Establishing Your Ministerial Housing Allowance
Financial stewardship is part of faithful ministry. One of the most valuable tools available to ministers is the Housing Allowance, yet many pastors either overlook it or fail to set it up correctly each year.
A housing allowance is not extra pay. It is simply the portion of a minister’s existing compensation that is designated for housing expenses and approved by a church or governing board. When properly established, it can significantly reduce a minister’s taxable income and create important financial stability for their household.
Unfortunately, some ministers miss out on this benefit because they assume the process is complicated or they do not know where to begin. The truth is, setting up a housing allowance is straightforward with the right guidance and a few simple documents.
To make this easier, I recently published a helpful article: The Ministerial Housing Allowance. It explains what a housing allowance is, how it works, and how to establish one before the new year. I also provide two practical tools you can download and use immediately. These include:
- A Housing Allowance Worksheet to estimate your housing expenses
- A Housing Allowance Request Form to present to your church board for approval
If you are a minister receiving compensation for ministry, you should establish a housing allowance each year. Doing so protects you, honors wise stewardship, and ensures IRS compliance. If you have not yet established your housing allowance for the upcoming year, now is the time to do so.
You can read the full article and access the downloadable tools here:
The Minister’s Housing Allowance
I hope this helps! Thoughtful planning now will strengthen your financial foundation for the year ahead.
For more practical ministry tools like this, visit the Resources page on this site.