Funding

The most challenging part of launching this project is finding the money to purchase the property. The campus itself is a very unusual property and our plans to utilize it are wildly outside the norms of real estate and small business financing opportunities We founding organizers have a few hundred thousand dollars of our own to get the ball rolling, but we need your help to take the next steps. We are looking for people with skills and knowledge related to funding and financing to help organize this part of the project. Our final financial strategy might include some combination of government backed loans, lien or mortgage based financing, private loans, investment for equity with buyback provisions, subdivision of the property for sale, or other options we haven't heard of, in addition to the founders' investments and planned crowd funding/lending/investing campaigns. Get in touch with us at finance@codwell.org if you have any information or recommendations to share on this topic, including if you just want to help us get our projections and pitch into a format more digestible by lenders and investors.

Projections

Starting with 30 members and growing toward 80 members (50-80% capacity) at the end of year two, we expect to break even on operating revenue and expenses in the middle of year one. We project $50k/mo net income from the end of year two, rising to $70k/mo at the end of year three and onward. This will be split between improvements to the property, fulfilling the needs and desires of the members above and beyond baseline operations and maintenance, and reducing our mortgage and lender debt ahead of schedule.

Grants / Government

This project is likely to qualify for numerous grants, subsidies, and other considerations from various private organizations and government entities. The areas we are considering qualify as Rural Development for various USDA programs. Both the State and the Federal Government offer many guaranteed or subsidized loan products to small businesses.

All of the above, and likely much more, is an arena in which we are seeking assistance. If you are an experienced grant writer, are familiar with navigating government loan programs, or have skills or knowledge anywhere tangentially related to those topics, we'd love to hear from you.

Crowd Approaches

Our first attempt at a crowd investing campaign was unsuccessful. We are planning to launch crowd funding and crowd lending campaigns in the near future, now that many more people are involved in the project and we've been able to visit the property a couple of times to get photos and video to use in our promotional materials.