San Marcos HOA threatens fines over American flags

Homeowners in an upscale San Diego-area community say they’re being threatened with fines by their homeowners association over flying the American flag, just days before the nation marks its 250th birthday.

Residents of the 112-unit Ambiance townhome community, where units are listed at roughly $1 million based on current real estate postings, say the Ambiance Owners Association has ordered them to take down flags mounted outside their homes or face penalties, according to Fox News Digital, which first reported on the dispute. 

The dispute traces back at least three years. In May 2023, the HOA barred a resident from flying a San Diego Padres flag and, according to documents reviewed by the nonprofit newsroom inewsource, the board later adopted a 2024 policy prohibiting flag displays on structures the HOA classifies as common property — a category residents say effectively covers the garage door frames and fascia where most of their flags have long been mounted. A 2024 management memo, citing advice from the association’s attorney, argued that “once the members allow use of common property by an owner to express what is essentially a political or affiliative view in a flag, sign, or banner, other owners will want to do the same and the common area will degrade.”

By May 2026, the HOA issued Amy and Christopher Cooke a violation notice alleging their flag violated the policy and gave them 15 days to remove it or face enforcement action, Fox News reported. Ms. Cooke said the flag has flown outside the home for more than two decades in honor of her husband’s grandfather, who was killed in World War II while rescuing fellow sailors and was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross and Purple Heart.

“Both American flags had been flying around here for decades without issue,” Ms. Cooke told Fox News Digital. “The fact is it’s about the American flag, distinctly.”

Neighbor Terri Collins, who says her flag has flown outside her home for roughly 35 years, received a similar notice and now faces a pending $100 fine. Both women were ordered to appear before the HOA board on Tuesday to make their case, according to KGTV/ABC 10News, which first reported the hearing date.

“I’m not gonna be bullied by them,” Ms. Collins told the outlet.

The Cookes contend the HOA has failed to explain why their garage door frame should be treated as common property rather than an “exclusive-use common area” under the association’s governing documents — a distinction that matters under both federal and state law.

The Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005 bars condo, cooperative and residential real estate management associations from restricting a member’s right to fly the U.S. flag on residential property, and a parallel provision of California’s Civil Code bars governing documents from limiting flag displays within a homeowner’s exclusive-use common area.

David Loy, legal director of the First Amendment Coalition, told 10News that while HOAs may set reasonable limits on the size and placement of flags, “they still don’t have a blank check to say no signs, no flags whatsoever on your own private property.”

Courtney Corbello, counsel at the Center for American Liberty, offered a similar assessment to Fox News Digital. “California law is clear,” she said. “While homeowners associations may adopt reasonable rules governing the manner, placement, or safety of flag displays, they cannot prohibit homeowners from flying the American flag on their own property.” She added that a blanket policy sweeping in longstanding displays “is likely to face serious legal scrutiny.”

Ms. Cooke said she and her husband have spent nearly two years researching federal and state law and gathering HOA records in preparation for what they believe could become a lengthy legal fight. The couple say they have also launched an online fundraiser, and according to the fundraising page, any leftover money after covering attorney fees and court costs would go to patriotic organizations or causes supporting Gold Star military families.

“This isn’t about refusing to follow reasonable rules,” Ms. Cooke wrote on the fundraising page. “We believe this is about preserving the right to display the American flag in our own community and ensuring that HOA rules are enforced fairly and consistently.”

The controversy has drawn attention from California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton, who called the HOA’s stance “anti-American” in remarks to the New York Post and urged residents to respond by flying even more flags to mark the nation’s semiquincentennial.