Herald Shield vs HOAResidents.com

Herald Shield helps self-managed homeowners association boards sort resident requests and handle rule violations. Its intake process assigns requests to four types and can ask up to three follow-up questions before sending them to the board. It also accepts architectural review, neighborhood, and maintenance requests. For complaints, the system reads uploaded CC&Rs, bylaws, and rules, then returns a violation, no-violation, or unclear result with cited sections. Boards set escalation steps and fine amounts, choosing automatic fines or administrative review. The ladder tracks prior violations by property address. Board members can approve, change, or override an AI result, and overrides are recorded. The product page says complaint details are visible only to board admins, and complainant identities are not shown to accused residents unless the board chooses to disclose them. Herald Shield is available on web, iOS, and Android, with photo attachments, automated notices, and fine tracking. It is included in Automate without a separate add-on or per-violation fee. The Automate tier is $500 a month and covers up to 1,000 properties; larger communities are priced by inquiry. The service starts at $49/mo and offers a 14-day trial.

HOAResidents.com gives volunteer HOA boards a public website, resident portal and operating tools for self-managed communities. Residents request access to a property, and boards approve or reject those requests. Communication features include a shared board inbox, professional HOA email, announcements, BOLO alerts, a message board, events and surveys. Documents can be marked Public, Residents or Board-only; Pro adds AI document questions with cited answers from governing documents. The web platform is free through January 1, 2027 for communities that sign up. The Free plan otherwise provides a public profile and basic landing page, while public documents and resident tools require Core or a qualifying founding signup. Core and Pro are listed at $20 a month per 100 homes, with Pro adding maintenance, reservations, violations, architectural requests, custom forms and expanded AI. Stripe Connect can route reservation payments to the HOA while HOAResidents keeps $0.