How to Finance an Animal Shelter – Two Viable Alternatives to Traditional Financing

Animal Shelter Designed by Shelterplanners - Click for more pics

Animal shelters are such specific buildings.  They are designed to support the sheltering mission and as such necessarily include a host of supporting rooms, details, finishes and equipment that aren’t found in standard construction.  Every component is critical to proper animal care, however, and must be part of the design.

Unlike financing the construction of an office building or a retail center the animal shelter requires such specific spaces, details finishes and equipment that it is almost impossible to refit for any other use except maybe pet boarding and/or pet day care.   This makes conventional financing difficult and humane societies and SPCA’s usually find themselves facing the need to engage in a “capital campaign” to fund their proposed new shelter.  Successful capital campaigns take time, considerable up-front investment and a great deal of work by everyone involved.

There are opportunities for long term financing available in the right circumstances.  In most states, local government can qualify for long term “lease/purchase” financing for projects involved in “essential services” like fire stations, for instance.  Animal shelters also qualify when sheltering animals is mandated either by local or state ordinances.

So if your organization provides sheltering services under contract with your local jurisdiction, you may be able to take advantage of “lease purchase” financing.  You will have to encourage your jurisdiction to work with you and provide a long term contract or “backing” by co-signature that can support say a 20-25 year deal.  With that arrangement in hand, you can approach a private capital corporation that specializes in government finance.  You will still have to raise some funds, but only about 20% of the total cost.

So what if you don’t have a contract with your local government?  You can look to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for help.  The USDA’s rural development program can provide funding for shelters – we have participated in two successful efforts.  Like the scenario above, you will still have to raise a portion of the total funding, but the USDA’s interest rates and terms are far better than any commercial lender can offer and if you qualify you will have the funds necessary to build.