Some California homeowners are challenging their HOA days before the Fourth of July after being told to remove American flags from outside their townhouses or face $100 fines.
The dispute is unfolding in San Marcos, where Amy and Chris Cooke say the Ambiance Owners’ Association told them their flag violates community policy. According to ABC 10News, the couple has displayed the flag for years to honor Chris Cooke’s grandfather, who died in World War II and was awarded the Navy Cross and Purple Heart.
The HOA’s notice said the flag was installed on common area fascia. The association’s policy says flags, signs, or banners within or extending into common areas are prohibited.
Flag disputes in HOA communities often turn on placement, not only the flag itself. Homeowners may have stronger protection when a flag is displayed on property they own or in an exclusive-use area, while associations may point to common-area rules, building materials, mounting brackets, and exterior alterations.
Other Neighbors Received Similar Notices
Neighbor Terri Collins told ABC 10News she received the same notice for a flag she says has been outside her home for decades. She said she has lived there for 35 years and does not plan to take the flag down.
The Cookes and Collins were facing pending $100 fines and were scheduled to appear before the HOA board on June 30. ABC 10News reported that the Ambiance Owners’ Association did not respond to its request for comment.
California Law Protects Some Flag Displays
California Civil Code §4705 says HOA governing documents cannot limit or prohibit a member from displaying the United States flag on or in the member’s separate interest or within the member’s exclusive-use common area, except as required for public health or safety.
Federal law also limits how far community associations can go. The Freedom to Display the American Flag Act bars condominium associations, cooperative associations, and residential real estate management associations from preventing an owner from displaying the U.S. flag on residential property where the owner has a separate ownership interest or a right to exclusive possession or use.
The Mounting Location Could Decide the Dispute
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California law defines exclusive-use common area as a portion of common area designated for the exclusive use of one or more owners, but not all owners. The Davis-Stirling materials also note that certain exterior features serving one unit can fall into that category unless the community’s declaration says otherwise.
A flag in a window, a bracket on a doorframe, a pole on a patio, or a mount attached to fascia may be treated differently depending on the CC&Rs, the map, and the association’s definition of common area.
Homeowners who receive a flag violation should save the notice, photograph the display, review the CC&Rs, check whether the location is separate interest, common area, or exclusive-use common area, and ask the HOA to identify the exact rule and legal basis for the fine.