How to Leave Your HOA Management Company and Self-Manage: A 90-Day Plan

To leave an HOA management company, read your contract's termination clause, assign the manager's jobs to board members, give written notice, then collect the records, money and logins before the end date. Allow about 90 days. The contract's notice period sets the real timeline.

• First 30 days: read the contract and governing documents, and decide who takes each job.
• Days 31 to 60: vote, give written notice, and set up the banking and dues plan.
• Days 61 to 90: collect the records, move the money, and tell the owners and vendors.

Can the board fire the management company?

Usually, yes, because the board normally signed the contract. Check two things first: the contract's termination clause and your governing documents. Either one may add a step, such as an owner vote.

A few state laws go further:

• Virginia: for property owners' associations (Virginia condominiums fall under a separate act), a management contract with an automatic renewal provision can be ended by either side "at any time without cause and without penalty" on at least 60 days' written notice.
• Florida condominiums: owners other than the developer can cancel certain management contracts made before they took control of the association. For an association running one condominium, that generally takes 75% of the voting interests, not counting the developer's. It doesn't cover a contract your own board signed later.

Rules differ by state and by type of association. If the contract and your documents disagree, or the manager disputes the notice, ask an attorney.

Days 1 to 30: read the contract and assign the jobs

Find the end date before anything else. Look for these terms:

• Notice: how many days, how it must be delivered, and to whom.
• Automatic renewal: many contracts renew unless you give notice in a set window. Miss it and you may owe another term.
• Termination fees: any charge for ending early, or for handing over records.
• What's returned: the contract may say what the manager hands back, and when.

Then list everything the manager does for you and put one board member's name next to each job:

Our self-managed HOA guide covers each job and a 12-month calendar. If nobody will take the money, a part-time bookkeeper is a fair middle ground.

Days 31 to 60: give notice and set up the money

Vote at a board meeting, record it in the minutes, and send notice exactly the way the contract says. Keep proof of delivery. In the same letter, ask for a written transition date and a list of what the manager will hand over.

Decide how the money will move. Your association's funds should already be in the association's name. Washington's HOA statute, for example, requires "accounts in the name of the association," kept apart from a manager's funds. If yours are, you may only need to change the signers. If not, open new operating and reserve accounts, and do it before the end date.

Plan for dues, too. Owners paying through the manager's portal or autopay need a new way to pay, and they need it before the next due date. See how HOA dues collection works.

Days 61 to 90: get the records and tell everyone

Ask for records in writing, by list, with a date. Some states set a deadline for the manager:

• Florida: a licensed community association manager or management firm must return all official records within 20 business days after the contract ends or a written request, whichever comes first.
• Washington (homeowners' associations): a managing agent must deliver original books and records "immediately upon termination" of the relationship.

Check your state's records rules on our state pages. Whatever your state says, request all of this:

• Governing documents: declaration, bylaws, rules, amendments and minutes.
• Owner records: roster, mailing addresses, unit ledgers and any payment plans.
• Financials: bank statements, general ledger, budgets, reserve study and past tax returns.
• Contracts: every vendor agreement, plus insurance policies and certificates.
• Access: keys, gate codes, website, email and any shared logins.

Then update everyone who has the manager's address on file:

• Owners: a short letter with the switch date, how to pay, and who to contact.
• Vendors: the new billing address and contact. Check whether any contract is in the manager's name.
• Insurance agent: new contact details, so renewals and notices reach the board.
• State filing: the registered agent and mailing address, if the manager was listed.
• IRS: the association's mailing address, using Form 8822-B. Your EIN stays the same.

Before you sign off, get a final accounting. Reconcile each bank balance, the owner balances and the reserve balance, and clear any outstanding checks.

What if the manager won't hand over the records?

Put the request in writing and quote your contract and any state rule. Many boards resolve this once the request is specific and dated. If the dispute is over an unpaid invoice, ask an attorney how to handle that payment. Records are usually the association's property, as Washington's statute says outright, but the remedy varies by state.

Even without the manager, a lot can be rebuilt. Our post on recovering records when someone leaves shows where to look, starting with your bank and the county recorder.

What will the board have to do differently?

You'll take on a few hours a month, and every decision becomes yours. Serving on a small self-managed board myself, I'd plan on the first three months being the heaviest. Start with a simple routine: reconcile monthly, send a treasurer report to the board, and keep one shared place for records.

A manager still makes sense for some associations, especially larger ones or boards with no volunteers. Leaving is worth it only if someone will actually do the work.

Where GnomeOwner fits

GnomeOwner is HOA software for self-managed boards. It's a place to keep your documents, owner list, dues and books after the switch, with a compliance calendar for your state. You can start on the free plan, and upload the documents you get back from the manager so you can ask your bylaws a question and see the section behind the answer.

Quick answers

How much notice do we have to give? Your contract sets it. Virginia's 60-day rule covers auto-renewing management contracts of property owners' associations, not condominiums. Most boards will find the number in the termination clause.

Do owners have to vote? Usually not, but your governing documents or contract may require it. Florida's owner vote covers certain contracts made before owners took control.

Can a manager keep our records until we pay? Don't assume so. Florida and Washington set return rules, and a dispute over an invoice is a question for an attorney.

Can we self-manage a large association? Some do. It depends more on volunteers than on size.

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This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules vary by state and by association, and your contract and governing documents control. Sources: Code of Virginia § 55.1-1837; Florida Statutes § 718.302 and § 468.4334(4); Revised Code of Washington § 64.38.045; IRS Form 8822-B. Accessed November 2026.