Home Owners association software, or HOA software, serves organizations that govern planned housing communities. Homeowners associations are found in single-family home developments, condominiums (condos), and similar gatherings.
A well-managed HOA maintains the community to increase property values. With functions similar to property management and fund accounting software, HOA software saves time and money by streamlining operational processes.
Examples of HOA Software
AppFolio Property Manager: Equip your team with tools that streamline the work — from mobile violations, association accounting, and more, with just one association management solution. With online portals and various communication methods, you’ll better homeowner expectations. AppFolio’s strong tech foundation enables you to maintain and grow your enterprise efficiently. Experience a real tech community with AppFolio’s skillful onboarding and on-demand assistance.
Buildium: Buildium is purpose-built for all species of living property management and is entrusted by over 4,000 professional community managers with over 300,000 community units. Whether you handle condominiums, rental properties, or homeowners associations, Buildium is an all-in-one solution that helps you develop communication, improve operational efficiency, and maximize financial resources.
Wild Apricot: Wild Apricot is a complete HOA management system designed to fit the needs of your HOA. Easily manage your contacts, create a member-only website, process and track payments, send out emails, and more. With a self-serve design and a user-friendly web and mobile interface, you have the freedom to customize every aspect of your HOA management system. If you require help at any step of the way, the support team and association of experts are willing to help guide you and experience their best practices.
Advantages of HOA Software
HOA software offers the following benefits for common-interest residential communities:
- Enhance community connection: Streamline communication among HOA residents, board members, and stakeholders to build community trust and reduce resident complaints. Community members can connect with the HOA using their preferred channel, such as phone, email, or text. In addition, HOA software makes it easy to send newsletters, violation notices, collection letters, and other announcements. It also helps HOAs create and maintain community calendars to manage events, activities, and other gatherings effectively.
- Save time with task automation: Maintaining an HOA includes many repetitive tasks that are often performed manually. Save cash and time by automating means like work orders, fee collection, and regulation enforcement. In extension, HOA software can compensate for the administrative workload, providing HOA leaders to pay more time on essential tasks that improve community satisfaction.
- Simplify accounting and financial reporting: Bookkeeping spreadsheets and paper-based reports can increase the risk of accounting errors. HOA software with accounting management tools increases financial transparency and accountability to help organizations meet funding requirements. Underfunded HOAs won’t have the cash reserves necessary to handle major repairs and other unexpected events. With easy-to-understand reports and analytics, HOA boards can do more without the need for extensive accounting knowledge.
Features of HOA Software
The HOA software market includes many products, and choosing the right solution depends on the specific features your HOA needs. Here are a few of the essential components to consider:
- Committee Management: Efficiently manage subgroups that support the HOA board with multiple tasks. Plan members into subgroups and promote member sign-up for organizations.
- Member Communication: Contact members is listed in the database for different communication channels, like SMS, email, social media, and phone.
- Work Order Management: Organize work orders and follow their status in real-time to confirm completion. It skirts delays and unresponsiveness to service requests. Streamlining work order management raises service efficiency and acknowledgment rates.
- Member Database: Build a centralized database to store, compile, and edit membership data for the residential neighborhood.
- Accounting Management: Access built-in accounting functions or blend with a third-party accounting system to streamline auditing, accounting, and reporting methods.
- Payment Processing: Accept, record, and reconcile financial transactions. Additional functionalities may include an automatic collection of recurring fees or dues from members.
- Document Management: Collect, store, upload, and share documents in a centralized place. It proffers it easier to stay organized and keep everyone involved informed with current records and documents.
Price of HOA Software
Most products in the market are assessed on a per unit, per month basis. Therefore, pricing can be divided into three pricing tiers based on their opening prices.
Considerations while Buying HOA Software
Keep the following considerations in mind when choosing HOA software:
- Match software solutions to the association’s size: Choose software that suits your HOA’s size and functional requirements. A significant homeowners association with numerous members and households will have different needs than a minor association with only a few residents. Smaller HOAs might not need the additional features and higher price points of HOA software designed for a more prominent organization. Larger HOAs should look for software that can handle the complex needs of the association. All HOAs, regardless of size, benefit from cost-effective solutions that fulfill requirements and can scale up or down in response to organizational changes.
- Factor in the HOA’s physical assets and tight spaces: If an association manages the logistics of shared common areas, look for features that make it easy to manage and share multiple calendars. It helps HOAs eliminate scheduling conflicts among residents while staying on top of the cleaning and maintenance for areas such as pools, tennis courts, playgrounds, and multi-purpose rooms. Calendar and event management also helps HOAs organize and coordinate community programs from a centralized software solution.
HOA Software Trends
Artificial intelligence (AI) can automate communication between residents and homeowners associations. Effective communication with homeowners is essential for ongoing HOA management. Using AI, HOAs can automatically send member communication, collect recurring fees, process service requests, and more. AI-powered chatbots can also answer common questions from residents, saving valuable time and ensuring consistent communication across the HOA.
Mobile-friendly HOA software can simplify community management. HOA software with mobile functionality benefits both HOA residents and staff. Mobile solutions allow HOAs to access community details on the go, ensuring nothing gets lost in the shuffle or stuck on someone’s desk. In addition, HOA software that operates on multiple communication channels allows residents to make payments, access information, and report issues to a single point of contact on their preferred device.