Faith-based Economic & Community Development Ministry

Faith-Based Economic & Community Development is not a new movement: The prophet Nehemia responded to God's calling to create a ministry that responds to the physical needs of his community. Those six biblical principles is what we follow to produce revenue for your organization as we provide immediate funding to develop a Community Housing Development Corporation under the under the umbrella of your existing organization. This process begins after we perform an organization structure assessment of your ministry, as well as the housing ministry.

Organization Structure Assessment:  Healthy organizations are incorporated because they are designed to address a variety of issues over a long period of time.

Bylaws: Required by state law illustrating how the organization will run and who is responsible for running it.

501 (c)(3) Tax Exemption: Certifies your nonprofit organization as a charitable, tax-exempt organization that is publicly supported and therefore is exempt from federal income tax. A nonprofit organization also is eligible to apply for exemption from state corporation franchise taxes.

Financial and Accounting Systems: This is the heart of and soul of the organization. A lack of good financial management could cripple or even destroy your organization. Good financial reporting gives credibility to the organization and ensures a degree of trust and accountability.

Budgets:  General operating budget and specific project budgets. Analysis should include a comparison of budget to actual expenses and revenues so that adjustments can be made before a major problem or discrepancy occurs. It is also wise to prepare multiple year budgets and cash flow projections as decisions are made regarding the organization’s direction as well as the projects undertaken.

Audits: Annual audits give credibility to your organization and are required by grant-funders. They should be performed annually by an independent certified public accountant, especially for organizations with budgets over $200,000.

Financial Statements: This provides relevant information to meet the common interest of donors, members, creditors, grant-funders, and other who provide resources to nonprofit organizations. The following represents financial statements required for each organization.

• Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet)
• Statement of Activities (Revenue and Expenses)
• Statement of Cash Flows
• Note to Financial Statements
• Statement of Functional 

Board of Directors: The size of the board should be large enough to get a consensus. A minimum of three is required and a maximum of fifteen recommended. Board members should have expertise in area of nonprofit law and accounting, administration, business development, construction, and grant applications. Finally, you should always have representation from the community serving on your board of directors.

Community Assessment: Involves a process of wisely matching an organization’s goals and resources with a community’s needs and resources, while considering the opportunities and threats at hand. In order to make the right match, one needs to identify, clarify, and understand each need in these four (4) categories.

• Identifying and Confirming Need
• Identifying Root Needs vs. Surface Needs
• Community Resources
• Asset Mapping