Church Finances and Buildings
A bibliography of resources to help churches manage their finances and property
Finances and budgeting
- Envelop3 Church Budgeting Tool
- Audits - the value of doing a financial audit and 17 questions to ask, from the ECFA
- Budget Template for nonprofits from Jitasa
- Budgeting basics from Jitasa
- Budgeting course for nonprofits from Jitasa
- Budgeting and Forecasting video from Jitasa
- Cash Reserves - why, how, and how much? A video from the ECFA
- CIF's Guide to Church Budgets - 7 must haves for developing & managing a church budget (or download the PDF here)
- Church Excel (free resources on finances and other helpful guides)
- "Designating a Housing Allowance for 2026" by Church Law & Tax
- The Employee Retention Credit webinar recording
- "3 Essentials of Transformational Church Growth Capital", by Dennis Wiens
- "Is Your Church Budget Healthy", a video by Church Answers, 6 tests to check your church budget health
- Year-end giving sample letter from the ECFA
- Outsourcing payroll to MinistryWorks
- Employee Retention Credit – The ERC is a fully refundable payroll tax credit for eligible employers, initially created by the 2020 CARES Act
- "New Infrastructure Law Has Many Implications for Nonprofits", from the ECFA
Salaries, Benefits, and Taxes
- "Amending a Minister’s Housing Allowance" by Church Law & Tax
- "Avoid These Pitfalls When Discussing Your Pastor's Compensation" by Outreach Magazine
- "Charitable Gift Annuity" - how to turn part your required minimum distribution (RMD) in retirement to tax-exempt donations
- Christianity Today's 2023 Church & Clergy Tax Guide, by Richard R. Hammar
- Designating a Housing Allowance for 2025, from Church Law & Tax
- "Expert Tips on Fair and Generous" by Glenn Fletcher of XPastor.org
- Guidestone benefits: 844.467.4843
- ECFA 2024 Tax Guides (note: ECFA, not EFCA)
- ECFA’s e-books for churches (note: ECFA, not EFCA; requires an account)
- FCMM health insurance solutions
- FCMM New Health Plan
- Free tax guide from ECFA
- Group Health Insurance
- Pastor Retirement: Why Too Few Plan or Prepare, by Dennis Wiens (may require a LinkedIn account)
- Payroll and the Church: Answers to 5 Common Questions, by MinistryWorks
- Taxable Income - you might be overlooking some forms of compensation that are taxable
- Worker Classification Risk: Employee vs. Independent Contractor, by American Church Group
Required posters for the Workplace
Setting a pastor's salary
Salary Report - ask the MWD district office to run a salary report for you
5 Church Salary Tips for Small Churches, by Vanderbloemen
Top Compensation Factors to Consider When Setting Church Salaries by Vanderbloemen
Paid Time off policies by Smart Church Management
Setting Salaries - see resources from Knute Larson
Some good salary resources:
- https://reachrightstudios.com/the-ultimate-church-compensation-and-salary-guide/
- https://get.tithe.ly/blog/church-staff-salaries
- https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Church-Staff-Salary
- https://www.payscale.com/research/US/Employer=Christian_Church/Salary
- Lifeway tool: https://research.lifeway.com/compensation-data
Buildings, Property, and Insurance
- Alternative ideas for church buildings
- ChurchComputers.com - Find the perfect computer solutions for your church.
- Property Inventory Checklist
- Facility Use Agreements - is yours working for you? (by American Church Group)
- Hazardous Winds
- "Insurance Companies are Forced to Respond to Unprecedented Market Strain", article by American Church Group (one of our partners)
- How to Respond if Hail Strikes
- Narthex Properties: "Helping Church Buildings Spring New Life: We purchase, improve, lease & manage church facilities."
- Water, Wind, Hail, Fire
- The Issue with Roofs
Giving Strategies, Generosity
- The EFCA Foundation website has a wealth of information on planned giving
- Sign up for the EFCA Foundation Newsletter
- EFCA Foundation Free Guide to Gift Planning or download the PDF HERE
- EFCA Foundation Will Kit (for wills and trusts) or download the PDF HERE
- Every.org - a platform for online fundraising
- Sign up for the EFCA Donor Advised Fund (or poke around a look for ideas for your own DAF)
- CIF Consulting for Capital Campaigns
- CrossWorld's Wills Guide (PDF file)
- DTS articles on Planned Giving (PDF file) - these are DTS-specific, but lots of good info for any non-profit
- The Generosity Project - from Axis, a Bible study series on generosity
- "A Lasting Legacy Can Be an Act of Faith", article by Christ Community on Estate Giving (can be adapted to any church)
- "Stewardship - Giving God Our Best: God’s Design for Generosity," Christ's Communities white paper on