Frequently Asked Questions

AffordableHOA is cloud-based HOA management software for self-managed communities (homeowners associations that operate without a professional property management company). It gives boards the tools to collect dues, manage finances, enforce rules, communicate with residents, and run day-to-day operations, all from a single platform.

AffordableHOA is designed for self-managed HOAs of any size, from small communities of 10 units to larger associations of up to 1,000 units. It is used primarily by volunteer board members (presidents, treasurers, and secretaries) who want professional tools without hiring a property manager or paying enterprise software prices.

It is built specifically for self-managed HOAs. Board members run the software themselves. If your association is managed by an external property management company, AffordableHOA can still be used, but it is designed around the self-managed model where the board is in control.

Three things set it apart. First, pricing: AffordableHOA is among the most affordable full-featured HOA platforms available, starting at $49/month. Second, completeness: every feature is included at every plan tier; there is no feature gating or add-on pricing. Third, the AI assistant: AffordableHOA includes "Know It All," an AI that answers resident questions 24/7 based on your community's own documents, reducing the volume of emails and calls to the board.

Yes. AffordableHOA is built, hosted, and supported entirely in the United States. Community data is stored on U.S.-based servers and processed by U.S.-based infrastructure.

Every plan includes every feature. There are no add-ons, no per-transaction platform fees, and no feature tiers.

Yes. Every plan includes a 14-day free trial. No credit card is required to start.

No. AffordableHOA charges a flat monthly subscription based on the number of units in your community. There is no per-unit fee and no platform transaction fee. When residents pay dues by card or ACH, Stripe's standard payment processing fees apply; these can be passed to residents or absorbed by the HOA.

AffordableHOA is one of the most affordable full-featured HOA management platforms available, starting at $49/month for communities with up to 50 units. Unlike many competitors that charge per unit or gate features behind higher tiers, AffordableHOA uses flat monthly pricing and includes every feature at every plan level.

No hidden fees. The monthly plan price is the only charge from AffordableHOA. Stripe payment processing fees apply when residents pay by credit card (typically 2.9% + 30¢) or ACH bank transfer (0.8%, capped at $5). These are standard payment processor fees, not AffordableHOA fees, and your board can choose whether to pass them to residents or absorb them.

Yes. There are no long-term contracts. You can cancel your subscription at any time.

Yes. Every feature, including the AI assistant, bank reconciliation, reserve fund planning, vendor compliance tracking, e-signatures, ACH payments, and all reporting tools, is available at every plan tier. The only difference between plans is the number of units supported.

Residents pay online by credit card or ACH bank transfer through Stripe. Payments go directly to your HOA's bank account; the board never handles money. Residents can enable autopay to have dues collected automatically on the due date. Late fees apply automatically after a configurable grace period. The board can view who has paid, who is overdue, and the full collection history at any time.

Know It All is a chat-based AI assistant built into the resident portal. It appears as a floating widget that residents can open at any time and ask plain-language questions about the community. It reads every document, announcement, meeting minutes entry, and rule the board has uploaded, and gives residents an instant, accurate answer drawn directly from that material.

It is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A resident who wonders what the guest parking policy is at 10 p.m. on a Saturday gets an answer immediately, without emailing the board and waiting until Monday.

Anything a resident would normally email the board about. Common examples:

• "When are dues due each month, and what happens if I pay late?": Know It All pulls the due date, grace period, and late fee amount from your community's settings and rules.
• "Am I allowed to have a fence installed?": It checks the architectural guidelines and explains what requires board approval and how to submit a request.
• "What are the pool hours?": It finds that in the amenity rules or relevant announcement and answers instantly.
• "Can I park an RV in my driveway?": It cites the parking policy from your uploaded CC&Rs or rules document.
• "When is the next board meeting?": It reads the community calendar and answers with the date and location.
• "What was decided about the landscaping contract at the last meeting?": It searches the meeting minutes and summarizes the relevant section.
• "How do I submit a maintenance request?": It explains the process based on your community's posted procedures.
• "Is there a pet size limit?": It checks the pet policy and gives a direct answer.

Know It All only answers based on what your community has actually uploaded. It will not fabricate a rule that does not exist.

In most communities, the same handful of questions account for the majority of resident emails: when dues are due, what the late fee is, guest parking rules, pet policies, and how to submit a request. Know It All handles all of these instantly, every time, without the board getting involved.

A typical scenario before Know It All: a resident moves in, reads through the welcome packet, still has questions, and sends an email to the board president. The president responds two days later. The same question comes in from the next new resident a week later.

With Know It All: the resident opens the portal, types the question, and gets the answer in seconds. The board president never sees it.

Boards that operate with Know It All enabled report that the routine informational emails drop significantly within the first few weeks, freeing up board time for decisions that actually require human judgment.

Know It All reads the documents, announcements, and meeting minutes that the board uploads to AffordableHOA. The more the board uploads, the more Know It All can answer. A community that has uploaded its CC&Rs, rules and regulations, architectural guidelines, pet policy, and parking rules will have Know It All answering nearly every question a resident could ask.

It does not use generic HOA information or fabricate answers. Every response is grounded in your community's actual uploaded material. If a resident asks something that is not covered in the documents, Know It All says so and suggests they contact the board directly.

No. Know It All is an informational tool, not a legal advisor. Its answers are drawn from your community's uploaded documents and are intended to help residents find information quickly. They are not legal advice and should not be treated as such.

There are categories of questions where AI should never be the final word:

• Bylaw and statute interpretation: What a provision means, whether it applies to a specific situation, or whether it is enforceable requires legal judgment that AI cannot reliably provide.
• Enforcement decisions: Whether to issue a violation, assess a fine, or pursue collection involves fair process, documentation, and human accountability. AI does not make enforcement decisions.
• Fair housing issues: Any question touching on a protected class, accommodation requests, or potential discrimination must be handled by a qualified attorney. This is not an area where AI output should inform any decision.
• Governance disputes: Election challenges, quorum questions, removal of board members, and similar matters require documented procedures and, often, legal counsel.

For any of the above, consult a licensed HOA attorney in your state. Know It All is a time-saving tool for routine informational questions, not a replacement for professional judgment where it matters.

Yes. AffordableHOA includes a full bank reconciliation tool. Each month, boards match their HOA's bank statement against payments collected and expenses recorded in the system. The tool calculates the difference in real time and allows boards to close and lock each period as a permanent, auditable record.

Yes. The reserve fund planner lets boards track every capital asset the community will eventually need to replace: roofs, parking lots, HVAC systems, pool equipment, and so on. It uses straight-line depreciation to calculate how much the HOA should be setting aside each month and shows the community's funded percentage at a glance.

Yes. The vendor compliance module stores each contractor's certificate of insurance, including general liability, workers' compensation, and license documentation, along with expiration dates. The system sends automatic alerts at 30, 14, and 7 days before any certificate expires. Boards can filter the vendor list to show only currently compliant vendors before assigning work.

Yes. Residents can pay dues directly from their bank account via ACH transfer. ACH fees are typically 0.8%, capped at $5 per transaction, significantly lower than card processing rates. Boards can enable or disable ACH from the settings panel.

Yes. Boards can require residents to formally acknowledge HOA rules, move-in agreements, or policy documents through the resident portal. Residents sign with a typed name; the system records the timestamp and IP address as an audit trail.

Yes. Residents reserve shared spaces (a clubhouse, pool deck, tennis courts, or any other amenity) directly from the resident portal. The board approves or denies each request, and both parties receive email confirmation. The board can set blackout dates and booking rules.

Yes. Boards can download dues income, expense records, and resident lists as QuickBooks-compatible CSVs. These can be imported into QuickBooks Online as bank transactions or handed directly to a CPA.

Yes. At tax time, boards can pull a one-click 1099 vendor summary report. Vendors paid $600 or more during the year are automatically flagged for 1099-NEC filing. The report includes EIN, mailing address, and year-to-date totals.

AffordableHOA generates one-click printable reports including: income collected by period, expense detail by category (budget vs. actual), reserve fund status, delinquency aging by unit, and reconciliation summaries. Reports include a signature block for the treasurer and are suitable for presenting to members or handing to an auditor.

Yes. Boards can run binding or advisory votes on budgets, rule changes, board elections, and architectural change requests. Residents vote from their portal and results update in real time.

AffordableHOA is a web-based platform that works on any device through a browser. There is no separate app to download; residents and board members access their portal from any smartphone, tablet, or computer.

Most communities are up and running in under an hour. Creating the community, setting dues amounts, and inviting the first residents typically takes less than 30 minutes. Connecting a bank account via Stripe takes an additional 5 to 10 minutes. AffordableHOA also offers free setup assistance for new communities: a real person will walk you through it at no charge.

The board adds each resident's email address to their unit. The system sends an invitation email with a registration link. Residents sign up with their email or Google account. Only residents whose email is on file can register; the portal is invite-only.

Yes. Boards can upload a CSV or spreadsheet with unit addresses and resident email addresses to onboard an entire community at once. Invitation emails go out automatically.

AffordableHOA offers free setup assistance for all new customers. Whether you need help importing your unit list, configuring dues, or getting residents invited, contact the support team and a real person will assist you. There is no charge for setup help.

Yes. The platform works for any type of self-managed community: single-family home subdivisions, condo associations, townhome communities, and mixed-use HOAs.

Yes. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Resident portal access is invite-only; only email addresses registered by the board can create accounts. Every board action is logged in an audit trail with timestamp and user. Financial records are stored as permanent, locked records after reconciliation.

Data is stored on U.S.-based servers. AffordableHOA does not use offshore data centers or foreign third-party processors.

Yes. Residents can only see their own payment history, community-wide announcements, published meeting minutes, the community calendar, shared documents the board has made available, and amenity availability. Private board notes, financial details, other residents' payment status, and settings are visible only to board members.