HOA Software RFP Template: Get Quotes You Can Compare

Quick answer: an RFP (request for proposal) for HOA software works when every vendor fills in the same price grid and answers the same questions in writing. Give one exact home count, split the price into rows, and ask for yes or no feature answers. The copy-and-paste template is below.

Without a template, each vendor sends its own proposal format, and the board ends up with three documents that cannot be lined up. One leaves out setup fees. One quotes annual billing, another monthly. One lists features you will never use. The template fixes that by asking everyone the same questions in the same order.

One disclosure first: we make HOA software, and we would want to be on your list. The template works the same whether or not we are.

Before You Send It

• Count your homes exactly. Most HOA software is priced by home, by size band, or by quote. A vague count gets a vague price.
• Write your must-haves. For most self-managed boards that means dues tracking, accounting, a homeowner portal, documents and violation tracking. Everything else is optional.
• Pick three to five vendors. Fewer than three gives you no comparison. More than five is more reading than a volunteer board can do well.
• Set one deadline. Two to three weeks is normal. Ask for answers in your template, not in a sales deck.

The RFP Template

Copy everything in this section into a document and send the same version to every vendor.

1. About our association

• Association name and state: [name, state]
• Number of homes or units: [number], and homes still to be built: [number]
• Type: [single-family HOA, condo, townhome, mixed]
• Self-managed or managed by a company: [answer]
• How we work today: [spreadsheets, QuickBooks, current software and contract end date]
• How owners pay today: [checks, bank transfer, card, autopay], and dues schedule: [monthly, quarterly, yearly]

2. Price grid (fill in every row)

Price exactly our home count. Do not leave a row blank: "included" and "not offered" are both valid answers.

Cost item	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Subscription for [number] homes
Monthly or yearly minimum, if any
Setup or implementation
Data migration from our current records
Training for board members
Add-ons we marked as required
Per-use charges (text messages, mailed letters, votes)
Per-user or per-board-member fees
Total

Two rows catch most surprises. Setup and migration are often separate one-time fees. Years 2 and 3 show renewal increases that a first-year price hides.

3. Payment processing

Fees on online dues payments can add up to more than the software, so ask for them in the same format from everyone:

• Card fee per payment (percentage plus any flat fee)
• Bank transfer (ACH) fee per payment
• Who pays by default, the association or the owner, and whether the board can change that
• Whether mailed checks can be recorded, and whether a lockbox service is offered and what it costs
• How many days until funds reach the association's bank account

4. Features (yes, no, or add-on with price)

Keep only what you need. For each line, the vendor answers yes, no, or add-on with the price.

1. Dues and assessment tracking, with late fees and reminders
2. Accounting with separate operating and reserve funds
3. Bank statement import or bank connection
4. Homeowner portal and mobile access
5. Document library with board-only and owner-visible folders
6. Violation tracking with photos and notices
7. Architectural review requests
8. Online voting and elections
9. Email notices and mailed letters
10. Reserve planning
11. Reports a volunteer treasurer can read without training
12. Import from QuickBooks or spreadsheets

5. Contract and data

• Minimum term, and how much notice we must give to cancel
• Whether there is a free trial with our own data
• Price lock, and any cap on renewal increases
• Who owns our data, the export format, and how long we have to export after cancelling
• How support works: email, phone, response time

6. References

Please list two current customers of a similar size that we may contact.

How to Score the Answers

Decide the weights before the proposals arrive, so the best sales pitch does not shape the scoring. A simple split for a self-managed board:

Area	Weight	What to look at
Three-year total cost	35%	The Total row for years 1 to 3, plus payment fees at your real payment volume
Must-have features	30%	Every must-have answered yes, not add-on
Ease of use and setup	20%	Migration help, training, and whether a new board member could pick it up
Contract and data terms	15%	Short or no minimum term, a clear export, a renewal cap

Score from the written answers only. Anything said on a call and not in writing scores zero. Then try your top two with your own data before you sign. A free trial is the cheapest way to find out whether the treasurer will actually use it.

How Effortless HOA Would Answer

So you have one filled-in example, here are our answers to the price rows: Starter is $3 per home a month (50 homes is $150 a month), with no setup fees and no per-user fees. There is a 30-day free trial with no credit card. Online dues payments and autopay are on our Pro plan, which currently has a waitlist, so ask us about timing if those are must-haves.

Ready to compare? Put your own community into a 30-day free trial, no credit card needed, and score us against the template. Start your free trial.