We are all looking for conversions as instructed in the great commission. However, the conversions I am talking about today are a little different; converting a commercial building to a church. If you have plans to build a church you need to read this.

Over the past several months we have all gotten an earful about the bad economy. There has been a constant drone about the banking crisis, home foreclosure crisis, car manufacturing crisis. If I have to listen to the details of one more crisis I might go nuts!

The Chinese have an interesting view of a crisis. In that language the two characters than make up the word crisis individually translate DANGER and OPPORTUNITY. I would like to direct our attention today to the opportunities ahead for churches that are prepared.

In March of this year I attended our national sales meeting. On the program was a discussion on the economy and the short run outlook by a panel of bankers and church lending experts. The bottom line was that there is a commercial foreclosure wave that should hit late this year or early next that could make the residential foreclosure problem look like a cake walk.

Having been involved in several conversion projects in the past from grocery stores to movie theaters to car dealerships and based on what the bankers had to say we began a search for buildings that would fit the opportunity side of the equation and we have already identified a few of them and expect many more as time goes by.

In the mix of properties there are some that have been foreclosed, some that are owned by businesses that no longer need all the space and some that investors are unable to hold any longer. This makes a good situation for buyers.

So how do you take advantage of this new opportunity? First things first. When shopping for any property but especially disressed properties you need to have your money (and/or your banker) already in your pocket. Distressed sellers want to know that the buyer they are negotiating with has the capability to close and usually they want a relatively fast close. Get your financial commitments first.

Next, surround yourself with a team of professionals. You need a real estate broker that understands the requirements of churches as well as zoning, parking issues etc. Hire the best you can get, it costs you nothing in the vast majority of cases.

I recommend using a construction management team. The team I use consists of an architect, interior designer, engineer, HVAC expert and contractor. With the proper teamyou can quickly determine which properties you should make offers on.