Eastern Sierra Community Housing

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
721553662
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Mammoth Lakes, CA, USA
Phone
7609344740
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Housing Development, Construction, Management

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,737,644
Expenses
$923,883
Assets
$20,103,256
Liabilities
$16,290,121

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Tom Hodges (President)
  • Lindsay Barksdale (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Patricia Robertson (Secretary, ED): $120,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Eastern Sierra Community Housing (ESCH), has spearheaded a workforce housing development program targeted at tackling one of the toughest issues facing Sierra communities today. The private, not-for-profit, organization was established in 2003 and has made significant progress toward mitigating the affordable housing problem that exists in the community.

What it reported doing in 2024

Since its inception, the Organization has turned its initial start-up funds of $210,000, into nearly $62 million in grants, bonds, and tax credits for workforce housing and directly created 130 rental and ownership homes within the Town of Mammoth Lakes. Through home buyer assistance programs in Mono County, the Town of Mammoth Lakes, and the City of Bishop, the organization has assisted 125 (as of Feb. 2019) households purchase safe, affordable housing. Among other services, ESCH provides stewardship of 50+ community land trust ownership homes. The Organization now includes a four full-time staff and a nine-member Board of Directors which actively work to fulfill their mission to support workforce housing for a viable local economy and a sustainable community. Through collaborative public/private partnerships with local jurisdictions and for-profit resort and housing developers, ESCH is increasing the supply of housing that is affordable to the Eastern Sierras workforce and families. ESCH has been successful in providing housing through a variety of programs. Utilizing state, federal, and local funding sources Eastern Sierra Community Housing has developed and/or rehabilitated nearly 200 homes in the region. ESCH currently operates a down payment assistance program to help homebuyers into homeownership. Recently, the organization purchased a commercial building with the intention of converting it into an affordable rental development.ESCH has worked closely with the Town of Mammoth Lakes to implement the Housing Element and the housing requirements of the Towns Municipal Code. This contractual relationship has effectively secured a grant and other funding, developed a more effective deed restriction program, and spurred the development of affordable units to meet the Regional Housing Needs, determined by the California Department of Housing and Community Development.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 80% 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 - A large share of total spending goes to programs and the filed numbers largely add up. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and liabilities are high compared with assets.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 65
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 76
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 47.3%; rating input score 47
  • Program expense ratio: 86.8%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $116.32 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 46.8%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 21.76; rating input score 97; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.81; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 16.7% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.9% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.6% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 47.3% of revenue deployed · 86.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $802K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $120K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 31 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: 5 filed related-organization links
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 47/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 9/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 28/100.