Common Roots

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
812630528
IRS 990 coverage
2023–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2022, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Meadville, PA, USA
Phone
8147395888
Rating
65
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations

Reported finances

Revenue
$724,828
Expenses
$504,758
Assets
$2,130,074
Liabilities
$779,185

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

9 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Tim Rodgers (Vice President)
  • Samantha Travis (President)

People named in this filing

  • Emily Bowman (Secretary)
  • Tim Rodgers (Vice President)
  • Samantha Travis (President)

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

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The organizations primary mission is to develop and steward sustainable, permanantly affordable homes that build wealth and security for poor and working people. They believe that all residents, regardless of income or identity, should be able to benefit from stable homes that they love and are invested in.

What it reported doing in 2024

The organization is a community land trust dedicted to developing and stewarding sustainable, permanently affordable homes that build wealth and security for low-income households. Common Roots worked in a partnership with local government and other community institutions to acquire vacant and/or blighted properties and redevelop them as permanently affordable housing. In 2024, the organization added 7 properties to its portfolio.

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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 54
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 36
  • Sustainability: 76
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 52%; rating input score 52
  • Program expense ratio: 74.5%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 86
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 30.4%; rating input score 84; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.22; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.37; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 40.5% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 41.4% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 46.6% per year; rating input score 100; 96th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 52% of revenue deployed · 74.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 9 board members independent · 6 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $376K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 9 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 2 filing years from 2023 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 52/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Document-retention policy not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 21/100.