How management fees are usually structured
Most Florida HOA management proposals quote a monthly base fee, calculated per door or per unit. A 200-unit HOA paying $18 per door per month would have a base management fee of $3,600/month, or roughly $43,000 annually. The base fee covers the manager's time and standard administrative scope.
What's typically included in the base fee
- Dedicated association manager, visits, board meetings, day-to-day decisions
- Monthly financial statements, balance sheet, P&L, budget-to-actual
- Vendor coordination, bid solicitation, contract management, COI tracking
- Resident communication, portal, email, phone coverage
- Annual meeting support and election coordination
- Routine compliance, annual filings, FL statute updates, basic governance
Common upcharges to watch for
- Per-violation enforcement fees, Edison doesn't charge these; many companies do
- ARC review fees, sometimes billed per submission
- After-hours emergency coverage, sometimes a separate retainer
- Capital project coordination, sometimes billed as a % of project cost
- Special assessments processing, sometimes a flat per-event fee
- Technology fees, per-resident portal access, ACH processing surcharges
What happens after year one
Most management agreements include an annual renewal with a CPI-pegged or fixed percentage increase. Read the renewal clause carefully, some companies front-load the first-year discount knowing the increase resets the economics in year two. Edison's agreements are 12-month terms with transparent renewal mechanics; if a board chooses not to renew, they walk free with all records intact.
How to evaluate a management proposal
The base per-door fee is the starting point, not the conclusion. Compare what's included, what's an upcharge, what the renewal terms look like, and what the company's portfolio sizes per manager actually are. A cheap proposal from a 20-communities-per-manager firm is often more expensive in 18 months than a slightly higher proposal from a boutique firm, because the cost of poor service shows up as legal bills, special assessments, and homeowner attrition.