THE PASTOR'S HOUSE
The Invaluable Housing AllowanceTM
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The Pastor's House - The Invaluable Housing Allowance - Author's Edition
Includes Special Section onThe Pastor’s Retirement Housing Allowance
This book is written in recognition and importance of your contribution to the Body of Christ. It is designed as a “quick reference” only, to assist busy clergy. As a person that has served clergy and churches over 25 years, I understand many of the nuances and complexities of the tax code that pertain to and affect the lives of clergy and their families.
The clergy (pastoral) housing allowance is one of the biggest and most important benefits in pastoral compensation planning. Depending on the actual circumstances, the pastoral housing allowance may be the biggest budget item in the preparation of the pastor’s pay. This publication is designed as a “quick reference”, not an exhaustive study on the subject.
Basic requirements to put a housing allowance in place are as follows:
- The allowance must be in writing
- The allowance must be adopted by the church board and/or congregation
- The allowance must be prepared and designated “in advance” of the calendar year or period in which it becomes effective.
It is important that church officer’s do not set a pastoral housing allowance that is unreasonable for the pastor. A suggestion would be for the pastor to submit a budget of their expected expenses as a part of their compensation planning with the church. This way the church does not have to “guess” an appropriate amount. A realistic and relative projection also helps the employing church better allocate the compensation amounts between housing and salary. Once the allocations between housing and salary are set, there is no “retroactive” redistribution for the current year, however, there is always a “proactive” option to change the allocation going forward in the current year, but it is rarely done in practice. The housing allowance is required to be updated annually.
