I have done a lot of research and have not come up with government grant information although I hear so much about there being such a huge pot of money. Has anyone had any luck or experience with this?
-Angeles
Well, kind of…and yet a lot of work to do…I started a few years back looking for grant monies…I am always told there is plenty of money, but the question is how to get it? About 3 years ago I talked with a Grant Writer and they wanted a ton of money up front…And I’m always a bit questionable about paying anyone up front. And they told me that they couldn’t be paid out of the receipt of the grant…
About a year ago I talked with someone and paid them for help. They helped walk me through the entire process of how to write a grant, until…until we got close to the end and they wanted even more money.
I’ve discussed this with several people, including a grant writer for Habitat for Humanity…They stated there was plenty of grant money available, but there was one catch. A company needed to be a 501C, non-profit organization, such as Habitat for Humanity.
I’ve discussed this with a few other companies, most of which explained that one really needed a grant writer…and they want a truck load of money up front.
So it appears that I’m close, having at least been trained on about 90% of the process, but am stuck at finding out who to send my proposal too. It appears there are several companies that grant money, but one needs to find a company that matches what I want to do. For example, buy homes, rehab them and sell them to disabled people…That would be a good example…Again, kind of following the business model of Habitat for Humanity.
If anyone has any ideas, I’m willing to share what I’ve learned. There has to be a way to make this work…Of course, this involves a pretty detailed business plan, summary and much other things…I’ll be watching for any ideas…
i am interested in this also. at my REI club, there was a guy that is a huge investor that spoke and pretty much gets all his money from grants. you don’t need to be a non profit organization to get these…probably have to be that for the type of grants Habitat is going for but anyway this guy rattled off a bunch of grants of which i wrote as fast as i could so i could research myself since of course at the end, he did his usual guru sales pitch on how if we paid $XXX he would teach us everything we needed to know. I could tell he knew his deal, but I’ve just spent so much already on all these seminars, education stuff that I need a break from it so I can actually bring in money instead of keep giving it out.
I found grant.gov which is a great site. In doing prelim. research, I found out that you need a DUN number - of which is easy to get. google how to get it because I can’t remember the website address…it’s just a matter of filing out the form to request on - or you can call a number and get one immediately. The you need to get a CCR (i believe is what it is called) number that allows you to apply for government grants. I will look up the grant titles and let you guys know the names of them so you can find the instructions on how to apply.
I would love to learn more about the process and all from anyone as well. I figure that there weren’t always guru’s out there and not everyone pays for their education so there has to be a way to figure this stuff out ourselves. crazy thing i can’t figure out is if there is so much of this out there and the government wants to give it out to help us investors, then why do they have to make it such a hidden game? i don’t mind working for it, being held accountable to make sure the funds are used properly and all that stuff but to make it so difficult to find what they are, where they are and the process is just plan stupid if you ask me 
-Angeles
I live in South Florida!
Let’s see, there are tons of tax-exempt companies, non-profits & charitable & foundations in each of Palm Beach (8,544), Broward (8,677) & Miami-Dade Counties (10,017) .
That’s 27,205 - 501 (c)(3), Private Foundations and 4947(a)(2)s Charitable Trusts.
These organizations and trusts are broken down into various categories like:
Charities
Education
Science
Medical
Religion
Social (like The Elks Club, your college sororities & fraternities, and just an endless list of others like something a simple as your "backyard broccoli grower’s society, ok, I just made that one up! LOL!).
And many non-profits are “multi-categorized”, that is, some organizations crossover into various combinations of categories.
Non-profits state their mission when filing their “articles of incorporation” and “bylaws” that were needed to obtain "tax-exempt status from their respective States & also the government (i.e., approval from the IRS, etc.).
Ok, many of registered non-profits as part of their “mission statement”
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Part of a mission statement (articles of incorporation & by-laws, etc.) is to state how your organization will be funded. By donations, fundraising, and/or by grants.
If you have an idea (and let’s face it, real estate investors have all kinds of great ideas) and are looking for grant money;
If your idea is sound and can return or “pay it forward” to groups, families, communities, church organizations and so much more.
Just seek out established “non-profits” that are doing similar things and ALMOST ALWAYS are willing to partner with other groups, other non-profits & for profit (like you!).
The most important question a non-profit will have is: Does this “plan of action” fall within my published “mission statement” and does this so-called “business plan”, meet or fail to meet the IRS 501 (c)(3) standards of a tax-exempt non-profit (as they NEVER want to jeopardize their tax-exempt status with the IRS, yikes!).
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Many of these non-profits thrive on partnering with others, who are promoting good, sound ideas. Plus many non-profits are “wired-in” to existing funds (from both government & private grants.)
So my recommendation is to find established non-profits in your area and partner with them.
Build yourself (one deal at a time!) a good track-record, learn the ropes, and if you have a philanthropic passion to help others, then indeed form your own organization.
Feel free to share your ideas, game plan with me, as this field (non-profit, grants, service to others, etc.) is an endless, life long learning plateau, a “labor of love”.
And yes! It works well with real estate. I compliment you for looking into “non-profits”.
Good luck to you!
Bob Dobbs
Government grants come in many varieties; they are usually associated with rehabs, new markets and low-income developments. Real estate grants come in the form of development grants and are only available to registered companies. The government wants to see company tax filings for several years or if it is a newly formed company the tax filings of the owners.
For individual real estate buyers there are several grants available to encourage purchases in certain areas. Generally in order to qualify for these grants you have to be a first time homebuyer but there are a few out there for real estate investors.
The best research for real estate grants is to visit your state’s housing development authority to see what programs are active in your state.
Have you watched the news lately? You probably have more money in your couch cushions than the Treasury has now…