{"id":2990,"date":"2009-08-11T05:30:38","date_gmt":"2009-08-11T09:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.geneveith.com\/?p=2990"},"modified":"2009-08-11T05:30:38","modified_gmt":"2009-08-11T09:30:38","slug":"churches-investing-in-real-estate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2009\/08\/churches-investing-in-real-estate\/","title":{"rendered":"Churches investing in real estate"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

The Washington Post<\/a> published an article on big churches that are getting into the real estate market. I can see churches doing this for ministry purposes, such as providing affordable housing for the aged and the poor. That is part of what the article talks about. But it also gives as a reason the need for these megachurches to make money:<\/p>\n

For years, the faith community has been a driving force in building affordable housing such as the unit where the Seldens live. And despite the recession and the accompanying risk of attempting a project now, Jericho and some other Washington area churches have recently taken their involvement a step further, purchasing properties and partnering with developers or builders to construct communities that can include subsidized units, full-price residences and even commercial space.<\/p>\n

\nChurches have a steady income from weekly donations to spend in a depressed real estate market and to qualify for financing. The churches say their goal is to diversify revenue streams so that, among other things, they can expand their community service projects to support growing congregations. And the developers can get tax benefits. . . .\n

Terry Lynch, executive director of the Downtown Cluster of Congregations, a consortium of 43 churches and synagogues in the District, said the move is part of \u201ca new economic reality\u201d for churches that need money to \u201cmaintain a large vibrant congregation.\u201d Churches have to meet their social missions, and as memberships expand, the demand for services grows \u2014 even beyond what they might be able to support with member donations, Lynch said. \u201cYou have to be savvy in how to pay for extended ministries,\u201d he said. \u201cHow do you offer substance abuse programs, food banks and other programs without reliable funding? On top of that, they are paying for utilities, youth ministries, educational facilities. . . . It\u2019s very daunting.\u201d . . .<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom a church standpoint, it\u2019s smart\u201d to diversify, Ricker said. \u201cIt\u2019s just like any other investment, like buying a CD or buying stock.\u201d The Moore property is not Evangel\u2019s first real estate investment. Several years ago, the church sold land next to its sanctuary on Route 214 to a builder to construct an active-adult complex. Cameron Grove has 735 homes, including single-family houses, duplexes and condominiums.<\/p>\n

For the developers, one advantage is that they can get tax credits for agreeing to work with nonprofit groups. Tax credits vary based on the project\u2019s location.<\/p>\n

I assume those subsidies are those that come from the federal government that pay the difference between what a low-income renter can afford and what the landlord charges. (A church landlord could just charge low rent to poor families it wants to help, but this way it gets a check from the government.) I also assume that when churches own real estate it takes it off the tax rolls, making it a sweet deal for investors and developers. (Is that fair to competing private operations?)<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not saying this kind of investment is necessarily wrong, but I\u2019m uneasy about it and would like your opinion. (I\u2019ve just been reading about the huge property holdings that the medieval church acquired and the problems that caused.) What do you think about churches \u201cdiversifying their revenue streams\u201d? Shouldn\u2019t churches depend on the offerings of the faithful, or is it legitimate for churches to make money from business operations?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote><\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Washington Post published an article on big churches that are getting into the real estate market. I can see churches doing this for ministry purposes, such as providing affordable housing for the aged and the poor. That is part of what the article talks about. But it also gives as a reason the need […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-church","category-economics"],"yoast_head":"\nChurches investing in real estate<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Washington Post published an article on big churches that are getting into the real estate market. 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