Should your church choose Griffin Church Loans?

Griffin Church Loans is a brand of Griffin Capital Funding, headquartered in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The firm spun out of American Express Tax & Business Services in 1999 and has financed churches exclusively since then, with more than two billion dollars in cumulative closings and over two thousand loans closed. It lends to churches of any denomination in most parts of the United States, with loans from $50,000 to $35,000,000.

Griffin runs two tracks, and which one a church lands on changes who its lender is. On private money, Griffin is the lender: it funds the loan from its own capital, holds it, services it, and does not generally sell it. Private money goes up to 60% of the property's value, costs more than conventional financing, and is not available everywhere Griffin works. On conventional programs, Griffin structures the loan and places it with lenders that specialize in church credit, so Griffin is not the lender of record. Conventional programs go up to 80% of value for well-qualified churches.

The product mix is broad: construction loans, purchase mortgages, refinances, bridge loans, church bond financing up to thirty years, private money, and interest-only structures for credit-challenged churches. Most institutional church lenders offer three or four products inside a single credit box. Having both a private-money track and a placement desk lets Griffin consider a church that one channel would turn away.

Personal guarantees are where Griffin differs most from commercial lenders. Griffin says they are almost never required on conventional loans above $500,000, and decides them case by case on private money. Most commercial church mortgages still require some personal recourse from board members or pastors, so for a board weighing whether to vote yes, that change in risk profile is often the unlock. Griffin also underwrites on the church's financials, giving history, and real estate value rather than the personal credit of leadership.

On timing, Griffin answers within one business day. Conventional loans typically close in 45 to 60 days. Private money loans have closed in as little as two weeks once due diligence was complete, which Griffin says is not typical, so do not plan a deadline around it.

The trade-offs are worth weighing. Griffin Capital Funding (the parent legal entity) is not BBB Accredited, and the BBB profile lists under a different legal name (M&J Loans), which can make research confusing. Griffin publishes its loan-to-value limits but no rate sheet and no minimum DSCR; the homepage advertises a starting rate, which is advertising rather than a quote. On conventional programs the loan sits with the lender Griffin places it with, so how that lender behaves in a downturn matters more than Griffin's own policies. Extension funds hold loans through cycles by design.

For churches inside a strong denominational fund's footprint (AGFinancial for Assemblies of God, LCEF for LCMS, Solomon for the Restoration Movement), the denomination-aligned alternative will usually price more sharply and offer a more institutional risk profile. For churches outside those traditions, or for borrowers who need a private-money option or help placing an unusual loan, Griffin is a serious option to evaluate.

Before you approach Griffin or any other lender, take the free ChurchLend readiness assessment. In about five minutes it shows how your church scores on the seven factors lenders weigh, and what to strengthen first.