Renovating or building a church is a major undertaking for any congregation. Each congregation has its own unique needs based on its demographics, and your new construction will need to address those needs to be a success. As you approach the early planning phases of building a church, keep an eye on your budget and the needs of your congregation to ensure that your new building will be everything you want.
Start With a Needs Assessment
Before you start raising money for a church building, you need to establish the parameters of your new building. Building a church that doesn’t speak to the needs of your congregation may as well not exist. Begin by understanding the demographics of the congregation, such as the number of young children. If you minister to many families with young children, you’ll want a building with space for childcare facilities and after-school programs. You’ll also want to consider any charity missions that are important to your congregation. If your church has historically operated a kitchen to help feed the homeless, your new building will need facilities for meal preparation.
Establish Your Borrowing Power
Unless your church is exceptionally well-financed, you’ll likely need to borrow some money to finance your construction. Meet with several different lenders to find out how much you can realistically expect to borrow, and evaluate whether the payments for the loan are a reasonable expense for your church and the congregation. You don’t need to sign any contracts for financing yet, but getting pre-approved for a loan can make the process go smoother.
Meet with a Church Construction Company
Once you have a solid understanding of the needs of your new building, you should meet with an experienced church builder for an initial consultation. With your needs in hand, work with the church design build contractor to prepare an estimated cost for your project. An experienced design and build church building contractor can be especially helpful in this phase. An experienced church builder has probably worked on a number of church construction projects and can accurately estimate both the costs of your facilities and any potential problems you might run into along the way. If you are entertaining using a design-build contractor, here is a related blog post: Developing a Church Construction Plan Using Design Build
Line Up Your Financing
With both the pre-approval from your lender and the builder’s cost estimates, you can decide upon a realistic budget for your project. This budget should draw upon three main sources of funding: your available cash on hand, your available credit line, and the amount of money you can raise for your church construction. Once you know how much you need, you can hold fundraisers to fill in any shortfalls in your budget.
Additional Reading:
- 7 Most Common Mistakes Made During Church Construction
- What To Know During The Planning Phase When Building a Church
New church construction can be a difficult process, but you don’t have to face it alone. CBF Contracting, Inc., is a top-notch Pennsylvania construction company. Our experts have built plenty of our neighborhood churches in western Pennsylvania, Ohio and Western New York. We’ve been involved with the church planning as well as church construction. Whether your church is well-established or just starting out, we can help you build a house of worship that that will suit the needs of your congregation for decades to come. Contact us today at 814-745-3000 for a free estimate as you plan your new church.
