1/28/11
As reported by Fox News, in the past two years almost 200 religious facilities in the U.S. have lost their buildings in foreclosure; this is up from only eight in the previous two years and almost none in the ten years prior to that. Real-estate group CoStar Group Inc. gave these statistics saying hundreds more churches are struggling with finances to the point of near bankruptcy and foreclosure. The group explained that many churches built too big or borrowed too much in building programs when the markets were booming, but now rising unemployment and a struggling economy are creating low offerings. Chris Macke, senior real estate strategist at CoStar, remarked, “Religious organizations may be subject to the laws of God but they are also subject to the laws of economics.” Many of these struggling churches, Macke said, are in states where the home foreclosure rate is skyrocketing, such as California, Michigan, and Florida.
