Church Foreclosures Hit All-Time High

But homeowners aren't the only ones being hit by foreclosure. Church foreclosures are at an all-time high. Since 2008 more than 200 churches and other religious organizations have faced foreclosure, according to real estate services firm CoStar Group. In the decade before 2008, church foreclosures were rare, averaging less than 10 per year.

Tim Trainor, a spokesman for CoStar, said 2011 is so far the worst yet, including the "highest dollar volume" ever in the second quarter of 2011, when 20 properties totaling more than $27 million went into foreclosure.

These foreclosures are likely just the tip of the iceberg. No one really knows how many churches not officially in foreclosure are on the brink. Take, for example, The Church at South Las Vegas. The church started in 2001 by Pastor Benny Perez now has more than 4,000 in regular Sunday morning attendance. But the church also has a $53,000 per month mortgage payment, and it can't sell any of its real estate because that real estate is now worth at least $5 million less than what the church paid for it.

"Our back is against the wall," Perez said in July. His answer: The church declared bankruptcy and stopped paying its mortgage. St. Louis-based First Bank has since sued the church. Mitch Fox, a spokesman for the church, would not answer WORLD's questions except to say that the bank and the church were in "sensitive negotiations."

The causes of these financial problems are not mysterious: Churches face many of the same economic realities as other property owners. Declining offerings from recession-plagued families, plunging property values, and less leeway from the banks when they get behind on their mortgages have contributed to the foreclosure crisis.

Of course, the number of foreclosures may seem small compared to the approximately 300,000 Christian churches in the United States, but they tend to take place with larger churches, larger sums of money, and greater attention by the media. California's Crystal Cathedral made national headlines earlier this year when it declared bankruptcy with an estimated $50 million debt. "When a church doesn't pay its bills, it's a terrible witness," said Dan Busby, president of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.

Vital ministries to the community also take a hit. Templo Calvario, in Santa Ana, Calif., was forced to close temporarily a food bank it had operated for 25 years in order to keep up payments on a $9 million loan for a super-sized sanctuary.