United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund

What United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund does

The United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund (CB&LF) is a Cleveland-headquartered nonprofit denominational ministry affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the oldest national church building society in the United States, founded in 1853. It serves new and renewing congregations of the UCC and other Christian denominations across the U.S. with an integrated suite of services organized around four pillars: Plan, Raise, Finance, and Build. Core offerings include site-purchase loans, construction loans, building purchase loans, affordable housing financing, refinancing, small loans (up to $100,000), disaster recovery loans (up to $1 million), and green loans (up to $100,000), with loan sizes ranging from $10,000 to $5 million and terms of 5 to 30 years at fixed rates lower than commercial lenders and with no prepayment penalties. Complementary services include UCC-authorized professional capital campaign services, visioning and strategic planning, feasibility studies, stewardship campaigns, the annual Partners in Building training events, and the Transform Church - Transform Community 2.0 cohort program funded by a Lilly Endowment grant. The organization operates no proprietary technology platform; its differentiated capability is a faith-based underwriting methodology that evaluates pastoral leadership, community integration, and mission alignment alongside financial metrics, producing a stated 90-95% loan repayment rate with no foreclosures during the early-2000s mortgage crisis. CB&LF operates from a single Cleveland office with approximately 10-12 named staff, supported by Regional Mission Interpreters, and runs a wholly-owned certified CDFI subsidiary (Amistad Redevelopment Corporation) to deploy church-owned real estate for affordable housing. Revenue is generated from loan interest and fees, professional fundraising services, and external grants, with more than 4,000 congregations served over its 165-year history.

Name

United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund

Legal name

United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund

Website

https://cblfund.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1853

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund is an organization that helps congregations plan, raise, finance, and build projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Faith-Based Lending & Religious Institution Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (81311), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Mortgage Bankers & Loan Correspondents (6162)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSALAHAE

Commercial/Non-Residential Construction-to-Perm Financing

Financial & Insurance/Mortgage & Housing Finance/Construction & Renovation Financing (Construction-to-Perm)

Keywords

• Church lending programs
• Capital campaign services
• Religious fundraising consulting
• Faith-based underwriting
• Congregation strategic planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Loan Interest and Fees: The organization provides various loan programs including site-purchase loans, construction loans, building purchase loans, affordable housing financing, refinancing, small loans, disaster recovery loans, and green loans. Revenue is generated through interest rates that are lower than banks and commercial real estate lenders, with no prepayment penalties.
2. Capital Campaign Services: Professional capital campaign services authorized by the United Church of Christ. Services include feasibility studies, goal-setting, training, coaching, mentoring, and campaign oversight. Described as cost-effective compared to other church fundraising services.
3. Transform Church - Transform Community 2.0: A 12-month cohort learning program with no cost to apply or participate, suggesting grant funding supports this initiative. The program helps congregation leaders develop strategic plans for transformative ministry.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund (CB&LF) provides loan programs, capital campaign services, visioning and strategic planning consulting, and technical assistance to help new and renewing congregations of the United Church of Christ and other Christian denominations in the U.S. plan, raise, finance, and build transformative church property projects and social enterprises. Loan products span site purchase, construction, building purchase, affordable housing financing, refinancing, small loans, disaster recovery, and green/energy efficiency projects.

Product overview

The United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund (CB&LF) is the oldest national church building society in the United States, founded in 1853, offering a comprehensive suite of programs and services organized around four core areas: Plan, Raise, Finance, and Build. The Finance division provides loan programs including Site-Purchase Loans, Construction Loans, Building Purchase Loans, Affordable Housing Financing, Refinancing, Small Loans (up to $100,000), Disaster Recovery Loans (up to $1 million), and Green Loans (up to $100,000 for energy efficiency). The Build division facilitates development through Partners in Vision technical assistance, the Adese Fellowship for spiritual entrepreneurs, and Redeem! neighborhood redevelopment initiatives. Planning services include Visioning & Strategic Planning, Leadership & Capacity Building, Legacy Planning, and Financial Feasibility Studies. Fundraising services encompass Capital Campaign Services (the only UCC-authorized professional service) and Stewardship Campaigns. Educational offerings include Transform Church - Transform Community 2.0 (12-month cohort program) and Partners in Building annual training events. Additional resources include a blog, video library, and the award-winning 'It Takes a Village' documentary.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Amistad Redevelopment Corporation (ARC): Certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) supporting affordable housing and community development through church-owned real estate.
• Transform Church - Transform Community 2.0
• Adese Fellowship
• Redeem!
• Partners in Vision

Quantifiable outcome

• 4,000+ congregations served over 165+ years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• New Way HomescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Developer for the Genesis Worship Center affordable housing project. New Way Homes specializes in affordable housing development on urban church properties in the Bay Area, working with CB&LF's low-cost, flexible financing exclusively for churches.
• Amistad Redevelopment Corporation (ARC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) supporting affordable housing and community development through church-owned real estate. ARC is an entity of CB&LF.
• Interfaith Council of Alameda County (ICAC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerICAC member Pastor Laurie Manning of Skyline United Church of Christ connected CB&LF with the Genesis Worship Center project opportunity by inviting CB&LF to present financing and consulting services to address Bay Area housing crisis.
• Lake Institute on Faith & GivingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCB&LF staff hold Executive Certificates in Religious Fundraising from the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, indicating ongoing professional development partnership.
• Association of Fundraising ProfessionalsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCB&LF staff are members of local chapters (Western Maryland, Atlanta) of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, indicating professional affiliation and continuing education.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• UCC Cornerstone Fund: United Church of Christ-affiliated investment and loan fund that jointly financed the $3.6M Genesis Worship Center affordable-housing deal with CB&LF. Closest match in mission, customer base, and product overlap.
• ELCA Mission Investment Fund: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's affiliated impact investment and loan fund providing financing to ELCA congregations for building and ministry projects—same denomination-affiliated lending model as CB&LF.
• Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Investment & Loan Program: PC(USA) affiliated program providing loans and investments to congregations and related entities for property, mission, and capital needs—directly comparable denomination-affiliated lender.
• Church Loan Fund: Commercial church lender specializing in financing for new church development, building purchases, refinances, and expansions across denominations—competes for the same multi-denominational Christian church customers.
• Church of the Brethren Investment Fund: Brethren-affiliated investment and loan vehicle funding church building, mortgage, and ministry loans—analogous denomination-affiliated, faith-based lending structure.

Regional players

• Baptist Foundation of Texas: Texas-based Baptist-affiliated foundation providing loans, church building financing, and retirement services to Baptist churches in the Southwest—comparable ministry-funding model with regional focus.

Emerging players

• Capital for Compassion: Faith-driven CDFI network focused on community development financing including affordable housing and church-related real estate—overlaps with CB&LF's ARC CDFI and affordable-housing mission.
• Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative: Faith-based collaborative developing affordable housing through partnerships with congregations—a comparable model of faith-aligned affordable housing development that uses church-owned real estate.

Broad incumbents

• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): Large national CDFI providing capital and technical assistance for affordable housing and community development—relevant comparable for CB&LF's expanding CDFI/affordable-housing strategy through ARC.
• Enterprise Community Partners: National nonprofit and CDFI investing in affordable housing and community development—compares on mission and capital-deployment model relevant to CB&LF's church-repurposing-for-housing work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ucccblf

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about United Church of Christ Church Building & Loan Fund