote in West Chester

Tell us about your project and we'll come out, measure, and give you a straight quote. Serving southeastern Pennsylvania from Media, West Chester and Wayne.