Church Growth Investment Fund - Loans

What To Know about
the CGIF Loan Resources

Church Growth Investment Fund offers construction and permanent loans to churches and associations affiliated with the Florida Baptist Convention and those that are ‘like-minded.’

We make loans for:

Purchasing property
Constructing new facilities
Renovating existing facilities
Refinancing existing debt.

The principal and interest paid on these loans further Gospel ministry throughout the state and around the world. We believe each ministry is unique and therefore tailor a loan to the needs of each borrower.

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CGIF Lending

Traditional Lending

Team of Competently Resourceful Professionals

Competitive Rates and Terms

Passionately Kingdom-Minded

Consultative Engagement to Enhance Your Gospel Impact

Flexible Customized Financing

Collaborative Partnership, Not Merely a Transaction

Gets The Unique Dynamics of Churches and Church Lending

Discovery Conversation

At this point, our goal is to listen well and ask powerful questions so we learn about the church, the vision, and the potential project ahead that may have need for the loan capital. That gives your CGIF team a snapshot of what you’re working on and how we may be able to assist.

Data Intake and Review

We ask all potential loan partners to gather and share key data that will help our team develop an initial framework for giving, expenses, and potential borrowing capacity without crippling your ability to fund ministry. Here’s what we need before going forward

2025 YTD Profit & Loss through most current month end.
Current Balance Sheet through most current month end.
Please note the funds available for project.
Profit & Loss (2024, 2023, 2022)
Description of what will the total cost be to make the project turnkey ready for Gospel ministry.

You can email this to kurt@floridabaptist.org
In the subject line, please write: “Loan consultation & name of your church” Once we have this info, we’ll work with it and then schedule our next conversation together.

Loan Consultation

This is where your CGIF Loan team will be able to share with you what your church’s potential borrowing capacity may be with us based on the data that was shared with us. We’ll incorporate customized financing into the picture to close the gap between the capital given by generous disciples and the total turnkey cost of the ministry space.

The Loan Consultation is where questions emerge about process, pathway forwards, and other opportunities that the church may want to consider, like capital campaigns.

Application for a Loan

If after the loan consultation it makes sense to both the church and CGIF to keep going forward,
your church will be invited to apply for a loan by filling out the following documents

and providing supporting documentation:

Loan Application Form

Property Evaluation Form

The amount your church can borrow is determined by several factors, including your church’s financial health, project scope, collateral value, and ability to repay. While there is no universal maximum, lending limits are typically based on a percentage of your church’s annual giving, budget, and the appraised value of the property involved. Each application is individually assessed to ensure the loan amount is manageable for your congregation.

A couple general guidelines to maintain financial health when introducing additional debt are:

The amount borrowed does not exceed 3-5 times your undesignated annual income.
Total fixed expenses do not exceed 85-89% of your undesignated annual income.

Down payment and loan to value (the potential loan’s relationship to the value of your property) requirements vary depending on the type of project:

Raw land purchases may have a loan to value of up to 50% based on the value of the collateral according to CGIF policy.
Facility purchases/construction/renovation projects may have a loan to value of up to 75% based on the value of the collateral according to CGIF policy.
Refinancing existing debt may require little or no down payment, if the LTV remains within acceptable limits based on the value of the collateral according to CGIF policy.
The specific down payment for your church will be determined during the application process, based on the project and your church’s financial position and what the church is needing to do.

On average, conditional loan approval may take 15-30 days once your church has submitted it’s full application and nothing is missing and there are no further details to be nailed down.

Loans from the Church Growth Investment Fund (CGIF) are primarily issued to churches in Florida. However, consideration may be given to church-related ministries-such as schools or para-church organizations-on a case-by-case basis, provided they adhere to Baptist beliefs and maintain a programmatic relationship with a qualifying church or convention. For questions about eligibility, please contact us for guidance

Churches have several options for raising capital beyond loans:

Capital Campaigns: Structured fundraising efforts within the congregation and community to raise significant funds over a set period. These may include pledge drives, special events, and outreach to major donors.
Pledge Drives: Members commit to giving a certain amount over time, making large projects more attainable.
Special Events: Fundraising dinners, auctions, or community fairs can engage both members and the broader community.
Online Giving Platforms: Make it easy for members and supporters to contribute electronically.

Combining these approaches can help your church maximize resources and reduce the amount needed to borrow. If you have further questions or would like to discuss your church’s specific needs, please contact our team for personalized assistance.