Who this is for: treasurers and administrators who set up how the club collects money. Permission required: Manage Finances.
Boathouse Connect collects dues, fees and donations from your members by card or bank account and holds the money in a payment account for your organization, powered by our payment processor, Stripe. From there you withdraw it to the club's bank account or debit card.
You only set this up once. After that, the Finances → Settings page is where you check the account's status, withdraw funds and decide how payments behave for your members. Fees themselves are set up separately; see Fees, payment plans & discount codes.
The payment account belongs to the organization, but it is managed by people. Whoever has Manage Finances (usually a Treasurer group, see Roles & permissions) uses their own login to work with it. There is no separate finance login to share.
1. Create the payment account
- Go to Finances → Settings. If your organization is not set up to accept payments yet, you will see Setup Finance Account instead of the settings tabs.
- Click Setup Account. You are taken to Stripe to enter your organization's business details, mailing address and representatives, and to verify their identity.
- When you finish, Stripe returns you to Finances → Settings.
New accounts may take up to 5 business days to be activated after setup has been completed. Until the account can accept payments, members do not see the Make a payment button on My Finances. Boathouse Connect re-checks every organization's account status with Stripe several times a day.
2. Check the account settings
Once the account is active, Finances → Settings opens on the Account Settings tab:
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Allowed to accept payments | Members can pay the club. |
| Allowed to withdraw funds | You can send money to your bank account or debit card. |
| Payment account has been confirmed | Stripe has all the details it asked for. |
| Business Name, Business Website, Entity Type, Default Currency | As entered during setup. |
| Mailing Address | Tax documents will be sent to this address. |
The Representatives table lists each person on the account and whether their identity has been verified. If a representative shows Not Yet Provided!, payments and payouts may be suspended soon, so ask them to complete verification.
To change any of these details or update representatives, click Modify account settings & representatives. You are taken back to Stripe to make the change.
3. Add a payout account
Open the Payouts tab and choose External Accounts. You can add one of each:
| Account | How to add it | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Bank Account | Add deposit account, then enter the Account Number, Routing Number, Account Holder Name and Account Type (Company or Individual). | Transfer to bank. Free. |
| Debit Card (for Instant Payouts) | Add debit card, then enter the card details. | Instant Payout. Funds typically arrive within 30 minutes, any day of the week, but each payout incurs a fee. |
Once an account has been added, the page shows only its last four digits. To change a payout account later, contact Boathouse Connect at [email protected].
4. Withdraw funds
- Finances → Settings → Payouts → Trigger Payout shows your Pending Balance and Available Balance.
- Click Transfer to bank or Instant Payout (each button only appears once the matching payout account exists).
- Enter how much to withdraw and an optional Description, then click Withdraw Funds (or Withdraw Funds with Instant Payout). You can only withdraw up to the available balance.
Payout History lists every past payout with its Payout Date, Expected Arrival, Method, Amount and Description.
5. Choose your payment settings
The Payment Settings tab has four Yes/No settings. Each saves as soon as you change it, and each has an Info button that explains it.
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Recover Processing Fees | No | No: the processing fee is deducted from the organization's balance. Yes: charges are increased so the member covers the processing fee. Members see the adjusted amount before they pay. |
| Require users to have payment method before joining groups with a Join-Fee | Yes | Members must have a valid payment method on file before they can join a group with a join fee. Groups with a $0 join fee are not affected. |
| Allow user to make payments on Boathouse Connect | Yes | Lets members make manual payments and donate to fundraisers. Scheduled fees and join fees are still charged when this is No. |
| Enable Auto-billing | Yes | Every 6 hours, Boathouse Connect tries to charge the card on file of anyone with a past-due balance to bring the account back to $0. When No, members must pay manually from Finances → My Finances. |
6. Receipts and fees
On Receipts Settings, enter the email address members should contact with questions about a payment, and your organization's Tax Id Number. Both are printed on receipts; the tax ID is included on donation receipts. Click Save Receipt Settings.
The Fees tab lists the processing fees that apply to your account, such as the per-transaction rate for cards and ACH, the instant-payout fee and the chargeback fee. Bank payouts are free. Check this tab for the current rates.
FAQ
Why can't members see a "Make a payment" button? Either the payment account is not active yet, or Allow user to make payments on Boathouse Connect is set to No.
Is this the same as the club's Boathouse Connect subscription? No. Your plan is paid under Org Settings → Subscription (see Subscription & billing). Finances is for money your members pay the club.
Can we use ACH for auto-billing? No. Auto-billing only charges cards. Members can use a verified bank account for manual payments.
Who should hold Manage Finances? Only the people who handle the club's money. It controls payouts, refunds and payment settings. Coaches or registrars who only need to charge members can be given Assess Fees instead.