Climbing the Mountain
A single step, then another. It’s how to reach the top of the highest mountain – or accomplish any goal.
The goal in front of us is steep — to cut our Center’s mortgage in half in five years. And with your help, we can get there. If we make extra payments each year — small steps – we can cut our debt in half by May of 2026, when our loan comes due and we refinance.
What is most exciting is that an anonymous donor is helping us get started on this multiyear campaign! For every dollar pledged, we will receive one dollar in matching funds, up to $10,000. In addition, this generous benefactor will donate an additional $10,000!
That means that we can reach our initial goal of paying down the mortgage by $30,000 at the end of this year with your help raising another $10,000 in donations from our supporters.
Why Undertake this Journey?
Our mortgage payment is our Center’s biggest financial burden — almost $3,000 a month. If we can pay down our loan, the road ahead will be much smoother.
Five years into running a Dharma Center, we have learned that taking care of the building and grounds solely with volunteer labor is not sustainable. Already we’ve found it necessary to hire outside services for lawn care, cleaning, and bookkeeping.
The work of our volunteer building and office managers has been simply extraordinary, but soon we will have to pay for more office and building administration services.
By reducing our mortgage debt, we’ll free up resources to pay for needed services. With paid staff, we’ll be able to enjoy our programs and classes, secure in the knowledge that day-to-day operations are being taken care of. We’ll be able to concentrate on our core mission: building and maintaining a shared sanctuary for Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.
Getting Time on Our Side
It makes financial sense to begin to tackle our mortgage now. The clock is ticking — our ten-year loan comes due in less than six years. When the balloon payment is due, we plan to refinance our debt.
It is almost guaranteed that the loan market will be a lot harsher. The very low interest rate (3.81%) we obtained in 2016 will be hard to find in 2026.
If we can pay down our outstanding loan to $200,000 in 2026, instead of $400,000 without prepayments, we’ll lessen the shock of projected higher interest rates.
The benefits of mortgage pay down are IMMEDIATE. Reducing the principal you owe today means that you save money in the long run. A $30,000 prepayment in December 2021 on our existing loan will save $5,715 in interest charges by the time our loan comes due.
Make a Donation online here on the website or send your contribution of any amount to Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA 95826, and indicate “Mortgage Pay Down” on your check.” And thank you!
If you have any questions, please email Larry Smith, SDC Treasurer at sdc3111@outlook.com
With gratitude,
Sacramento Dharma Center Board
P.S. We are launching our mortgage pay down in part due to popular demand. Now that our critical building renovation and repair projects are behind us, it’s time to improve the financial future of SDC.
One Step at a Time…
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