Audit shows 93 percent of gifts go to program — namely, building and repairing homes

Audit shows 93 percent of gifts go directly to program — namely, building and repairing homes

Fuller Center for Housing President David Snell reported this week that the latest independent financial audit has been received and shows that while revenue significantly increased in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2022, overhead expenses remained low.

Specifically, that means that 93 percent of all gifts to The Fuller Center goes to program work in the field — building and repairing homes in partnership with families in need in dozens of communities across the United States and around the world.

That ratio far exceeds nonprofit industry standards set forth by such entities at the BBB’s Wise Giving Alliance that call for at least 65 percent of revenues to be spent on program work and less than 35 percent on overhead costs (administration and fundraising).

In the past fiscal year, The Fuller Center’s administration expenses were just 5 percent of revenue, while fundraising costs accounted for just 2 percent of revenues.

The three-year trends for The Fuller Center — dating back to the 2019-20 independent audit — shows that while revenue is up 95.2 percent and program expenses up 83.4 percent over the past three audits, overhead expenses are up just 1 percent.

In short, that means that donors who are concerned about helping families have simple, decent places to live are maximizing their generosity when they give to The Fuller Center for Housing. And because The Fuller Center consistently maintains minimal overhead from its headquarters, those gifts build more homes, not unnecessary bureaucracy.

Some overhead costs are inevitable, but The Fuller Center is committed to making the most of every single dollar generously donated.

“I’m sometimes asked how it is that we can keep our overhead expenses so low and our program funding so high,” Fuller Center President David Snell said. “It’s simple, really — we’re careful with how we spend money! We own our office campus, so there’s no rent or mortgage to pay. Our salaries are modest but adequate. Our organizational structure transfers the responsibility for our work to our trusted covenant partners so we don’t have to maintain layers of bureaucracy to sustain the work.

“In short, we take the Biblical principle of stewardship seriously, knowing that every dollar we save is one that can help a family in need to have a decent place to call home,” he added.

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