How to Add More Value to Your Parish Finance Council
A parish finance council is not exactly a glamorous position, but good financial stewardship is a necessary ingredient for your parish to remain vibrant and successful. Good stewardship facilitates all the things a parish does: worship, service, education, prayer, community building, evangelization, etc. No, money may not be the most important ingredient of stewardship, but it's still important. If you find yourself on a parish finance council looking for ways to add more value, here is one simple and easy thing to do: have the council examine your banking relationships.
In my line of work, I have been surprised to discover some things about the way the Catholic Church in America banks. Based on what I'm seeing, here are some questions to ask about your parish bank:
- Do your Catholic values align with your bank's values? Many parishes and even dioceses use banks that contribute to or invest in companies that actively oppose Catholic values. I see it all the time. Why would a Catholic parish enrich a bank that opposes that parish's own core values? It makes no sense. If your parish bank is big, it's easy to find information about them online. If you can't find the information, just ask your banker to provide it. Then act on it. Use the free market! There are many financial institutions that can serve your needs. There's no reason to remain in a relationship with a bank that is hostile to your own mission.
- Is your bank taking advantage of you? If your bank charges you excessive fees for their services, or does not pay a healthy amount of interest on your deposits, then they're making too much profit on you. They do this because they can get away with it. Sometimes all it takes to get a better deal is simply to ask for it - so do your job and ask for it!
Specific Recommendations:
Don't Pay Fees. Banks take your deposit money and loan it out with interest. They make plenty of profit on your deposits without having to charge a bunch of fees on top of this. If they charge you fees it's because you let them. Even if a banker sits next to you on the finance council, they still might be doing it. I work for a not-for-profit credit union. I can tell you from first hand knowledge that we make plenty of money on deposits alone to maintain the positive margin we need for sustainability. That's why you should ask that ALL your bank fees be waived (except perhaps the returned check fee). Let the banks make their profits on for-profit entities. Your parish is a non-profit, you should be getting a better deal.
Require Interest to be Paid on Your Deposits. In today's banking climate, if your bank doesn't pay you at least 1% on your checking account, you can probably do better. So shop around. Compare. And let your incumbent bank know that you are shopping around. Make them compete! Again, the market is your friend. Use it to your advantage.
Other things to ask from your bank:
- Does your bank support your parish by sponsoring your fundraisers? Solicit them!
- Does your bank take out an ad in the back of your bulletin? Ask them!
- Is your bank a true partner or simply a vendor? Do they come to you periodically with upgrades, or do you have to go them? Ask them to be a partner and not just a vendor.
Your fellow parishioners rely on you to be a good steward of parish resources. They don't want the money they put into the collection basket every week to go to waste; they want it to serve their parish! Therefore, they need to be confident that you are working to get the best deals possible. I've seen parishes squandering thousands of dollars per year because they let their banks take advantage of them. This is very frustrating to see.
Shop Around! If you suspect that you're not getting the best deal from your bank, find alternatives and ask for offers. A not-for-profit Catholic credit union is a great place to start. Because of our history and membership, Notre Dame Federal Credit Union is Catholic-oriented. We serve the Church throughout the United States. Our 57,000 are spread throughout most of the 186 American dioceses. We'd be happy to provide you with our standard Catholic parish offer. It is very strong. Either you'll like it and decide to bank with us, or you can take our offer and leverage it to get a better deal from your incumbent bank. That's fine. We are totally cool with that. Either way, the Church wins - and that is what we all want!