TLDR
When you leave a management company, you inherit a pile: scattered bank access, half-organized records, dues that still need to go out. Gavelhouse is what you set up on day one so the board can actually run things.
How Gavelhouse helps boards leaving a management company
Gavelhouse gives boards leaving a management company one place for board money, decisions, owner requests, and follow-up work.
Solves: scattered work.
How: role paths tied to the same board record.
For: boards, managers, and operators serving HOA and condo communities.
Pain points for boards leaving a management company
- The management company handed you login credentials and maybe a spreadsheet. There is no system underneath it.
- Bank access, vendor contacts, and owner records are spread across emails, paper files, and whoever was the last treasurer.
- Dues go out whether the board is ready or not. Reserve funds still need tracking. The board is personally liable for both, starting now.
What success looks like
- Import your homeowner list, set up your operating and reserve funds, and start collecting dues the same day.
- Every transaction posts to the correct fund. Operating money stays separate from reserve money.
- Reports are ready any time, for your CPA, your insurance carrier, or the next person who takes over.
What you inherit when the manager leaves
The management company is gone. You have a spreadsheet and some login credentials. A phone number that may not work. That is where most boards start.
Bank access takes time to sort out. Owner records are in emails and paper files. Dues are due next month whether the board is ready or not. Reserve money and operating money may be sitting in the same account with no clear line between them.
Gavelhouse is what you set up before any of that gets worse. Import your homeowner list. Create your operating and reserve funds. Start collecting dues the same day.
Once the transition is done, see the HOA self-management platform page. It shows what running your own HOA looks like day to day.
The liability issue starts on day one
When a management company ran your community, they carried a lot of the fiduciary weight. Now that falls on you. Fiduciary duty means the board is legally responsible for how funds are handled.
The risk that shows up fastest is commingling. That is mixing operating money and reserve money in one account. Several states require these funds to stay separate. California (CA Civ. Code 5550), Florida (FL 720.303(7)), and Washington (WA RCW 64.34.364) all have this rule. When they are mixed, board members can face personal liability.
Generic tools do not enforce this. Gavelhouse does. The HOA fund accounting software keeps operating and reserve accounts in separate ledger accounts. That separation is built into the system. You cannot mix the funds by mistake.
Records the next officer can actually use
One hidden cost of leaving a management company is records that only one person understands. The departing treasurer knew how the spreadsheet worked. The new one does not. The company had the history. Now nobody does.
Gavelhouse gives every board officer access to the same system. Month-end close reports, owner balance history, and fund ledgers are all in one place. Any officer can pull a report for your CPA, your insurance carrier, or the next annual meeting.
Every plan includes unlimited board users. Adding a new treasurer costs nothing extra. Same for bringing in a second officer.
Pricing
Flat per-community pricing, no per-unit fees. Self-serve tiers by community size: Starter for up to 50 homes, Growth for 51 to 200, and Scale for 201 to 500. Portfolio is custom for operators running multiple communities. Annual self-serve plans include the Y80OFF offer and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
| Area | Boards leaving a management company | Gavelhouse |
|---|---|---|
| Main constraint | No operating system on day one, just login credentials and scattered records | Set up your homeowner list, funds, and dues collection the same day |
| Fiduciary risk | Reserve and operating funds may end up mixed if moved without a fund-accounting system | Fund separation is enforced at the ledger layer and cannot be bypassed |
| Handoff continuity | Officers change. Records held by the management company get lost in the transition | Unlimited board users, audit trail, and month-end reports any officer can access |
Q&A
What does a board do first after leaving a management company?
The first job is getting bank access, gathering owner records, and standing up a system to collect dues. Gavelhouse is built for that moment. Import your homeowner list, set up your funds, and start collecting dues the same day the management company hands over the keys.
Q&A
How does Gavelhouse help with the transition from a management company?
Gavelhouse gives the board a fund-accounting ledger built for HOAs. You manually import your homeowner list and set up your operating and reserve funds. Dues collection, month-end close, and board reports all run inside one system, not spread across spreadsheets and email threads.
Q&A
What is the risk if you do not separate operating and reserve funds after leaving a management company?
Mixing operating and reserve money in one account is called commingling, and it puts board members at personal legal risk. California (CA Civ. Code 5550), Florida (FL 720.303(7)), and Washington (WA RCW 64.34.364) all require fund separation. Gavelhouse enforces this at the ledger level so the board cannot accidentally commingle.
Frequently asked
Common questions before you try it
Can Gavelhouse automatically import records from our management company?
How is this different from the self-management platform page?
How is this different from the new HOA startup page?
Does Gavelhouse handle the reserve study?
Need a clearer path for boards leaving a management company?
Start trialSee the path for boards leaving a management company
Try Scale features first. Pick a plan later.
- Clear fund records
- Reports your board can read
- Meetings, votes, and owner work
Sources and Review Notes
Gavelhouse cites the sources used for this page and records the last review date for each reference.
- Gavelhouse product overview
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- Gavelhouse pricing
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