Accounting is one of the key tasks of homeowner association (HOA) management. When you manage a client’s HOA, you’re responsible for ensuring the organization’s financial health. You will help the HOA pay its bills, collect resident fees, balance the budget, and more. Thankfully, you can now set aside your spreadsheets and calculators. HOA accounting software automates many of your daily management tasks. With applications like CINC Systems, you can use integrated accounting to help manage your clients’ HOAs.
This term refers to a single platform where all parts of an organization’s finances are accessible in one place. With integrated accounting, there are no separate books or balance sheets. Data from separate bank accounts is also consolidated. Integrated accounting for HOAs means you can see the association’s entire financial picture at a glance and manage your client’s accounts from one unified dashboard.
Integrated accounting for HOA management has several uses. CINC Systems’ integrated accounting platform will allow you to save time and streamline your operations. Here are some of the ways in which integrated accounting can help you manage HOAs.
With CINC Systems, you can use integrated accounting to do automatic, real-time bank reconciliation. This means you’ll be able to link each of your client’s HOA bank accounts to your online dashboard. Once synched, accounts will update in real-time. You’ll be able to see financial transactions as they occur without logging into multiple banking websites to check balances.
By using integrated accounting for HOA management to monitor the association’s finances, you can protect your client’s assets. If the HOA is about to go over-budget, you can see this before it happens and notify the board so they can take action. Similarly, monitoring transactions with real-time bank reconciliation will help you to prevent fraud.
HOAs are financially supported by resident fees, which are paid monthly or annually by members of the community. These fees help the association pay for maintenance and repairs, as well as services for the community such as shared recreation spaces. With integrated accounting, you can create an online web portal that will allow residents to pay their fees online.
As residents pay fees, the money is automatically deposited into the HOA’s accounts, saving you a trip to the bank. Integrated accounting software can also generate a list of which residents have paid their fees and which ones haven’t. This will make it easier for you to communicate with delinquent residents.
In addition to accepting fee payments online, association managers can use integrated accounting software to set up web portals for work orders. Once a work order has been completed, service providers and vendors can submit their invoices online. You can manage these accounts with the click of a button.
By paying the HOA’s invoices online, you’ll avoid unnecessary paperwork and save time. You can also see the HOA’s account balance change in real-time as invoices are paid. This will allow you to help with budgeting.
Similarly, integrated accounting software for HOAs gives managers the option to automate bill pay. Most associations have monthly expenses, including utilities, maintenance, and services like landscaping. With accounting software, you can set up automatic payments for any bills the HOA may have.
Using integrated accounting for automated bill pay is one of the most convenient features this type of HOA management software has to offer. When you’re busy managing an HOA, paying individual bills is often the last thing on your mind. Automating payments ensures that the association will never have any outstanding debts or delinquent accounts.
With an integrated accounting platform, you can work with the client’s general ledger in real-time. You will see deposits and withdrawals as they occur, as well as other transactions being processed. This makes it easier than ever to balance the books for the associations you manage. Additionally, accounting software does most of the math for you–there’s no need to create complicated spreadsheets.
In the past, a financial report involved a lot of work for managers. Now, integrated accounting software makes this easier than ever. With HOA management accounting software, you can generate financial reports at any time with the click of a button. Customize reports by date, category, and other criteria. Your accounting software will generate the report in a digital format that you can email directly to your clients.
Finally, integrated accounting software for HOAs also gives you the ability to work remotely. Cloud-based data storage and mobile apps will allow you to access the association’s financial accounts from any location. This is an essential feature for association managers with a large client portfolio. You can monitor accounts for one client while being on location for a different HOA.
Integrated accounting software that offers a mobile app also offers added data security. HOA accounting software like CINC Systems uses powerful security, such as data encryption, to guard your clients’ information. You’re also protected in case something happens to one of your computers. When your accounting data is stored in the cloud, it’s automatically backed up.
Integrated accounting helps HOA managers in many ways. Whether you’re collecting resident fees, monitoring transactions, or generating financial reports for board members, using integrated accounting software for HOAs will help you optimize your business. Use integrated accounting for HOAs to work smarter, not harder.
If you’re ready to see how integrated accounting software can assist your business, try CINC Systems. Call (855) 943-8246, or request a free demo.