Board members and managers tend to see websites as an expense rather than a source of revenue. 

A website is an essential tool in a community. It improves communication, increases transparency, and fosters credibility. A limited budget should never come in the way of having an online presence. 

Taking the proper steps to monetize your HOA website can help you cover its cost and bring extra income to your association. 

In the current economic climate, it is essential to find new ways to cope with inflation. 

Read on to discover five ways to make extra money and save on printing costs. 

1. Allow space for ads 

Selling ad space is the easiest and most profitable way to monetize your HOA website. Some communities are reluctant to do it. But if you maintain control over it, it can be a consistent income source. The ideal way is to set up your own pricing and find interested parties. You can agree on how long the ad will run and how you will collect payments (e.g., Monthly or annually). 

How much you will charge will depend on the size of your community and the exposure the ads will receive. If you decide to run ads on your site, we recommend working with  local businesses or vendors that share your HOA’s values. Avoid promoting companies that sell goods or services that could offend your residents. 

You can also ask companies to promote their services differently. Instead of ads, they could write blog articles about their values and mission. This would prevent your site from looking too spammy and intrusive. 

Residents could also benefit from the platform and promote their businesses. However, if you decide to allow homeowners to advertise, you need to be very transparent about every payment. All members of the community should be aware of the terms and conditions. This is an important aspect,  especially if the person is part of the board of directors. You should avoid conflict of interest at all costs. 

If you don’t have time to go after interested parties and organize every aspect, you can use an online platform to facilitate it. With Google Adsense, ads will automatically show on your site based on its content and visitors. The advertisements are custom and relevant to your audience. This can save you time and worry, but it also gives you less control over the ads your visitors will see. 

2. Add a local vendors’ directory

Adding a vendors’ directory is a great way to monetize your HOA website. Some may consider it less intrusive than ads. A vendors’ directory consists of a list of local businesses that would be useful to your residents. You can charge a fee to be part of this list. Then, when homeowners need a specific service, they will check it to find what they need. Doing so will increase your site traffic and encourage residents to visit it more frequently. It is also an excellent way to help homeowners who just moved in and snowbird residents. 

Your HOA will make extra profit and provide a more enjoyable resident’s experience at the same time.  

Here are some ideas of businesses you can include:

• Snow removal services
• Insurance providers
• Landscaping and lawn care
• Home inspection services
• Handyman
• Certified babysitters and pet sitters
• Restaurants and deliveries

3. Display your rental amenities

It is common to see communities renting out their HOA clubhouse and other amenities. If it is not something you already do, you should consider it if you would like a new source of revenue. With the current inflation, HOA fees are significantly increasing. Renting out spaces for private events can help your association keep up with cost increases. Remember to check your insurance coverage and speak with an HOA attorney before you do so. 

Once you start renting out your amenities, you need to find people willing to use them. That is when a website is useful. You can display your amenities and add great pictures to foster interest. Homeowners can easily share the website link with their friends and network so they can take a look. A website promotes your community 24h/7 without requiring much effort on your hand. 

4. Promote events 

Another great way to monetize your HOA website is to promote local events such as fairs. When a specific event is happening in the area, organizers could pay a fee to mention it on your site. The format could be a video, a blog article, or a flyer. That is up to you, and you can be creative about it. 

Another fun idea is to bring in external vendors to your community. It could either be for special events or on a regular basis. These vendors would need to pay a fee to spend the day at your HOA. You can invite food trucks or pet services, for example. Having services a few minutes away from your home is something residents would appreciate. 

Again, a website is the best tool to attract and let these vendors know about this opportunity. It is also where you will inform residents about these activities and encourage them to come. 

5. Attract new buyers 

If your HOA has been recently built or has vacant houses, you need to promote your association to attract new homeowners. It also applies to communities where residents often move in and out. New residents means more HOA income and more participation in community life. If your HOA allows rentals, a site is also the best place to promote them. 

Finding home buyers in this current economic situation is challenging. A great website will help you promote your association 24h/7. Visitors will grow interested and can reach out to you easily. 

For that you need to:

• Have a well-design website
• Make it accessible and readable
• Add nice pictures
• Highlight the benefits of your HOA
• Include contact information

Although this is more of an indirect and long-term way of monetizing your HOA website, it is still worth it. You can also work with a real-estate agency that you could include in the vendors’ directory for an extra fee. 

Bonus: Paperless community 

Did you know that you could save a lot of money by going paperless in your HOA? A website helps you cut printing costs. Regularly adding news on your site will keep your residents informed. It will also save you time as you won’t need to print thousands of documents. If you have a large community, this could make a big difference. 

Most importantly, you contribute to a more sustainable community and help save forests. 

Wrapping up on how to monetize your HOA website

By thinking out of the box you can find many ways to monetize your HOA website. The ideas mentioned in this article are just starting points. Take the time to brainstorm these ideas and come up with new ones. What matters is to do what feels suitable for your community. 

Remember that having a website is essential. It should never be a burden on your finances. It should instead bring you more efficiency, time, and even more revenue.

There’s so much to learn about HOA websites. Click below to download our free eBook, “Everything you need to know about HOA & Condo websites.”