Can HOA Require ACH Payment

I just got a letter saying our Association's Management Company will:

1. Be charging a fee for each check we send them

2. Be offering FREE ACH Payments if we sign up for that

Is there any other way to send them money?

Is this actually a legit thing for them to do?

Why don't you ask the MC if there are other options? ACH is a good system for you and your credit. I've had people get a bank account just to set up automatic payments from it. They just put the HOA dues for the whole year and let it pull it.

I had a bank that charged for seeing a "live" teller. So some banks can have some requirements your MC may be using. That maybe the reason for the ACH change.

They manage the money and take in your payments. So you have to deal with the MC. You can ask your HOA board about changing MC's. The MC is paid by the HOA to handle the financials.

There may be a state statute addressing this requirement. I do know that in NC an employer can require employee's use direct deposit or a direct debit card to receive payroll checks. There are still people without checking accounts.

Personally I use automatic ACH's for everything except my HOA dues. I pay those thru my bank's BillPay which is probably classified as a check. The reason I do it this way is I can still control the payment and I overpay a little each month. I can log-in and change it to become effective with no more 24 hours notice.

Our MC offers ACH for our dues. You have to fill out a form and send it to them. It can take over 30 days to activate it. If you want to cancel it, or you change accounts, they require a mailed in reguest received 3 days before the ACH pull date. It usually takes them 5-7 days to respond to an email. I don't trust that the request will actually be received, USPS mail, or that it will be opened and addressed in a timely manner. Our only other choice are credit cards payments, that you can control, but they charge a 3% fee for processing.

Would be nice if banks made ACH's available for personal checking accounts. I can send a 3 day ACH from our work account for $1.00.

The owner has a contract (meaning the covenants) with the HOA. (The MC is an agent of the HOA. "Agent" has legal meaning.)

The owner does not have a contract with the MC.

Whether the HOA can charge a fee for processing checks depends on what the Bylaws and CCRs and state law say.

My HOA/COA is the one entity I would never trust with ACH. I would never give my bank account information to unregulated, often low-educated, sometimes low-experienced, HOA/COA managers.

YES! Spot on!

Augustin. It's many times not the managers who receive it, but those processing the mail to those entering the data. What security safeguards do they have in place on those employees.

No thank you. I'll "push" my payment rather then have them "pull" it.

I'd be interested in the ID theft story. I'm kinda surprised that we don't hear more about it related to HOAs/COAs - and I can see an irate homeowner threatening to sue the HOA if their data was stolen by someone affiliated with the HOA. (In a past thread dealing with tech issues, some posters thought my comments about data security were overkill.)

I would much prefer my check received at a bank's lockbox than at my MC's office. Also, most banks that issue bill payments by check do not show account holder info., but rather a bank's account that the funds are placed in and then drawn out.

Paying with cash is the safest way providing you collect receipts to prove you paid if asked. Many places are no longer allowing cash payments including my doggie day care.

When I want protection, I pay by credit card, not debit card. At least if there's a fraudulent charge and I have to close the account, I'm not left with no way to get to my operating funds and ready cash.

There should not be only one way to pay, pulled ACH.

IF you send them a check, you have in fact given them everything needed to process a ACH!

And when was the last you recall that a person(s) ASKED permission to hack into a financial institution computer to steal your "secured" data? I just picked up a new community, over 55, and they requested ACH. 90% of the owners use ACH. We personally handle only 40 checks per month, all from escrow companies. Half are HOA payments paid through escrow and the other half is our transfer fees.
Our banking institution has never charged for lockbox service, ACH service or check service, so we don't charge. The only fee will be if a owner pays with a credit card and that is steep, IMO. Many venues now are going cashless, and that will open another can of worms.

ID theft report, anecdotal but sound data from the IRS:

Nationwide volunteers staff VITA sites helping lower income folks file their tax returns at no charge. The VITA sites e-file the returns en masse the evening after the work day. In the last several weeks, the IRS online system has rejected what feels to me like a record high percentage of returns, because the taxpayer did not submit the required IRS-issued personal identification number (PIN). The PIN has to be input to the online software used to prepare the taxpayer's return.

The IRS snail mails these PINs out in December. The IRS knows in advance of identity theft situations before many taxpayers themselves know of it.

Time and again, VITA volunteers are phoning taxpayers whose return the IRS rejected, and instructing the taxpayer to go to a certain IRS web site and get a new PIN, or they need to look for the snail mailed letter the IRS sent in December. God help the folks who are not internet or android phone literate (of whom there are many who come to the VITA sites).

What happened?

I just went through a similar experience Cathy! Sold a house and bought a car with some of the money. Wanted to pay cash so no car payments. Have bought several cars from this Dealership. I am like their top buyer. First time paying cash. It did not go as simple as writing a check. Had to still give them social and they had to verify funds etc. Negotiated an end price but not exactly sticker.

Car lots are desperate for inventory now. Matter of fact was negotiating a sale while the truck had not unloaded! Two of us were! Ended up waiting another week as selection was limited.

Found out that Dealerships get kick backs from lenders. They make more money from loans than straight cash. So that had to factor in.

Did get a car and traded in my truck. The gas mileage is nearly twice the truck. The car hope will pay off just in gas savings.

Anyone buying a vehicle right now it is a struggle. Even if can pay cash for one.

Yes they can do it. Not like they are saying we will no longer accept checks.