Approving pending residents

When someone signs up for your community using the open join code, they don’t get instant access. They go into a pending queue. An admin or board member reviews each one and approves or rejects. This article is what to do when that queue starts filling up.

Where the queue lives

Members sidebar → “Pending Approvals ({n})” panel

You’ll see a list of every account that has signed up but hasn’t been approved yet. Each entry shows:

• Name (whatever they entered at signup)
• Email
• Property they picked
• Date they signed up
• Optional message they added explaining who they are

If the list is empty, nobody’s waiting. That’s a good place to be.

Pre-approved emails skip this queue

If you’ve added a resident’s email to a property’s pre-approved list (see Inviting residents), they bypass this queue entirely on signup. They’re auto-approved if they pick the matching property.

The pending queue only contains:

• Self-signups via the open join code where the email isn’t pre-approved
• Self-signups where someone picked a different property than their pre-approval
• Direct invites that haven’t completed

What to check before approving

Three quick checks. The whole review takes 10 seconds per person if nothing’s odd.

1. Is the email plausible?

Most legit signups use a real-looking email — first.last@gmail.com, an iCloud account, a work email. If the email looks like spam (xj7d23@mailinator.com, lots of random characters, throwaway email service), that’s a flag.

It’s not always disqualifying — some older homeowners use obscure email aliases. But it’s worth double-checking against your roster.

2. Did they pick the right property?

The most common mistake: a resident picks the wrong unit number. If the email belongs to “John Smith” and they picked Lot 14, but your roster says John Smith owns Lot 41, that’s likely a typo, not a bad actor.

If you’re not sure, message them through the system before approving — it’s faster than approving the wrong link and having to fix it later.

3. Have you heard of them?

If the email and name match someone you know lives at that property, approve. If you’ve never heard of them and the property already has a primary resident who is in the system, that’s a flag — approve only if you’ve verified.

Approving

1. Click on the pending entry
2. Confirm the property and email
3. Click Approve

The user gets an email saying they’ve been approved. They can log in immediately.

Rejecting

1. Click on the pending entry
2. Click Reject
3. Enter a reason (required) — something the user will see, e.g.:
   • “Email doesn’t match our owner records. Please email board@yourhoa.com to verify your residency.”
   • “We don’t have you on the roster for that property. Please confirm your unit number.”
4. Confirm

The user gets an email with your reason. They can sign up again with corrected info.

Don’t reject as a way to delete the account — rejected users still have an account and can re-submit. To fully remove an account, see Removing or banning a user.

When to message before deciding

Sometimes “approve” or “reject” isn’t quite right. Cases where messaging the user first saves headaches:

• The name doesn’t match what’s on the deed. Could be a maiden name, a nickname, or someone using a partner’s account. Ask.
• The email is a work address you don’t recognize. Some people prefer to log into HOA stuff with their work email. Verify.
• The property they picked already has a primary, and you don’t know if they’re a co-resident or a confused new owner. Ask which it is.

To message: open the pending entry → Message user → write your question. The conversation lives under their profile so future admins can see what was discussed.

What happens if you ignore the queue

If pending signups sit unreviewed:

• Residents are stuck — they can’t see their balance, can’t pay, can’t book amenities
• They’ll email you complaining (which is fair)
• Eventually some give up and stop trying

Set yourself a recurring reminder, or assign one board member to be the “approval queue owner.” It usually takes 5 minutes a week.

Common situations

”Two people signed up for the same property at the same time”

Probably a husband-and-wife or roommate situation. Approve the first as primary, approve the second as a co-resident. Or message them to confirm who is primary.

”Someone keeps signing up under the wrong property”

If a resident has tried 3 times and keeps picking the wrong unit, message them with the correct property name. Don’t approve them onto the wrong unit just to clear the queue — fixing that later is more work.

”An ex-resident is trying to sign up”

If they sold the property and moved out, reject with: “We don’t currently have you on the roster. If you’ve recently moved into the community, please email board@yourhoa.com to verify.”

If they’re still claiming they live there but don’t, that’s a board issue, not a software issue.

”The pending queue has 20 entries and I have no idea who any of these people are”

Likely happens after a community-wide email blast with the join code where you’re not sure who responded. Process them one at a time — it’s tedious, but each one only takes a few seconds. If you’re truly drowning, cross-reference against your owner roster spreadsheet and approve in batches by name.

Where to go next

• Inviting residents — open join code vs. pre-approval
• User roles explained — what residents can do once approved
• Removing or banning a user — when approval was a mistake