Should you rent church buildings out for other churches to use?
We’re regularly approached and have so far said, ‘No’. The request has usually, but not always, come from a non-Anglican ethnic church without property wanting access to a church building for a comparitively small rent.
Why say no? I’ve just heard too many horror stories of churches that end up in terrible relationship with the ‘tenant congregation’. Unpaid rents. Using the building outside the agreed hours. Failure to clean. Conflict with the existing congregations. A too late recognition of a radically different philosophy of ministry.
Yet I’ve felt a twinge of guilt every time I’ve said ‘No’. These are Christian brothers wanting to find a place to meet. They haven’t inherited the same property legacy we have and there aren’t many places around here to meet. Surely we can make space for them? Doesn’t grace demand that we should? Seeing property unused is like burying a treasure in a field isn’t it?
What principles should govern our decision making in this area? The property of the Parish is a resource it holds for the benefit of seeing the gospel go forward.
You therefore can’t rent what you need. This may seem an obvious starting point but too often we fail to realise how much our buildings are (or will soon be) needed.
But what if there is excess capacity? We have an empty branch church at Castle Cove. We hope (& are planning & praying) to plant there in 18 months. But at present it is unused. We are then left with only two choices as we are approached by churches wanting to use our site:
- Rental Tenancy - We rent the building to a ‘tenant church’ and use the rental income generated to grow the ministry we are doing. We could use it to service a loan and see the building improved. The ‘tenant church’ is there under a diocesan approved tenancy agreement. It is not answerable to us in the way it conducts its ministry. There is an arms length relationship akin to a landlord and tenant - they are understood to be a separate church that meets on our site.
- Church Partnership - We invite the church wanting a site to join us completely. We genuinely work together, sharing staff and finances. This would need to be done much more slowly and carefully. Some churches have entered ‘Memorandums of Understanding’ to try and describe the way they are to relate. Naturally, no rent is paid. But the building is now being used for the cause of the gospel in a way it wasn’t previously.
When I’ve explained these options to those wanting to use the site they have always balked. They don’t like the sound of paying commercial rents. Nor do they want to see the churches joined in partnership.
Too often, I’ve seen churches try a third way. A church with excess property capacity allows another church to meet on their site. They want it to be seen as part of their ministry but can’t or won’t hold the new church accountable for its ministry. The relationship is characterised by uncertainty - this isn’t like a tenancy but nor is it a partnership. There is often no exit strategy. The potential for conflict is enormous.
How have you responded when approached by others to use your site? Or if you are part of a church without property, what has your experience been?
