Bethel United Methodist Church is part of the community of Mountain Lake Park in Garrett County, Maryland. The Church had some money set aside for future ministry. The money was invested through a financial advisor. They wondered if the United Methodist Foundation might offer a competitive return for lower fees.
The Church Treasurer invited Kim Matthews to meet with the Administrative Council to consider the possibility of moving their reserves to The Foundation. The Church’s priorities for the investment were that the funds had the potential of earning a higher return than their present investment option and the money would be liquid, and could be accessed by the church when the need arose. Custodial accounts at The Foundation offered the church both of these benefits; the Church decided to create the Bethel United Methodist Church Custodial Account.
The benefits of a Custodial Account are:
· All money deposited in a custodial account can be accessed by the church upon demand. There are no maturity dates and no penalties for early withdrawals or limits to the amount that can be accessed.
· The only fee is an asset-based fee (75 basis points or 0.75% per year); there are no transaction fees.
· The minimum investment to begin a custodial account is $1,000. Any amount can be added to an established account at any time.
· The church can access the funds at any time, in any amount by submitting a written request to the Foundation. In most cases, funds can be transferred electronically the same day the request is received, or a check can be mailed to the church.
· A church can have as many custodial accounts as it needs and can establish each one to have a different purpose, thus providing separate bookkeeping for each account.
· Officers in the church can obtain credentials to access custodial account information online. The account information is updated daily.
· Churches can choose between the four Foundation Investment Funds, each of which has a different amount of stocks as part of its investment allocation and all of which offer a high degree of investment diversification.
· Returns for all investment funds are market based, so we cannot guarantee returns, but historically, long-term Foundation investments have grown through reasonable returns.
· Agreements to establish accounts are written to meet the needs of the church, and are customized for each account holder.
· The Foundation practices sustainable investing, which means we invest in securities that align with Christian principles and avoid those that do not.
If you are interested in learning more about Custodial accounts, contact our office.