Sending Emergency SMS

Applies to:Owner, Admin

Emergency SMS is a separate, urgent alert tool — not a regular broadcast. It’s reserved for situations that need immediate attention, like:

• Immediate life-safety hazards (fire, gas leak, active threat)
• Urgent building issues requiring prompt action (evacuation, water shut-off)
• Time-critical security alerts

It should not be used for routine notices, reminders, or anything that isn’t urgent.

Who actually receives it

Emergency SMS only reaches contacts who have:

• A phone number on file, and
• Given SMS consent, which they provide when accepting their invitation to HOA Hub (or later from their own profile), and
• Not revoked that consent since

A phone number on file by itself isn’t enough — if a contact hasn’t opted in to SMS, they won’t receive an emergency text even if their phone number is in the system. Keep this in mind when deciding whether SMS alone is sufficient for a given emergency, and consider following up through other channels (a broadcast email, posted notices, etc.) as well.

First time sending?

Before your first Emergency SMS, you’ll be asked to acknowledge what it’s for and confirm you understand the permitted and prohibited uses. This is a one-time step for your organization.

Sending an alert

Go to Communications → Broadcasts, and use the Emergency SMS option next to New Broadcast:

1. Choose recipients using the same targeting tool as broadcasts (you can’t hand-pick individuals here — only Custom Filter or All Contacts)
2. Write your message — it’s automatically prefixed with your community’s name so recipients know who it’s from
3. Click Preview & Confirm to review the exact message and recipient count
4. Click Send Emergency Alert to send immediately

Messages over 160 characters are sent as multiple SMS segments, shown in the preview so you know what recipients will see.

Note

Emergency SMS sends immediately and can’t be undone or scheduled. There’s also no delivery report afterward — once sent, you’ll only see the send/fail counts shown at that moment, with no ongoing history to review later.

Where to go next

• Need a wider reach? See Sending Broadcasts for a follow-up email.
• Curious how targeting works? See Targeting Your Audience.