With Bushore Church Real Estate, you receive a full and experienced, in-house representation for all of your legal, corporate, and real property needs. Bushore Church Real Estate specializes in nearly all matters concerning Church Real Estate, including religious, nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations. We are a father and son California Real Estate team, having offices in both […]
Conditional Use Permits As with most things in real estate, especially when dealing with Special Use Property, it all comes down to highest and best use. Both of which have their roots in the zoning ordinances. In other words, what uses are permitted on the property. Sometimes a Special Use property is permitted by right, or “Grandfathered”. Other times, a Conditional Use Permit is required. Although a permit sounds simple enough, don’t let the name fool you. A Conditional Use Permit can be a long and expensive process with no […]
California Attorney General California has given great over-sight to the Attorney General’s office to regulate and protect the assets of charities, including churches and religious organizations. Since nonprofit organizations are established to perform a particular purpose, the Attorney General makes sure that the organizations assets are used for that intended purpose. Religious Organizations: Religious corporations classified as religious by the Secretary of State are automatically exempted from registration and not required to register or file annual reports with the Attorney General’s Registry of Charitable Trusts. However, the Attorney General does […]
Municipalities establish a General Plan which contains the overall land use scheme by restricting some areas to particular usages. These governmental actions must not be arbitrary, capacious (unreasonable) or vague. Zoning regulations, or codes, must be reasonable and bear a rational relationship to the objectives of the city, while taking affirmative measures to provide housing for all. Municipalities have been given reasonable control over the private use of land from the state through enabling statutes for the protection of the health, safety, morals, and general welfare of its citizens. Legal […]
Does a Church need to be a registered 501 (c)(3) Tax-exempt Organization? Although not all non-profit organizations fall within section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, religious organization do. As such, this article focuses only on those 501(c)(3) organizations and whether or not a church must apply for tax-exempt status. Defined: According to the IRS, to be tax-exempt religious organization, an organization must be organized and operated exclusively for exempt purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3), and none of its earnings may inure to any private shareholder or individual. […]
What Type of Business Entity is Right for your Church? Although this article will focus on the formation of a corporation, it is important to understand all the different types of business entities and how they will affect your church. Entity Type: Unincorporated Association An association is formed once two or more individuals mutually agree to act for a common lawful purpose, whether for profit or not. An unincorporated association can act and conduct business in the same manner as the other entities listed below, including holding ownership of real […]
Churches and Income Tax This article briefly describes how Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) affects churches, although much of what follows generally applies to all tax-exempt organization. Defined: According to the IRS, Unrelated Business Income is income from a trade or business, regularly carried on, that is not substantially related to the exempt purpose that is the basis of the organization’s exemption. An exempt organization that has $1,000 or more of gross income from an unrelated business must file with the IRS and must pay estimated tax if it expects […]
Church Property Tax ExemptionsCounties throughout California are looking to churches as a way of increasing their revenue. One way to do so is by revoking all or part of an organization’s property tax exemption. Generally speaking, once a property has been classified as exempt, there is no specific guarantee the organization will continue to be exempt from the general tax levy against their property.In General:Churches are not exempt from special assessments, but only from taxes. Taxes are imposed on both real and personal property; with very few exceptions, special assessments […]
Liabilities of being a Board MemberMore often than not, I attend church council meetings that require some action be taken by the church board that results in some form of a corporate resolution. In many cases, the board members present can’t tell me who the officers or directors of the corporation are, or whether or not a quorum is present to ratify their actions. In my attempt to walk the board through the legal impact of their corporate bylaws, many are surprised to hear of the effect that a particular […]
