who owns the KH/ asembly halls?

by Curious Mind 18 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • Curious Mind
    Curious Mind

    Hope someone can enlighten me!!!!

    Just curious as to who has legal ownership of the KH/AH. Most KH/AH are built with free labour and the loan for the hall comes from the society, which the cong then repays - hence the question. Usually a loan when repaid extinguishes any hold/interest of the loan provider and legal ownership is reverted to the borower - so just who is the borrower. There could be an argument made that each individual JW that contributed funds or labour has an interest. But putting that aside, does any elder or exelder know "who has legal ownership of the KH/AH?" And what would happen if a cong wound up and sold its assets (it hasnt happened yet, but it MIGHT) who gets the money???

    Curious Mind

  • Debz
    Debz

    Yes Good question CM...it probably just becomes part of the Borg...Incorporated as assets? Hmm... guess they would have to have shareholders though......?

  • Gizmo
    Gizmo

    As far as I know legal titles belong to the organisation, which corporation exactly i don't know, the legal eagles here prolly have a better idea.

    Why do you want to know?

  • Curious Mind
    Curious Mind

    Gizmo: why do I want to know - mostly because no-one seems too!
    As far as I know legal titles belong to the organisation , How can it be the organisations - when the loan has been repaid by the cong? Isnt that having two bites of the cherry? If the legal title is the Orgs shouldnt they fund the KH/AH in the first place?

    Curious Mind (of the adding to the assets class, more money, more money)

  • Gizmo
    Gizmo

    I'll try and find out more tomorrow, as it's late now, i'll keep you posted.

    But i know The Org keeps some sort of lien so it can't be just liquidated...at least that's what i was told.

  • Farkel
    Farkel

    Usually, the local elders form a Corporation with themselves as directors and that Corporation has the say about what happens to the Hall. When the loan is paid, I've been told that the title to the property is often deeded to the society by the Corporation if those directors so deem it to be so.

    What a deal. Give your money to the society by donation and by buying their worthless books. The society uses that money to loan back to you and charges (a modest rate of) interest to loan you your own money. Make payments on that loan to the society. Pay off that loan to the society. Then give back the property you've paid the society money to buy with your own money in the first place.

    What a deal. This is all Bible-Based(tm).

    Farkel

  • Ed
    Ed
    What a deal.

    Don't they do a similar sort of thing with circuit overseers' cars? Last I heard, they request donations from the local congregations to buy the car, the CO drives it for a bit, then it goes to the WTS who sell it and keep the cash.

    "Two sorts of weights are something detestable to
    Jehovah, and a cheating pair of scales is not good."

    - Proverbs 20:23 (NWT)

  • Farkel
    Farkel

    Ed,

    : Last I heard, they request donations from the local congregations to buy the car, the CO drives it for a bit, then it goes to the WTS who sell it and keep the cash.

    I believe the Watchtower Corporation owns another company called "Circuit Leasing" which provides cars to its elite. I have no doubt they get a commission on each car they "lease." They often sell those cars later to gullible dubs and the Watchtower elite then get new cars.

    Of course, this is all "Bible-Based(tm)."

    Farkel

  • blondie
    blondie
    Last I heard, they request donations from the local congregations to buy the car

    This is no longer done, nor do the congregations contribute directly to the WTS for the COs/DOs healthcare. It is a tax issue here in the US. It is probably paid directly by the WTS out of the contributions to the "worldwide work" that each congregation makes monthly.

    Blondie

  • Ed
    Ed
    This is no longer done, nor do the congregations contribute directly to the WTS for the COs/DOs healthcare. It is a tax issue here in the US.

    We must have different laws here. I remember not so long ago (maybe a couple of years) the elders got our congregation to vote* on whether to send extra payments to the Society from the congregation's funds to help buy a new car for the CO (and pay for its maintenance). I had never heard of an arrangement like that before - I remember wondering who got to keep the car afterwards.

    * "Can we have a show of hands please...? One, two, three...four.... Anyone against the idea? .... No! Okay, well that's settled then."

Share this

Google+
Pinterest
Reddit