A pastor called me the week he made his last mortgage payment. He wasn't celebrating. He wanted to know if his housing allowance was about to disappear.

The answer is no. But almost nobody had ever explained the part that actually matters.

In this episode we walk through what really happens to the Section 107 housing allowance when the mortgage goes away. What still counts as a housing expense once the note is paid. How the lesser-of-three test quietly decides everything. Why home improvements count in full the year you pay for them, and why the timing of a big renovation across two tax years can shelter thousands more than doing it all at once.

Then we get to the part most pastors have never been told. The housing allowance doesn't have to end when your paycheck does. A qualifying church plan, a 403(b)(9), can generally designate your retirement distributions as housing allowance. And one routine rollover into an IRA can end that treatment permanently.

Also covered: what does not count, the fair rental value number most pastors have never calculated, what parsonage pastors need to know, and the five steps to take before you move a dollar.

Todd Hukill is an ordained pastor, Finance Director for the Tennessee Ministry Network, and founder of Legacy Path Advisors LLC.

More at pastoralfinance.com

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial or tax advice. Talk with a qualified professional who knows clergy taxes and your situation before you act.

In Episode 4 of The Pastoral Finance Podcast, Todd Hukill takes that guilt apart. Nobody handed it to you from Scripture. Ministry culture handed it to you, and it is costing you and maybe your family too.

Scripture doesn't shame provision. It honors it. The famous warning is about the love of money, the root that pulls a heart from God, never about money itself, and never about a worker being paid for his work. Writing to Timothy about elders who lead well, Paul says the worker deserves his wages. Provision for the people who do the work is the design, not a loophole.

In this episode:

• Why pastors feel guilt over financial health that no one else in their situation would feel
• The line ministry culture keeps smudging: greed is wanting more to have more; provision is having enough to do more
• Why a financially healthy pastor is often the most generous person in the room
• The hard truth: staying broke is not a spiritual gift, it often just makes you a future burden
• Four practical steps: receive what your church already offers, know what your money is for, plan without apologizing, and give on purpose

You can do well and stay humble. The two were never enemies.

More free articles and resources for pastors: https://pastoralfinance.com

Want help seeing the whole picture? Todd offers a Pastor Retirement Checkup through Legacy Path Advisors: https://www.legacypathadvisors.com/pastor-retirement-checkup

Grab the free first chapter of Todd's book: https://www.toddhukill.com/free-chapter (New book releases next week. Get the free chapter now and be first in line.)

If this helped, subscribe, leave a review, and send it to a pastor who needs it.

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial or tax advice. Before you act on anything, talk it through with a qualified professional who knows clergy taxes and your situation.

A church can love you completely and still not be your retirement plan. One is a relationship. The other is a structure. You need the structure, on purpose, with your name on it.

In this episode:

Why "we'll take care of our pastor" is a sentiment, not a funded account

How board turnover and tightening budgets quietly change that promise

Why the parsonage is a gift while you serve but builds no equity that is yours

The 403(b)(9) church plan and the feature that makes it different: distributions a credentialed minister can designate as housing allowance, excluded from federal income tax within the limits, a benefit you lose if you move that money to an ordinary IRA

The one honest question to start with: if ministry income stopped, where would yours come from?

This is stewardship, not fear. You can love your church and still build something your family can stand on.

Read the full article this episode is based on: https://www.pastoralfinance.com/blog/your-church-isnt-your-retirement-plan

More free articles and resources for pastors: https://pastoralfinance.com

Want help seeing the whole picture? Todd offers a Pastor Retirement Checkup through Legacy Path Advisors: https://www.legacypathadvisors.com/pastor-retirement-checkup

If this helped, subscribe, leave a review, and send it to a pastor who needs it.

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial or tax advice. Before you act on anything, talk it through with a qualified professional who knows clergy taxes and your situation.

In Episode 2 of The Pastoral Finance Podcast, Todd Hukill talks honestly about retirement for pastors. Why so many feel behind, why clergy retirement works differently than most advice assumes, and the steps you can take today no matter where you are starting from.

Todd is an ordained pastor and has spent nearly two decades as a financial advisor and as Finance Director for a statewide ministry network. This show gives pastors clear, trustworthy help with the money side of ministry. No pressure, no guilt.

In this episode:

Why so many pastors feel like retirement is out of reach

What makes clergy retirement different: the housing allowance in retirement, 403(b)(9) church plans, and the Social Security opt-out decision

Why it is not too late to start, even later in ministry

A simple next step to get clarity on where you stand

Free articles and resources for pastors: https://pastoralfinance.com

Want a clearer picture of your own retirement? Todd offers a Pastor Retirement Checkup through Legacy Path Advisors: https://www.legacypathadvisors.com/pastor-retirement-checkup

If this helped, subscribe, leave a review, and send it to a pastor who needs it.

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial or tax advice. Before you act on anything, talk it through with a qualified professional who knows clergy taxes and your situation.

Todd is an ordained pastor and has spent nearly two decades as a financial advisor and as Finance Director for a statewide ministry network. This show exists to give pastors clear, trustworthy help with money. No pressure, no guilt.

In this episode:

1. Waiting too long to ask for help

2. Living paycheck to paycheck without knowing where the money goes

3. Trying to manage your money without a system

4. Thinking you are planning just because you have a budget

5. Trying to fix everything at once

The takeaway: you are not alone, and you are not stuck. Real progress is a series of small, consistent steps. Pick one and take it this week.

Free articles and resources for pastors: https://pastoralfinance.com

If this helped, subscribe, leave a review, and send it to another pastor you care about.

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial or tax advice. Before you act on anything, talk it through with a qualified professional who knows clergy taxes and your situation.

Follow or subscribe now so the first episodes land the day they drop. More anytime at https://pastoralfinance.com

This show is for education and encouragement, not personalized financial advice.r