Who this is for: treasurers, registrars and board members who collect dues, and anyone weighing up whether Boathouse Connect can replace their current way of collecting money. Features involved: Finances, Groups, Join requests, Onboarding
For the season as a whole, see How clubs use Boathouse Connect.
The problem
The treasurer keeps a spreadsheet of who owes what. Dues arrive as checks in the boathouse mailbox, payment-app transfers with no note attached and cash handed to a coach at the dock. Every few weeks someone cross-checks the bank statement against the roster, finds a dozen people who have not paid, and sends reminder emails one by one.
Payment plans make it worse: a family pays half in September and is supposed to pay the rest in November, and nobody remembers to ask. Regatta entry fees and uniform orders get added to the same spreadsheet, and by the end of the year no one is sure the totals are right.
How it works in Boathouse Connect
Dues are attached to groups. You set a join fee, a schedule of recurring fees and an optional payment plan on each group once. When a member joins the group they choose a card or bank account and pay on the spot; scheduled fees are posted to everyone in the group on their due date, and overdue balances are collected automatically from the card on file. The treasurer works from one list of balances rather than a spreadsheet.
| Step | Where | Who does it |
|---|---|---|
| Connect the club's Stripe payment account and payout bank account | Finances → Settings | Treasurer (Manage Finances) |
| Choose payment settings: card required to join, auto-billing, processing fees | Finances → Settings → Payment Settings | Treasurer (Manage Finances) |
| Set join fees, fee schedules, payment plans and discount codes | Finances → Fees & Discounts | Treasurer or registrar (Assess Fees or Manage Finances) |
| Join a fee group and pick a payment method | Groups → My Groups | Member |
| Approve join requests for groups that need approval | Groups → Join Requests | Registrar or coach (Manage Groups) |
| Watch balances, overdue accounts and payments received | Finances → All Accounts, Finances → Payments Received | Treasurer |
| Post one-off charges such as regatta entry fees | Finances → Upload Charges | Treasurer or registrar |
| Pull year-end figures | Finances → Analytics, Finances → Tax Records | Treasurer |
Step by step
Before the season
- Set up the payment account. Someone with Manage Finances clicks Setup Account on Finances → Settings and completes the business details on Stripe, then adds a bank account (free transfers) or a debit card (instant payouts, with a fee) on the Payouts tab. New accounts can take up to 5 business days to activate, so do this first. See Setting up club finances.
- Choose how payments behave. On Payment Settings, leave Require users to have payment method before joining groups with a Join-Fee and Enable Auto-billing on Yes unless you have a reason not to, and decide whether members cover the processing fee with Recover Processing Fees. Add the club's tax ID on Receipts Settings so it prints on donation receipts. See Setting up club finances.
- Create one group per fee level. Fees follow groups, so a Masters – Full Season group and a Masters – Summer Only group can carry different dues. See Groups.
- Attach the fees. On Finances → Fees & Discounts → Group Fees, enter each group's Join Fee, add any monthly or seasonal dues to the Fee Schedule, and fill in the Payment Plan rows (up to ten payments, each a number of days after joining). Create Discount Codes for scholarships or sibling discounts and choose the groups each code works for. See Fees, payment plans & discount codes.
- Bring payment into onboarding. If new members sign up through a registration link, include the Payment Method screen so they add a card before they reach the fee. See Onboarding workflows & user checklists.
When members join
- Members join and pay. On Groups → My Groups, a member clicks Join Group or Request To Join. The Fee Required window lets them enter a discount code, choose the payment plan or pay in full, and pick a saved card, an instantly verified bank account or a new payment method. Self-join groups charge immediately; approval groups charge when the request is approved. See Paying as a member.
- Approve requests. For groups that need approval, the tile on Groups → Join Requests shows the fee, the plan and the payment method the member chose. Approve & Charge adds them and charges straight away. If the charge fails they are still added and the fee stays on their account. See Join requests.
During the season
- Let scheduled fees run. Each scheduled fee is posted to everyone in the group on its due date, and to anyone who joins later. Members who leave the group stop picking up future fees. See Fees, payment plans & discount codes.
- Watch the balances. Finances → All Accounts shows Outstanding Charges, the Overdue Accounts tab and every member's balance; View Account opens one member's timeline. With auto-billing on, Boathouse Connect tries the card on file for past-due balances every 6 hours. Accounts marked Delinquent need a personal follow-up. See Member accounts.
- Record money paid outside the system. A check or cash payment is an Add Credit with a description such as Check #1042. See Member accounts.
- Charge one-offs in bulk. For regatta entry fees or uniform orders, upload a spreadsheet of First Name, Last Name, Amount and Description on Finances → Upload Charges, then fix anything listed under Failed Uploads. Uploaded charges are due 72 hours later. See Member accounts.
- Check what has come in. Finances → Payments Received lists account payments, donations and refunds; refunds are issued from there. See Member accounts.
At year end
- Export the year. Finances → Analytics breaks revenue down by athlete, by group, donations and all payments, each exportable to Excel or CSV; Finances → Tax Records shows your organization's public IRS filings. See Tax records & finance analytics.
What each person sees
| Person | What they see |
|---|---|
| Treasurer (Manage Finances) | Everything above, plus payouts, refunds and payment settings. |
| Registrar or coach with Assess Fees | Fees & Discounts, All Accounts and Upload Charges. They can bill members but cannot change settings, withdraw funds or refund. |
| Coach without finance permissions | No finance pages beyond their own My Finances. Join fees appear on join-request tiles if they hold Manage Groups. |
| Member | Finances → My Finances: balance, timeline, upcoming charges, payment methods, Make a payment and Redeem Discount Code. |
| Parent | With their own account, the same as any member for their own balance. Stakeholders have no account and see nothing in Finances. Each person's balance is their own, so dues are charged to the athlete's account. |
Tips
- Keep billing and money separate: give Assess Fees to registrars and coaches who post charges, and Manage Finances only to the people who handle payouts and refunds. See Roles & permissions.
- Changing a join fee does not re-bill existing members. To charge everyone already in a group, add a fee to the Fee Schedule instead.
- Auto-billing only charges cards. Members who pay by bank account should pay manually before the due date, or keep a card on file as a backup.
- In an upload spreadsheet, spell names exactly as members appear in Boathouse Connect, and check Failed Uploads after every import — unmatched rows are not charged to anyone.
- Archive last season's groups when the season ends; archiving deletes their upcoming scheduled charges.
FAQ
Can families still pay by check? Yes. Record each check as a credit on the member's account so the balance stays right. Card and bank payments simply save you that step.
What if a family cannot afford the full fee? Offer a payment plan on the group, create a discount code for that group, or add a credit to the member's account. When adding a member yourself on Groups → Manage Groups you can also change the join fee charged to them.
Do we have to collect money through Boathouse Connect to use it? No. Groups, practices and messaging work without a payment account, so you can run the season first and set up Finances when you are ready.
Is this the same as our Boathouse Connect subscription? No. The subscription is paid under Org Settings → Subscription; Finances is money your members pay the club. See Subscription & billing.
Where does the money go? Into the club's Stripe payment account, from which someone with Manage Finances withdraws it to the club's bank account or debit card.