As More Churches Approach Fiscal ‘Breaking Point,’ Housing Projects Are Providing A Lifeline
Churches in cities around the country have faced declining memberships and revenues over the last decade, a trend that has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
As land becomes scarce in cities that are looking to build more housing, religious institutions are increasingly partnering with developers to build on their large pieces of valuable urban property, unlocking a long-term source of income for churches that are struggling financially. A rendering of the proposed redevelopment of the Wisconsin Avenue Baptist Church site, including a new church building and 86 senior housing units.
Bisnow/Jon Banister
Developers and investors, speaking Thursday on the
Bisnow Multifamily Annual Conference East digital summit, said they experienced weak leasing demand in the District last quarter. In the fourth quarter, it does seem like the bottom fell out a little bit, JPMorgan Asset Management Managing Director Allina Boohoff said. There were a lot of deliveries in D.C. proper that were counting on new college graduates, new people coming in, that were just frankly not there.
The market s weakness was detailed in new Q4 data released by Delta Associates last week. Class-A apartment absorption in the District fell by 75% for the 12 months ending Dec. 31, Delta s Q4 report found, and rents for Class-A, high-rise apartments declined by 17.9%. The District s Class-A vacancy rate increased from 4.9% in Q4 2019 to 10.3% last quarter.