DID YOU KNOW the latest Brooklyn sell-offs will take total Watchtower earnings to $804 MILLION since 2004?

by cedars 73 Replies latest jw friends

  • cedars
    cedars

    Hi folks

    I apologize if this is old news to some, but it's news to me.

    I stumbled on a comprehensive list of all the sold properties on Wikipedia on this link... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watch_Tower_Bible_and_Tract_Society_of_Pennsylvania#Brooklyn_property_sales

    The list, which I have re-organized chronologically according to actual sales, reads as follows...

    • 2004 – 360 Furman Street – sold for $205 million
    • 2006 – 67 Livingston Street – sold for $18.6 million
    • 2006 – 89 Hicks Street – sold for $14 million
    • 2007 – 169 Columbia Heights – sold for $50 million
    • 2011 – 50 Orange Street – sold for $7.1 million
    • 2012 – 165 Columbia Heights – sold for $4.1 million
    • 2012 – 161 Columbia Heights – sold for $3 million
    • 2012 – 183 Columbia Heights – sold for $6.6 million
    • 2012 – 105 Willow Street – sold for $3.3 million
    • 2012 – 34 Orange Street – sold for $2.825 million
    • 2012 – Bossert Hotel – sold for $81 million
    • 2012 – 67 Remsen Street – sold for $3.25 million
    • 2013 – 173 Front Street, 177 Front Street & 200 Water Street – sold for $30.6 million
    • 2013 – 55 Prospect Street, 81 Prospect Street, 117 Adams Street, 77 Sands Street, 90 Sands Street & 175 Pearl Street – sold for $375 million
    TOTAL (so far) – $804,375,000

    It's just a mind-boggling amount of money, and useful information to have handy when talking to Witness relatives. I have updated my latest article on the $375 million "windfall" sell-off accordingly.

    The wikipedia link should also be relatively easy to share with JWs, because many will regard Wikipedia as a "neutral" site (even though it's a little more complicated than that).

    Once the remaining properties are sold (including the Columbia Heights headquarters buildings), I can easily see the final figure surpassing the billion mark.

    Cedars

  • bohm
    bohm

    So where do they go? Investment by all accounts right?

    Perhaps the people at the top are trained to be so focused on numbers (members, hours, etc.), that simply having a large quantity of money that grows is seen as a worthy goal in itself?

  • cedars
    cedars

    bohm

    So where do they go? Investment by all accounts right?

    While Watchtower is known to invest in hedge funds to grow its wealth, it's worth noting the amount of money it is commiting to spending each year on its operational costs.

    According to the 2013 Yearbook, $184 million was spent in 2012 on "caring for special pioneers, missionaries and traveling overseers in their field service assignements." When you consider that $804million averages out at just over $89 million per year across the nine years since the sell-offs began, there's every reason to believe that the influx of money is a necessity for Watchtower rather than a bonus.

    Cedars

  • Eldenno
    Eldenno

    all the operational costs are covered by voluntary donations. This additional money just means they can do and spent more the coming years.

  • cedars
    cedars

    Eldenno

    all the operational costs are covered by voluntary donations

    I understand your point, but the truth is that (unless we get to see a copy of the Society's accounts) we have absolutely no way of knowing just how well donations are keeping pace with all Watchtower's operational costs, including printing literature and maintaining facilities. The recent organizational downsizing ("consolidation" of branches, reduction in magazine printing) would indicate that there is a shortfall somewhere along the line, and the Society is having to adapt accordingly.

    Cedars

  • DATA-DOG
    DATA-DOG

    Thanks Cedars! With all those operational costs, I guess they really don't have any extra funds to help the poor.. If only they could stop printing mountains of literature. Oh well, if a system is unsutainable it WILL end.

  • gingerbread
    gingerbread

    One thing is a given. They aren't going to blow this money. The GB and WT leadership are in for the long haul.

    The persons in position with control of funds will be conservative. And they know that "money makes money". Investments will be made. Costs will be minimized. The pressure will continue for congregations to speed up repayment of KH 'loans' and for publishers to increase their donations to the 'worldwide work'.

  • gorgia2
    gorgia2

    Cedars,

    Thanks for sharing this information. We know the WTS insist they need r&f donations plus proceeds from sold WTS properties for a more effective spreading of an urgent JW message until the big A - the more money they make, the more worldly people they can save in the short time left. So their effective propaganda expounds.

    I often wonder, how long exactly is the amount of preaching time the GB profess all their millions are making provision for - before they see it as unseemly, or potentially unseemly, to the r&f and the rest of the world? One year? Five? Twenty?

    When I was a child my father started out his career selling life insurance. He got a bad reputation among his fellow-Witnesses for not having enough faith that the end was nigh. How could he dare sell something as future-orientated as life insurance?!! It wasn't disfellowshippable, (I think I just created a word!) but his career choice was certainly a scandal.

    I and many, many others couldn't finish high school or go to college due to the end of the world being a hair's breadth away, thousands of couples forwent having children, millions obeyed GB teachings not to invest for their retirement years - we all know the list goes on. And yet - here we have, (not forgetting the hedge funds ofcourse) - yet more evidence of the GB's disbelief in their own restrictive rhetoric regarding time left on this planet as we know it and how to view finances.

    There's only so many millions one can spend saving a morass of doomed people in a limited amount of time. The remaining millions are needed for reasons entirely other than a short-term world-wide ministry. It's all so blatantly rapacious and hypocritical.

    gorgia

    .

  • EdenOne
    EdenOne

    Cedars,

    as far as I could read from 2011 and 2012 finantial reports from the UK branch, they have sustained losses on their Hedge Fund portfolio in recent years.

    Eden

  • Gayle
    Gayle

    It seems reasonable to sell these properties in Brooklyn. Maintaining and updating old buildings is a big expense even with free labor. In real estate, costs are high in the city, as real estate is picking up again. It's expensive in the city. Going to the country areas and building according to the needs, makes sense, cost-wise. (This is of the very few things I can accept as agreeable of the WTS)

    It makes me wonder, though, how these devoted, highly experienced Bethelites will 'serve' congregations any more. In New York city areas, this was a big part of their responsibilities. At least it was a nice 'break-away" from Bethelites and getting with others and more reality at times.

    Just was thinking, (uh-oh), about donations of the Worldwide part, to the WTS. I would guess about half of publishers don't donate at all or so very little. So, if the other half, say as an average, donated $20/month, some more, some less - that would still be possibly $75M/month = almost a billion a year. What do you think? Does that sound plausible? Doesn't sound like that would be hurting them?

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