Built Buildings Lab Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
994218879
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2024–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025
Location
Boston, MA, USA
Phone
0000000000
Rating
83
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Environmental Quality, Protection, and Beautification N.E.C.

Reported finances

Revenue
$199,668
Expenses
$233,178
Assets
$106,566
Liabilities
$13,782

Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Lori Minster (Executive Director President Clerk Director)

People named in this filing

  • Lori Minster (Executive Director President Clerk Director)
  • Billie Faircloth (Research Director Treasurer Director)
  • Nakita Reed (Director)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Built Buildings Lab Inc is an educational and scientific green initiative organization organized and operated to conduct research and disseminate knowledge to the public regarding existing buildings and their use and importance as climate change mitigation and adaptation solutions The Organization believes that existing buildings are a significant responsibility and resource for global sustainability and by taking care of them community leaders and building owners can steer the future fabric of resilient healthy and equitable communities The Organization engaged in studies analyses assessments and projects around architectural design research and sustainability services to help community-based organizations building owners city governments and other organizations understand maintain and integrate existing buildings into strategic sustainability and climate action plans

What it reported doing in 2025

The organizations primary program Decarbonizing the Built Environment Through Heritage DBTH advances climate action by integrating cultural heritagebased strategies into building decarbonization policy and practice During the year the organization expanded this multi-year initiative through research advisory work and stakeholder engagement focused on positioning existing buildings as climate solutions Activities included developing policy frameworks convening nonprofit and community partners and supporting collaboration across practitioners policymakers and advocacy organizations The organization also contributed to international climate discourse through participation in global convenings including representation at COP30 and Climate Week events where it advanced the role of existing buildings and heritage-based approaches within broader climate policy conversations Through this work the organization is helping to shift how existing buildings are understood and used in climate policy moving from a niche concern to a practical scalable strategy for reducing emissions and supporting resilient community-driven outcomes

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 70% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

STRONG - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Expenses are high relative to revenue and assets have declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 76
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Sustainability: 18
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.8%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 69%; rating input score 69

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -16.8%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.46; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.13; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 42.3%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 158.7% per year; rating input score 100; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 19.2% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -26.8% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.8% of revenue deployed · 69% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 3 filed program accomplishments · $161K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 5 people listed
  • Consistency: 9 of 9 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2024 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 9/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 36/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 19/100.