Rules for Flying the American Flag at Home: Etiquette and HOA Rights

The rules for flying the American flag at home come from the U.S. Flag Code in Title 4 of the United States Code, and for civilians they work as customs rather than enforceable law. No one is going to fine you for hanging your flag wrong. But the Code lays out a consistent standard, and most of it comes down to one idea: the blue field of stars, called the union, always sits in the position of honor.

The statute itself calls its provisions a “codification of existing rules and customs” for civilian display.¹ The Supreme Court reinforced the point in Texas v. Johnson (1989), holding that the government can encourage respectful treatment of the flag but cannot compel it.² What follows is the official standard. Getting it right is a matter of respect, not compliance.

When to Put the Flag Out

Traditional display runs from sunrise to sunset. If you want to leave the flag up around the clock, you can, as long as it’s illuminated well enough after dark to be recognizable. A porch light or spotlight aimed at the flag does the job. Take the flag down in rain, snow, or heavy wind unless it’s an all-weather flag built for the elements.³

Any day is fine to fly it. The Flag Code singles out federal holidays and observances like Flag Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Veterans Day as occasions where display is especially encouraged, along with state holidays and the anniversary of your state’s admission to the Union.³

How to Position the Flag

The union goes in the position of honor. Where that lands depends on how you’re mounting the flag.

On a Staff Angled Off the House

When the flag flies from a staff jutting out from a window, balcony, porch, or the front of the house, the union goes at the peak of the staff — the end farthest from the building.⁴ The only reason to lower it from the peak is a half-staff observance.

On a Vertical Flagpole in the Yard

Raise the flag briskly, and lower it slowly and deliberately. The contrast is intentional. Except during a half-staff period, the flag should fly from the very top of the pole.⁵

Flat Against a Wall

Whether you hang the flag horizontally or vertically against a wall, the union goes in the upper-left corner from the viewer’s perspective. The Flag Code phrases this as “uppermost and to the flag’s own right,” which is the observer’s left.⁴ This is where most people slip up. The flag’s own right is not your right when you’re facing it.

In a Window

Same rule as a wall display, but the reference point is someone outside looking in. The union should sit in the upper-left corner as seen from the street.⁴

Flying the Flag With Other Flags

The American flag always takes the position of honor when displayed alongside others. Nothing goes above it, and nothing sits to its right (the viewer’s left) on the same level.⁵

On a single pole with multiple flags, the U.S. flag goes on top with state, city, or organizational flags beneath. On separate poles of equal height, place the U.S. flag on the far left as seen from the street.⁵

Flags of other nations are the exception to the stacking rule. International custom bars flying one country’s flag above another’s in peacetime, so a foreign flag alongside the U.S. flag should fly from a separate staff at the same height.⁵

Half-Staff Rules

Half-staff marks a period of national or state mourning, and the order comes from either the President or a state governor. Homeowners follow the order rather than deciding on their own.⁵

The procedure has a specific rhythm. Raise the flag briskly all the way to the top of the pole, pause, then lower it slowly to the halfway point. At the end of the day, reverse the sequence: raise it back to the peak first, then lower it ceremoniously to take it down.⁵

Memorial Day Is Different

On Memorial Day, the flag flies at half-staff from sunrise until noon only, then goes to the top of the pole for the rest of the day.⁵ The morning honors the dead; the afternoon represents the resolve of the living. Plenty of houses on any given block leave their flags at half-staff all day. After noon, that’s incorrect.

What Not to Do With the Flag

Section 8 of the Flag Code lists actions treated as disrespectful. They are customs, not crimes, but they are the standard:

The flag should never touch the ground, floor, water, or anything beneath it.⁶
Don’t put letters, designs, insignias, or drawings on it.⁷
An actual flag shouldn’t be worn as clothing, used as bedding, or hung as curtains. Flag-patterned clothing made as clothing is a separate thing and is common.⁶
Don’t use it for advertising, whether on disposable products like napkins and boxes or as a mount for advertising signs on the flagpole.⁶
An actual flag shouldn’t be used as a costume or athletic uniform. A flag patch on the uniform of military personnel, firefighters, police officers, or patriotic organization members is fine.⁶

For decorating a porch railing or platform, the Flag Code recommends red, white, and blue bunting rather than a flag. Arrange the bunting with blue on top, white in the middle, and red on the bottom.⁶

Your Right to Fly the Flag if You Live in an HOA

If a homeowners association, condo board, or co-op governs your property, federal law protects your right to display the flag. The Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005 bars any residential association from adopting or enforcing a rule that stops a member from flying the U.S. flag on property where the member has an ownership interest or exclusive right of use.⁸ The association can’t override that protection through a covenant, so it applies regardless of what you signed at closing.

The law does allow reasonable restrictions on time, place, and manner if the restriction protects a substantial community interest.⁸ A safety-based cap on flagpole height, or a rule against an oversized flag that blocks a neighbor’s view, would likely qualify. A blanket ban on all flags would not.

One boundary worth knowing: the protection covers the American flag specifically. Your HOA may still restrict sports banners, decorative flags, or flags of other nations unless your state’s law reaches further.

Caring for and Retiring a Flag

A flag on display should be in good shape, not badly faded, frayed, or torn. Basic maintenance keeps it usable longer. Hand washing or a gentle machine cycle with cool water and mild soap works for most fabric flags. Skip soaking, which can bleed the red dye, and line dry rather than machine dry. Small fraying at the fly end, the edge farthest from the pole, can be trimmed with scissors.

Once a flag is too worn to display respectfully, the Flag Code says it should be retired in a dignified manner, preferably by burning.⁶ Backyard burning isn’t practical in most neighborhoods. American Legion posts, VFW halls, and Scout troops hold flag retirement ceremonies and accept worn flags from the public, and many government buildings and VFW posts keep drop-off boxes outside for the same purpose.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. Chapter 1 – The Flag
2
Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Texas v Johnson, 491 U.S. 397
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. 6 – Time and Occasions for Display
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. 7 – Position and Manner of Display
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. 7 – Position and Manner of Display
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. 8 – Respect for Flag
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S. Code 8 – Respect for Flag
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 4 U.S.C. 5 – Display and Use of Flag by Civilians, Codification of Rules and Customs, Definition