HOA POLITICAL SIGNS IN CALIFORNIA: FREE SPEECH RIGHTS VS. HOA AUTHORITY
OVERVIEW
Few issues spark more conflict in HOA communities than signs and banners containing political and social expression. A Trump campaign sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter poster may feel like free expression to one homeowner, while to another it comes across like provocation or an act of violence. HOA boards across California have seized on that tension, with many attempting to ban such displays under nuisance clauses or by stretching the narrow exceptions contained in Civil Code section 4710.
California law, however, draws a hard line. Civil Code section 4710, part of the Davis–Stirling Act, protects a homeowner’s right to display non-commercial signs, posters, flags, and banners on their private property. HOAs can enforce reasonable limits on size, materials, and placement, but they cannot impose content-based restrictions. A Trump sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter banner may be polarizing, but under both federal and California law, it is protected speech.
This article explains how § 4710 works, what restrictions remain available to HOAs, and why attempts to silence political or social expression almost always collapse under California’s constitutional and statutory protections. By the end, you will know exactly what your rights are, what limits your HOA can legally enforce, and how to respond when your board oversteps.
If you’d like to see a quick reference guide on this subject, then click on my Fact Sheet: “California HOAs and Political Signs: What Civil Code 4710 Says About Your Free Speech Rights.”
THE DISTINCTION IN HOAs BETWEEN COMMERCIAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL SIGNS
When you hear “signs” in this context, think broadly: signs, posters, flags, and banners. For simplicity, I’ll use the word “signs,” but the law treats all of them the same.
In any event, while California law draws a sharp line between commercial and non-commercial signage, that hasn’t stopped many HOAs from blurring that line when trying to justify restrictions. Knowing the difference is critical because only non-commercial signs, i.e., signs featuring political, religious, and social expression, receive robust protection under the United States Constitution, the California Constitution, and Civil Code section 4710.
Commercial Signs in HOA Communities
Commercial signs are tied to business or transactions. The clearest example is real estate signage. While California law protects “For Sale” and “Sold” signs because they directly relate to the sale of a property, HOA boards may regulate their size, placement, and duration. However, signs that promote a business, such as “Call John Smith Realty for your real estate needs,” are not tied to a specific home sale and may be prohibited as advertising.
Non-Commercial Signs Under Civil Code § 4710
Non-commercial signs are entirely different. These include Trump or Biden campaign posters, Pride flags, and Black Lives Matter banners. They aren’t sales pitches. They are expressions of political, social, or religious identity. Civil Code section 4710 exists to protect precisely this type of speech, giving it the strongest possible legal protection within HOA communities.
CIVIL CODE § 4710: WHAT THE LAW SAYS ABOUT HOA POLITICAL SIGNS
Civil Code section 4710 is the statutory backbone of free speech rights inside California HOAs. It prohibits governing documents from banning non-commercial signs, posters, flags, or banners on a member’s separate interest, subject only to narrow exceptions. The law exists to ensure that homeowners can express political, religious, or social views without interference from HOA boards that may disapprove of the message, even if they deem them to be unpopular or controversial. [Note on Civ. Code, § 6704: California also enacted § 6704, which uses similar language, but applies only to commercial associations. Because this article concerns residential HOAs governed by the Davis–Stirling Act, I do not address § 6704 further.]
Section 4710 does contain limits, but they are narrow and objective. HOAs may impose reasonable restrictions on:
- Size. Political or social signs cannot exceed 9 square feet, while flags or banners cannot exceed 15 square feet.
- Materials. Signs must be made of common materials such as paper, cardboard, cloth, plastic, or fabric. This prevents boards from claiming that a homeowner’s sign is invalid just because of what it’s made from.
- Health and safety. An HOA may prohibit signage only when it is truly necessary to protect public health or safety, or to comply with another state, federal, or local law.
What § 4710 does not allow is content-based censorship. An HOA cannot declare that a Trump campaign sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter banner is “offensive” and therefore banned. Nor can it create rules that target specific viewpoints under the guise of protecting people’s feelings, or to foster aesthetics or harmony (a point that I will explain in greater detail later in this article).
In practice, this means that unless a sign exceeds the objective size or material limits, creates a genuine safety hazard, or violates another law, the HOA has no authority to order its removal. Any rule or enforcement action that attempts to go further is vulnerable to challenge not only as a violation of § 4710, but also of the California and federal constitutions.
HOW HOAs MISUSE CIV. CODE § 4710’s HEALTH AND SAFETY EXCEPTION
Bad HOAs looking to skirt Civil Code section 4710 nearly always reach for its narrow “health and safety” exception. During the last election cycle, many HOA boards argued that political or social signs supporting Trump or Black Lives Matter created so much division that they threatened community safety. In practice, that meant claiming that these ordinary forms of expression were equivalent to hate speech or threats simply because they provoked strong, triggering reactions among neighbors.
That logic collapses immediately. Civil Code section 4710 clearly intended to prevent HOA boards from weaponizing controversial speech regardless of how such words made others feel. A political sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter poster may be polarizing, but polarization does not equal a safety hazard. Indeed, if disagreement itself qualified as “dangerous,” every divisive political message would be silenced, and in so doing, it would destroy the very free expression the statute was enacted to protect.
Some HOAs have gone even further, trying to stretch California’s Penal Code to cover political or social signage. They point to section 11411, which criminalizes placing swastikas, burning crosses, or similar terroristic symbols on another person’s property, or displaying them in a manner intended to terrorize or threaten. A lot of HOA boards latched onto that second prong, i.e., “intended to terrorize or threaten,” to argue, for example, that displaying a Trump sign was tantamount to threatening someone in the same way that a swastika or burning cross would be.
That argument, however, is legally indefensible. Section 11411’s intent is to target true acts of intimidation, not ordinary political expression. To equate mainstream political or social messages with terroristic symbols will not pass constitutional muster if challenged in court. [There is not any case law in California addressing this issue in the HOA context.]
I want to be clear on this issue. In writing this article, I am NOT sharing my personal opinion on this topic in any way. This is my professional opinion, based on my 30 years as a trial attorney and decades of experience as an expert in the Davis–Stirling Act and applicable HOA law. California courts would likely strike down HOA rules banning signs or banners related to Trump, Pride, or Black Lives Matter under both the broad protections afforded political speech by the United States Constitution and the even more robust free speech protections afford under Article I, Section 2 of the California Constitution.
These protections extend to private property in certain contexts, particularly when the property is open to the public or when the restriction involves content-based regulations. While HOAs are not typically public forums, courts have routinely applied these principles to private organizations like HOAs, underscoring California’s broader commitment to free speech.
Content-based restrictions on speech are subject to strict scrutiny under both federal and state law. That means an HOA would need to show a compelling state interest and prove that its rule is narrowly tailored to achieve that interest. This is an extremely high evidentiary bar to meet, and HOA rules banning political or social signs would almost certainly fail to meet such a heightened threshold.
Again, Civil Code section 4710 explicitly prohibits governing documents from banning non-commercial signs, posters, flags, or banners on a member’s separate interest, except under narrow circumstances. Those circumstances almost never apply to ordinary political or social signage. In short, California courts would almost certainly strike down HOA rules banning political or social signs as impermissible content-based restrictions that fail to meet the strict scrutiny standard and violate both the California Constitution and Civil Code section 4710.
WHAT TO DO IF YOUR HOA TRIES BANNING YOUR SIGNS
If your HOA threatens fines, demands removal, or cites vague “nuisance” or safety-related rules to silence political or social signage, you have concrete legal tools to push back. The first step is to demand written justification for the board’s action. California law requires HOAs to follow due process, and any enforcement attempt must be supported by governing documents and statutory authority.
If the HOA cites Civil Code section 4710 (or even Penal Code §11411), refer back to this article. The Davis-Stirling Act allows boards to restrict size, materials, and placement, and to prohibit signage only where necessary to protect health or safety or to comply with other laws. It does not allow content-based restrictions, even under the guise of health and safety. A board cannot declare that your Pride flag, Trump sign, or Black Lives Matter poster is “too controversial” or “offensive” and use that as justification for removal.
If the board persists, you may escalate by:
- Citing the statute directly (Civil Code § 4710).
- Documenting communications to create a clear paper trail.
- Requesting Internal Dispute Resolution (IDR), which is your statutory right under Civil Code § 5910.
- Consult with the attorneys at my firm, MBK Chapman.
The reality is that HOAs often rely on intimidation or misinformation, hoping homeowners don’t know their rights. When you cite the law back to them, it often puts them on notice that you’re not going to be easy to push around.
CONCLUDING THOUGHT
A Trump sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter banner may divide opinions, may cause some degree of emotional distress, or even move some to commit acts of violence or vandalism. But none of that erases constitutional and statutory rights. Homeowners must understand that size limits, materials, and health or safety carveouts are the only legitimate restrictions that HOAs can place on non-commercial signs, flags, and banners. Everything else is censorship, and California law does not tolerate it.
If your HOA threatens to fine you or remove your political or social signage, do not accept their interpretation at face value. Demand written justification, cite the law, and hold the board accountable. The more informed homeowners are, the harder it becomes for HOAs to weaponize governing documents against free expression.
Free speech inside HOA communities is not optional. It is a protected right. And when boards cross the line, California law gives homeowners the tools to push back and win.
If you’d like to read another article on the broader subject of free speech in HOA communities, then click: “Is There a Line Between Free Speech and HOA Regulations?”