A couple updates about finances at UCG:
After a search, interviews, and discussions the church will now contract with Clergy Financial Resources to provide payroll, bookkeeping, and financial reporting services. Clergy Financial Resources (CFR) is an Indiana based organization that has provided specialized tax, payroll, booking, and HR solutions exclusively for clergy and religious organizations for 45 years. They will begin managing our bookkeeping and payroll July 1st.
While CFR will do a lot for us, some financial things will still be handled by our administrative staff. We will continue to track pledges and donations inhouse where that information will remain confidential. Staff will still review and approve all transactions and send supporting documents to CFR. Staff will authorize all bill payments. Hourly employees will have a smart phone app to record their hours. Supervisors will review and approve those hours. The CFR payroll system will track benefits for employees and provide their W-2’s and vendor 1099’s.
After a setup fee, the new accounting arrangement will cost the church $2,375 per month. This is significantly less than the cost of an inhouse accountant with benefits.
Back in January we paid off the church’s first mortgage with PNC Bank. That event initiated a required renegotiation of our second mortgage loan with the UCC Cornerstone Fund. That loan of $99,000 was taken out in 2022 to pay for reroofing the west wing and finishing that remodeling. The original loan was for 30 years at 4%.
The new rate for the renegotiated loan rises to 7% to reflect current market rates. The Board of Business negotiated reducing the loan term to 10 years with the new payment reflecting those new terms. All of this was agreed to in March of this year but had to go through the fund’s legal department.
Finally, this week, we received the new agreement that Rev. Talia Raymond and I signed last night. Our monthly payment will increase to $1,083.60 beginning July 1st. This is an increase of about $640 per month. However, the shorter term will save the church more than $77,000 in total payments and pay off the loan 17 years sooner.
Finally, our revenue year-to-date is $456,733 which is about 46% of our budget. On a good note, our total expenditures are only up to $393,014 or 40% of the budget. There is one more pay period before the quarter ends which will add about $20,000 to expenses. Both revenue and expenses tend to slow down over the summer months and pick up significantly in the fall.
The church remains in good financial shape.