Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Loan agreements can be signed electronically (powered by DocuSeal), including guarantor/co-signer signatures. You can build and map your own loan document with your Rav- or attorney-approved wording.

Yes — securely, through Plaid. Every transaction flows into a bank register where you classify each line to a borrower, tzaddik, donor, vendor, transfer, or fee. You can connect more than one account, and you can also reconcile from a CSV or OFX statement. Bounced checks are flagged and worked as guided cases.

Yes. Checkwriter supports several checkbooks, and the numbering sequence is owned by the database, so two people printing at once cannot take the same number. You design the layout once per account — logo, signature, MICR line, and spacing — then print a batch or email a PDF with the MICR line hidden. Positive Pay exports the file your bank wants. Void keeps the number, because the bank already saw it. Delete gives the number back. A cleared or bank-matched check cannot be deleted. You can also scan incoming checks with your phone.

Yes. Donors, volunteer fundraisers, pledges, and payouts live next to the bank register, so a gift and the check that spends it are the same money. Each campaign shows three piles: Promised, Reported, and In the bank, plus what is actually available to pay out. If you do not make loans, you can turn lending off. Campaigns, donors, recipients, the register, and Checkwriter stay.

It can. When a volunteer says the Kleins sent $500 by Zelle, that money can be available for the campaign the same day. The bank feed confirms it later. You choose the trust rule: count every report, count reports only up to a cap, or wait for the bank. If a Zelle or OJC gift never arrives, the fundraiser is asked once. Nothing is thrown out on its own. A pledge never counts as money you can spend.

Yes. A known fundraiser texts a name and an amount, or sends a photo of a pledge card. The gift is recorded, tagged to that person and that campaign, and they get a short confirmation. An unknown number cannot invent a fundraiser. Card numbers sent by chat are refused. A staff number you have allowed can also request a check by WhatsApp. That creates a draft. It never emails the payee.

No. Donors give at a short link for the organization, the campaign, or a specific fundraiser. Cards are charged on your own merchant account, and the card number never sits in Mitzvah Manager. Donors can cover the processing fee. The billing address is required, so the receipt and the donor record are complete. Monthly gifts can charge a saved card. Check, cash, Zelle, ACH, OJC, The Donors Fund, Matbia, and Pledger are each handled the right way.

The analytics use your fiscal year. Refunds come out. A reported gift and a bank-confirmed gift are labeled differently, so the board is not shown money that has not landed. You get retention, new and repeat donors, LYBUNT and SYBUNT call lists, a lapse score from 0 to 100 based only on that donor’s own gifts, and a one-page board report. It is not a purchased wealth score, and it is not a comparison against other organizations.

Some tzaddikim do not want their money lent. They want it spent on a family’s bills. That money is a separate pot, not a donation and not capital. You see what is still free and what is set aside for each family. The sponsor’s statement shows only their own money. The family never sees who sponsored them. Sponsor money stays off tax receipts unless you deliberately opt in.

Both. Payment and check-deposit reminders can be sent by email or SMS (with the borrower's consent). Every message is recorded in a unified communications log with its delivery status, so you always know what went out.

Yes. Tzaddikim (lenders) contribute repayable capital, while Donors give outright donations — they're tracked separately. Donations can be recorded manually or automatically from bank activity, and donor receipts can be delivered automatically once a donation is reconciled. You can also track the Gemach's own expenses through Recipients (payees).

Yes — there's a lender/investor portal. You can give a lender a viewer login mapped to their own tzaddik record so they see only their own contributions and balance. It's a simple way to give your contributors transparency and confidence.

Yes. Applicable reports export to QuickBooks (IIF) format, and there's a full Chart of Accounts plus a QuickBooks-style General Ledger with debits, credits, and running balances. The bank register can run in simple buckets or with full account numbers — whatever your accountant prefers.

Yes. Data is encrypted in transit and at rest, with regular backups. You can require two-factor authentication for your whole organization, set session timeouts, and require typed confirmation before anything is deleted. Bank connections go through Plaid — your bank credentials are never stored by Mitzvah Manager.

Yes. Invite your team with role-based access — Owner, Admin, Member/Operator, and Viewer — so everyone has exactly the access they need. A privacy mode lets volunteers see "Borrower #1234" instead of real names, protecting dignity while still letting them help.

Absolutely. During onboarding we migrate your existing lender and borrower data for you. There's also a guided bulk CSV import tool built in — with preview and validation — if you'd like to import data yourself.

That's exactly why the setup fee exists. We migrate your data, configure everything for your needs, and train you and your team until you're confident. If you can use email and basic spreadsheets, you can use Mitzvah Manager — and we're always here to help.

Yes. Mitzvah Manager is fully responsive and works on phones, tablets, and computers. There's nothing to download — just log in from any browser. You can even scan checks from your phone.

The system is built for real life. You can defer payments, adjust schedules, extend terms, and record partial payments. Overdue, grace-period, and due-soon statuses are tracked automatically, and a Loan Health Center helps you catch and fix issues early. It's about helping people, not rigid rules.

Checkwriter is included on Growth. A gemach writes loan checks whether or not it runs a campaign, and the bank feed on that plan is what marks a check cleared. Campaigns, WhatsApp gift reports, the public giving page, fundraising analytics, charity disbursements, and sponsored funds are included together on Steward. They are not separate add-ons. Foundation is the lending books. Growth adds the bank, check scanning, and Checkwriter. Steward adds the money you raise and the charity you pay out.

We keep pricing as stable as we can, and we're upfront that costs do rise over time — hosting, bank integrations, support, and ongoing development all grow along with the software. If we ever need to adjust monthly pricing, we'll give you at least 60 days' notice before it takes effect, so it's never a surprise. Founding members always keep their early-adopter advantage and stay below standard pricing — and because every plan is month-to-month with no contract, you're always free to decide what's right for your Gemach.

You can cancel anytime — all plans are month-to-month, no contract. You can export your data (lenders, borrowers, loans, transactions, documents) in standard formats (CSV, PDF) at any time. Your data belongs to you. The one-time setup fee is non-refundable, as it covers the hands-on work to get you started.

Never. Your data is yours alone. We don't share, sell, or provide access to your lender or borrower information to anyone outside your organization. The only people who can see your data are the users you authorize.