Yeah. What I always heard (herd 
) was one cow/horse per acre. We are a very steep mountain valley. Very rocky. Moose do OK but they are built for this kind of terrain. Actually I like it when the moose ‘mow’ what little grass we have. And the grass is always greener over the septic field. It’s the only flat place on our property.
I’m sorry though. I’m hi-jacking.
Alas, she might. I have a friend whose HOA told her she couldn’t hang Buddhist prayer flags in her backyard. Down they came. Next she put a 2.5 foot tall statue of the Buddha in her backyard, which is surrounded by a 6’ high privacy fence. The HOA nixed that one, too. They interpreted the covenants very broadly when it suited them to do so.
Even if the OP’s friend’s HOA doesn’t object to the windsock, if you make the statement small enough so that the HOA doesn’t get pissy about it, the point gets lost entirely–which, of course, is their objective. A little resin rainbow among the tulips merely says you like rainbows.
If someone has a very strong need to have their house be a personal expression of their tastes, political affiliation, religion, etc., then they probably shouldn’t live in an HOA neighborhood. It’s going to be stressful for them and a hassle for the HOA. A HOA strives to maintain consistency in the neighborhood. Anything which is not consistent with the rest of the neighborhood is going to targeted by the HOA based on something specific in the covenants (e.g. no flags) or because of something general like “The Property shall be maintained to prevent the existence of any hazardous or unsightly conditions and to prevent any adverse effect on the value of adjacent properties.” It’s often up to the HOA board to decide what is considered unsightly and what would have an adverse effect on adjacent properties. Even if the homeowner is in the right about the complaint, it’s going to be a hassle to fight it. If someone is not the type to go with the flow and have their property look like all the others, then a HOA neighborhood is probably not the place for them.
I can understand someone being upset because they can’t decorate their house as they like, but that downside means that HOA’s generally help protect the neighborhood from homeowners like these:
That, right there, is nightmare fodder.
I wouldn’t count on this particular HOA to do anything of the sort, as they allowed the neighbor’s Trump flag, and allowed it to stay up well past the election. See the OP.
I wonder if the OPs friend or anyone else reported neighbors Trump flag.
The squeaky wheel, and all.
Many HOAs only take action after a complaint has been filed. Some HOAs are proactive where someone from the board goes out regularly to look for violations, but others are reactive and will only take action if someone files a complaint. In a pro-Trump neighborhood, it’s likely that no one filed a complaint about a Trump flag because they all like Trump.
Another one with a decent HOA. I made a point of getting a copy of the rules and bylaws, as well as talking to a few residents, before I bought my house. Shortly after I moved in I got a visit from the HOA “welcome wagon” with a copy of the rules and some gift certificates for local businesses.
My neighbor has a number of signs on her front yard promoting environmental issues and voting (not espousing any particular candidate, just “Voting is a Moral Imperative”). I’ve seem other signs around the neighborhood, but again nothing specifically political.
Not subject to a HOA now, but when I was, it was fine. The rules were pretty strict regarding outside appearances, but they made sense as many owners used their properties for vacation rentals, so it was imperative to maintain a restrained, resort-like atmosphere.
The HOA officers were smart, transparent, happy to answer questions, gave out lots of info at every meeting … no complaints from me.
I live in a town house development. There are lots of public shared spaces including a pool, tennis and basketball courts. It makes sense to have a HOA that takes care of the public areas. Ours is pretty unobtrusive. When we move we expect to get a house and a small piece of property. If it’s my property there will be no HOA.
So someone is peeking over her fence. What is their position on razor wire?
Hopefully not straddling.
They’re on the fence.
We have an HOA and over 15 years received only a few nasty grams (emails and letters). The HOA regulates front and side yards but the only requirement for back yards is approval prior to installing pools/spas in the back yard. They don’t mandate how we decorate our back yard.
If the homeowner is already getting nasty grams and frivolous lawsuits over revving a car too loudly, she should choose her battles carefully. I disagree with going to the news. Public judgement will be much worse than the HOA and make her, family and home a target. As someone else mentioned, decorate with rainbows, everywhere. It might not be a flag but she’ll be able to get her point across without breaking any rules.