Colorbond fences: what gets built
A Colorbond fence is made of pre-painted steel sheets slotted into steel posts set in concrete, with a top and bottom rail. It doesn't rot or need painting, and it's the fence between most new homes in Chisholm, Thornton North, Lochinvar and Gillieston Heights.
Boundary fences
Back and side fences between neighbours, most often 1.8 m high in sheets of standard width, stepped down a slope or raked to follow it.
Replacing an old fence
An old timber paling fence is pulled out and its posts dug up first. An old fibro sheet fence may contain asbestos: more than 10 m², about 5.6 m of 1.8 m sheeting, must be removed by a licensed asbestos removalist before the new fence goes in.
Colorbond fence extensions and lattice tops
Lattice, slat or solid extension panels fixed above the sheets for extra height or privacy. The fence and its extension count together for the 1.8 m exempt limit, and a neighbour who doesn't want the extra height doesn't pay for it.
Colorbond fence colours
BlueScope's Colorbond fencing range comes in 15 colours. Neighbours agree the colour as part of a shared fence.
Gates
Single side gates and double driveway gates framed to match the fence, hung on heavy hinges with a latch or drop bolt.
Colorbond fence costs in Maitland
Colorbond fence prices per metre
| What's charged | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Colorbond, standard 1.8 m, installed (Sydney) | $100 – $160 per m | North Shore Fencing and Gates |
| Colorbond, 1.8 m, installed (NSW) | $85 – $150 per m | The Quote Yard |
| Colorbond, Newcastle and Hunter region (NSW guide) | $85 – $135 per m | The Quote Yard |
| Colorbond fence (national guide) | $80 low · $130 typical · $190 high per m | What's The Damage |
Checked 28 October 2026. No Maitland fencing business publishes a price. North Shore Fencing and Gates is a Sydney contractor; its 2025 guide includes GST, covers sheets, posts in concrete, rails, installation and clean-up, and gives $100 – $140 per metre in its text where its table says $100 – $160. The Quote Yard (published 14 August 2026) is a NSW quote marketplace and doesn't state GST. What's The Damage's national figures (October 2026) include GST. Removing an old fence is extra.
Height, slope, rock, how far the materials carry and whether an old fence comes out first all change the price per metre. Shared equally with a neighbour, each owner pays half. The Colorbond fence cost guide works through a typical back fence.
Sharing the cost of a Colorbond fence with your neighbour
Under the Dividing Fences Act 1991, neighbours share the cost of a "sufficient dividing fence" equally (s 7), and the kind of fence usual in the area is one of the things that decides what's sufficient (s 4). The owner who wants the work serves a fencing notice with the boundary line, the type of fence and its estimated cost (s 11), so get the quote before serving it.
A neighbour isn't liable for work done before the notice is served or before you've agreed (s 11(5)), except for urgent repairs (s 9). The dividing fences guide covers the notice, the colour choice and what to do if you can't agree.
Does a Colorbond fence need approval in NSW?
In most Maitland suburbs a back or side fence up to 1.8 m high is exempt development under the NSW Codes SEPP, so it needs no council approval, as long as it meets the conditions: no outward-opening gate, low-reflective factory pre-coloured metal, and non-combustible material on bush fire prone land. It isn't exempt on a flood control lot, on or beside a heritage item's lot, or along a road frontage in a heritage conservation area. The fence height and approval guide sets out the rules.
Fencing over $5,000 in NSW
A Colorbond fence worth more than $5,000 including GST is residential building work, built under a contractor licence that covers fencing, with a written contract that gives the licence number. See how to check a fencer's licence.
What to send us
- The fence length in metres and the height
- What's there now: timber, steel, fibro or nothing
- Whether a neighbour shares the boundary and the cost
- Slope, rock, trees or garden beds along the line
- Any gates, with the opening widths
Related guides
- Fibro fences and asbestos in NSW: removal rules How to tell if an old fence may contain asbestos, the 10 m² licensed-removal rule, what not to do, and disposal in the Hunter.
- Colorbond fence cost in Maitland Published Colorbond prices per metre, what's included, extra costs such as removal and slope, and the cost shared with a neighbour.
Questions about Colorbond fencing in Maitland
Who chooses the colour of a shared Colorbond fence?
Neighbours agree on it as part of the fencing work. If you can't agree within a month of the fencing notice, NCAT or the Local Court can decide the fence's standard, considering things such as the kind of fence usual in the area.
Can I put a lattice extension on top of a Colorbond fence?
Yes, but the fence with its extension has to stay within 1.8 m to be exempt development, and if your neighbour doesn't want it, the extra cost is yours under s 7(2) of the Dividing Fences Act.
Can a Colorbond fence go in front of the house?
To be exempt, a fence on a road frontage can be no higher than 1.2 m and must be at least 20% open above 400 mm, so a solid steel sheet front fence doesn't qualify. In Maitland's heritage conservation areas, the DCP says painted steel and clip-lock fences aren't supported on street frontages.
What happens to the old fence?
Ask whether removal and disposal are in the quote. Old fibro sheets may contain asbestos, and more than 10 m² of it must be removed by a licensed asbestos removalist. By our arithmetic, a 6 m run of 1.8 m sheets is already 10.8 m².
Does a Colorbond fence need a slab or footings?
Each post is set in its own concrete footing; there's no slab. On sloping ground the sheets are stepped or raked. A retaining wall under the fence is separate work under a different licence category.
Where this information comes from
The rules and figures on this page come from these published pages, checked on 28 October 2026.
- North Shore Fencing and Gates: fencing cost guide Sydney 2025 · Sydney fencing contractor (Lindfield), price guide titled 2025; "all quoted prices include GST"
- The Quote Yard: fencing costs NSW 2026 · NSW quote-comparison marketplace (it doesn't do trade work itself), price guide published 14 August 2026; GST not stated
- What's The Damage: fencing cost Australia · National cost guide (it passes enquiries to tradespeople), updated October 2026; prices include GST
- Dividing Fences Act 1991 (NSW) · NSW legislation, version in force from 1 July 2018 (ss 3, 4, 7–9, 11–13A)
- State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 · NSW planning policy: cl 1.16, 2.25, 2.30AA–2.30AB, 2.33–2.36, 3.29; read from the version in force from 31 October 2025
- COLORBOND® steel: fencing · BlueScope product page (fencing range: "15 colours to choose from"), undated
- NSW Government: fencing work licence · Building Commission NSW licence page, last updated 23 June 2026
