What We Build for Manor Homes
Fence and deck work in Manor covers six-foot cedar privacy fences for ShadowGlen and EastVillage homes, chain link for budget pet containment, decks on flat lots that suit ground-level construction, and deeper post-setting built to handle the heavy black clay.
The mix is different from what we do in Cedar Park or Round Rock. Chain link comes up more often here than west of I-35. Home values run a bit lower, and chain-link with black vinyl-coated handles for pet containment at a price point that fits the neighborhood. Cedar privacy fences still dominate HOA back-yard runs in ShadowGlen, EastVillage, and Wildhorse Ranch. Pool fences are less common than in Bee Cave, but we build them on the higher-end Manor properties.
We also build deck projects on the flat lots typical of Manor. Ground-level decks fit most properties because the grade is gentle.
Manor Subdivisions and Areas We Serve
ShadowGlen is one of our most frequent Manor service areas. Master-planned with active design review, several phases at different build stages, and a fence palette that includes six-foot cedar privacy with cap-and-trim on back-yard runs. We’ve handled enough ShadowGlen submittals to know what passes review on the first pass.
EastVillage is the newer master-planned community east of FM 973. Active design committee, similar fence palette to ShadowGlen, with stricter color and stain requirements for front-facing exposures. We’ll submit the spec sheets when required.
Wildhorse Ranch and Presidential Glen are smaller HOAs favoring six-foot cedar for back-yard runs and four-foot ornamental iron for front-yard accents.
The older parts of Manor, the original neighborhoods south of US 290, hold a mix of original 1990s-era fences and newer replacements. Existing fences here are mostly past their twenty-year mark and ready for full replacement rather than repair. Cedar privacy with proper post-setting is the standard request.
Unincorporated stretches off FM 973 don’t have HOA jurisdiction. Travis County setbacks still apply, and we work with permit partners on any project requiring permits.
Why Black Gumbo Clay Changes the Job
East-side Travis County soil is dominated by Houston Black, a heavy, expansive clay nicknamed black gumbo for the way it sticks when wet. The same clay that grows excellent cotton wreaks havoc on shallow fence posts. The expansion-and-contraction cycle is wider than in the clay loam west of I-35, and any post set at twenty-four inches in a six-inch hole will lean within three to five years.
Our standard for Manor: six-foot posts, thirty inches deep, minimum; eight-foot posts, thirty-six inches deep, minimum; both in concrete with a flared base. The flare gives the post bottom something to grab against the clay’s vertical movement. Without it, the concrete plug rises and falls with the seasons, and the fence comes with it. With the flare, the post stays put.
Drainage matters more here. We grade around posts to keep standing water from saturating the concrete. Cedar pickets cup faster in this soil’s moisture cycle than west of Lakeway, so we recommend annual inspection and re-staining sooner.
Materials That Work in Manor Conditions
Cedar dominates our wood installs, both for privacy fence installation and shorter front-yard runs. We use rough-sawn western red cedar pickets from the yard we’ve worked with since 2013, set in concrete at the depths above. Chain link is our most-installed material in older Manor neighborhoods, available in galvanized steel for budget installs and black vinyl-coated steel for a cleaner look. We install both four-foot and six-foot heights.
We don’t install pressure-treated pine privacy fences. The chemical treatment fights stain absorption, and boards warp faster in Manor’s clay-soil moisture cycle. Composite is our most-installed deck material here, just like in Cedar Park and Round Rock. Trex Transcend handles full Texas sun without fading and skips annual sealing.
Request a free estimate, and we’ll come out the same week.
Deck Construction on Flat Manor Lots
Most Manor properties have a gentle grade, which makes ground-level deck construction straightforward. The framing is simpler than hillside terrain, post excavation is consistent across the site, and the deck sits closer to the yard for natural integration. We frame with pressure-treated lumber, set concrete piers thirty-six inches deep (same as fence posts in this soil), and finish with composite or cedar. Stainless or coated fasteners throughout, because galvanized fasteners corrode faster in the moisture-rich clay.
For higher-deck applications (back doors elevated more than 30 inches above grade), we work with permit partners on plan submittal and inspection coordination. Most Manor decks fall under that threshold and don’t require permits.
Why Local Knowledge Matters Here
Working in Manor is different from working in Liberty Hill or Buda. The soil isn’t the same. The HOA palette isn’t the same. A contractor who builds standard cedar privacy across Williamson County’s clay loam doesn’t automatically know how the heavier east-side gumbo behaves over a five-year cycle. We’ll recommend specifications that fit the soil rather than defaulting to a Williamson County spec.
Areas We Serve Around Manor
Cedar Park is the home base. Beyond Manor, we serve the surrounding eastern Travis County area, including Pflugerville, Elgin, Hutto, and the unincorporated stretches off US 290 and FM 973. We also cover the broader Austin metro from Buda up through Round Rock. If you’re inside roughly thirty miles of Cedar Park, we serve you.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Do you work in ShadowGlen and EastVillage?
Yes. Both are among our most frequent Manor service areas. ShadowGlen has a long-running design committee with a strict cedar-stain palette and gate placement rules; EastVillage runs a less formal review process but still requires a written submittal. We’ve handled enough projects in both communities to put together approval packages on the first pass.
2. How deep do you set fence posts in Manor's black gumbo soil?
Six-foot posts go thirty inches deep minimum, eight-foot posts thirty-six inches minimum, both in concrete with a flared base. East-side Travis County soil expands and contracts more than the clay loam west of I-35, and the deeper-set, flare-type is non-negotiable on our Manor projects. Posts set at the standard twenty-four inches lean within three to five years here.
3. What's the most common fence material for Manor homes?
Six-foot cedar privacy with cap-and-trim is the standard request in HOA neighborhoods like ShadowGlen and EastVillage. Chain link is more common in the older parts of Manor, where homeowners prioritize budget pet containment over visual screening. We also install ornamental iron for front-yard accents and pool fencing where the property has a pool.
4. Do Manor HOAs require approval before installing a fence or deck?
Most Manor HOAs require design review before fence or deck construction. ShadowGlen, EastVillage, Wildhorse Ranch, and Presidential Glen each run their own committees with different submittal cadences. ShadowGlen’s design committee meets twice monthly, while smaller HOAs may only review on request. The older parts of Manor north of US 290 are mostly outside HOA jurisdiction, with only city zoning rules applying. We confirm the jurisdiction during the walkthrough.
5. How long does a fence or deck project take in Manor?
Standard residential fence: two to four days on a flat ShadowGlen-style lot. HOA fence with cap-and-trim and stain-match: three to five days. Chain link in the older Manor neighborhoods runs faster, typically one to three days. Standard back-yard decks run four to seven business days, and we add a day for the soil-grading work that black gumbo lots almost always need around deck footings. We’ll provide firm dates in the written quote once the soil and HOA reviews are scoped.
6. Do I need a permit in Manor?
The City of Manor requires permits for fences over seven feet in height and for most attached decks more than thirty inches above grade. Manor’s permits are administered through the city’s development services office, and Travis County rules apply on the unincorporated stretches outside city limits. The Travis County thresholds are slightly different from Williamson County’s, which matters because Manor’s eastern edge sits close to that county line. We confirm jurisdiction during the walkthrough, and our permit partners handle the application end-to-end.
7. Can you handle the drainage issues that come with this soil?
Yes. Drainage matters more on Manor projects than on most Williamson County jobs because standing water around posts saturates the concrete, accelerating seasonal movement. We grade around each post during installation and flag any property-level drainage issues that should be addressed before the fence goes in.
8. Do you offer fence repair and staining across Manor?
Yes. Our fence repair team handles repairs on existing Manor fences. The most common Manor repair calls are leaning posts after a wet season, black gumbo soil holding water longer than clay loam west of I-35, and shallow posts walking seasonally. We also provide fence staining on a roughly three-year cycle for cedar in this microclimate, since the higher soil moisture cycles east of I-35 wear out stain finishes faster than the Williamson County average.