Self Management vs. Property Management Company: What’s Best for Your HOA?

Hiring a property manager to oversee an HOA may be a viable option for neighborhoods whose size and subsequent management needs appear too great for individual residents to handle. But hiring a PMC is never a guaranteed fix.

For those boards that prefer a more hands-on approach, HOA software can help make the transition to self-management possible or help your property management company be more efficient. 

Here are six signs that your current property management company is not the right fit. If you experience these, consider whether your community could switch companies or look into becoming a self-managed HOA.

1. Lack of Financial Transparency

First and foremost, a property management company should offer sound financial management that comes with complete transparency and access to your HOA’s information when you need it. Your PMC should have easy and direct access to your community’s finances, reporting, and documentation and be willing and able to share them with your board of directors as needed. If the transparency isn’t there, you run the risk of financial misappropriation (not to mention the stress of subsequent litigation). 

Using HOA management software is an easy way to ensure your money is going where it’s supposed to. 

2. Poor Communication

You hired property management to work for your neighborhood, not against it. Difficulty contacting the company and slow responses may seem like minor headaches, but they can lead to major issues — and they may be signs that your HOA isn’t getting its money’s worth.

Hiring a property management company that uses HOA management software, or using it to self-manage an HOA, streamlines every aspect of management. From tracking violations and managing community calendars to sending HOA-wide emails and texts, purpose-built software can save everyone time and money. 

3. Recurring Mistakes

Financial and community resource management are among your property manager’s top responsibilities. Even well-intentioned companies can slip up from time to time — but frequent mistakes can lead to big problems.

PayHOA’s high-level finance and accounting tools make it easier for management companies and self-managed boards alike to automate the manual tasks that often lead to mistakes.

4. Inconsistent Rule Enforcement

Property Managers are responsible for enforcing the rules and standards that govern an HOA. Bypassing the difficult responsibility (and inevitable awkwardness) of policing your own neighbors can definitely be a perk of third-party management. But when violations are regularly allowed to stand, they can quickly lead to precedents that supersede existing regulations. A mismanaged rulebook can also create tension amongst neighbors — in fact, lack of enforcement is also one of the main drivers of HOA lawsuits. In other words, if your management company is lax about HOA laws, awkward interactions could be the least of your worries. 

PayHOA’s powerful tools help your in-house HOA stay ahead of the game and out of trouble. Our secure online portal provides a safe platform for alerting homeowners to violations, letting them pay their fees online, and enabling all parties to track the entire process accurately and transparently. It’s fast, fair, and practically pain-free.

5. HOA Residents Are Complaining — Regularly

Poor communication, slow responses, and a consistent lack of follow-through are common sources of resident complaints, no matter who is in charge. 

Unfortunately, they can also be commonplace with the wrong third-party management. Property managers not only live outside of the community, but they may not even reside in the same state. As a result, they sometimes lack the situational or institutional knowledge of what’s important to you and your neighbors.  

A self-managed HOA is more likely to take a residents-first approach because its board members are residents, too. And when PayHOA’s management software supports it, with built-in, two-way communication tools that seamlessly handle everything from maintenance requests to property insurance and legal liabilities, community satisfaction is all but guaranteed.

6. Outdated Technology

Inconveniences, miscommunications, and management errors with major impacts can occur if business practices are behind the times. This can be things like a lack of online payment options, marginal access to digital documents, or the absence of automated communication.

Your HOA deserves better — switching to a new property management company or transitioning to modern self-management technology can achieve that. 

With PayHOA, for instance, boards can create custom member portals and websites with a tailored blend of templates, payment plans, and automated management processes that work best for their unique neighborhood. Residents can sync finances, access important documents, interface with neighbors via PayHOA, and so much more.

How PayHOA Empowers Self-Managed Communities and PMCs

Property management companies can be a viable choice, but it’s not your HOA’s only option. A PMC may work great for your HOA, but sometimes communities want self-management. PayHOA’s technology solution for PMCs may even provide your association with the best of both worlds. 

At the end of the day, one of the biggest things to consider is that you may be handing over control and increasing cost for the expertise and experience a PMC can provide. Even the most well-intentioned company can make mistakes from time to time. When any of these red flags appear, it’s time to consider changing companies or transitioning to a self-managed HOA.

PayHOA’s platform offers a comprehensive, cost-effective suite of HOA management tools that can be customized to your community’s unique needs.

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