Richard Hugo House

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
911718383
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone
2063227030
Rating
68
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Humanities Organizations

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,692,827
Expenses
$1,581,881
Assets
$6,438,885
Liabilities
$535,184

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

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DIANA DELGADO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FORMER)
  • JOSE MONTERO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CURRENT)
  • GARY LUKE (PRESIDENT, FORMER)
  • LINDA BRENEMAN (PRESIDENT, CURRENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • DIANA DELGADO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FORMER): $96,314 total reported compensation
  • JOSE MONTERO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CURRENT): $68,854 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Hugo house is a nonprofit literary arts organization that aims to open the literary world to everyone who loves books or has the drive to write. It is our mission to give people a place to read words, hear words, and make their own words better. We provide classes, events, and fellowships for emerging and established writers.

What it reported doing in 2024

Events: we bring local authors, poets laureate, community favorites, and new talents into hugo house for discussions and readings. Some discuss their influences or reveal works in progress. Others collaborate with musicians or other artists. We also host community-based events like open mics and silent readings. Many of the events we present are free to the public, with donations optional.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and program spending has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 74
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 59
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.5%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 66.5%; rating input score 66
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.5 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • 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: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 6.6%; rating input score 54; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.07; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.08; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 10.4%; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -6.1% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -8% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -5.2% per year; rating input score 0; 6th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.5% of revenue deployed · 66.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 8 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $96K · 16 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 36 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 29/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 54/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 35/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.