by Newly Enlightened 16 Replies latest watchtower scandals
Eventually, the family silver runs out.
Exactly! The problem with selling assets is that assets eventually run out. People talking about a new property-focussed “business model” are missing the point. Watchtower is in serious trouble. They have been since 2015. Much of their recent talk has been pretty bullish, but this is a temporary reprieve. As legal payouts build, ongoing costs keep running, and the assets run out, what are they going to do?
People who think the WTS is going to collapse due to lack of money relating to law suit payouts for pedophilia cover ups, a slight downturn in participation or decrease in baptisms are dreaming or deluded.
The WTS/JWorg. as whole has never been richer, they now own more than a billion(s) $$$ in real estate to back them up.
The WTS is not going away , at least not in are lifetime.
Watchtower spends a billion $s plus each year. Selling assets will only help for a while.
Book and magazine sales was their main income until 1990. It was from publishing sales that they were able to buy all their property in the first place. In 1990 that revenue stopped. For the next few years they coasted on financial reserves. Then they started selling property in 2012. Then cutbacks and property sales accelerated from 2015. Now those sales have extended to mergers and Kingdom Halls. At the same time legal fees, settlements and penalties have increased. What will they do when the assets run out?
Their current strategy seems to merge congregations, and then sell the spare hall. Then after a reasonable amount of time, they say this congregation is getting too big, so we need to build a new hall.
That can be done all round the world using free labour, which after all is the biggest cost in building a meeting hall.
Then after a reasonable amount of time, they say this congregation is getting too big, so we need to build a new hall.
I’ve not heard of that happening. I don’t think it would fly, because congregations in the west are getting smaller, not bigger.
Property is finite. They can’t live off it forever. The fact that they are merging some Halls that are fairly far apart, and congregations that are not all that small, indicates they are perhaps nearing a limit of what they can plausibly pass off as rational reorganisation.
What Kramer said.
I didn't watch past the section about Chase being able to take the property or such, but I knew where it was going. sigh
The WT has astute money managers and is doing quite well. Getting a bank loan to create more operating expense as a cost of doing business and putting their cash in more lucrative areas is a savvy business move.
Watchtower spends a billion $s plus each year
I find that hard to believe Slim the WTS has cut back on publishing paper literature dramatically in recent years.
Sure there are costs to support and keep branches functioning but one must remember there are a lot of congregations that are spilling money into HQ every month.
Canada alone had 40 million on hand back in the early 2000's .
The US had acquired 2 billion + in the last 10 years on their property sales , a billion does disperse like magic.
