Monthly Expense / Profit Splits

​See also:  Finances, Startup Equity Splits, and Business Model

Overview

Every Habitats for Happiness has monthly expenses and monthly income. 

Monthly Expenses include the Mortgage (principle and interest), utilities, taxes, insurance, and anything else the community chooses to spend money on. Labor required by the Center to function (i.e. maintaining the fields, accounting, building, etc) is of course a valid monthly expense.

Monthly Income includes the profits from activities that the community chooses to engage in (not to be confused with Individual income-generating pursuits: Members have the right to earn money in any manner they see fit, and it is their money not the community's).
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The Difference between the Monthly Expenses and Monthly Income is the Monthly Profit/Loss and it is divided equally amongst all Members of that particular Center. 

If there is a Profit, then each member receives a check at the end of the month (or the community may elect to save/use the profit for other purposes at the group's discretion). If there is a loss, then Members pay Dues equal to their pro-rated share. Note that Profits & Dues checks/bills will not always be identical to each other because members who contributed Labor will have it credited to them in their monthly accounting.

For the Financially minded, here are some examples of how monthly profit / loss  might occur within the Centers:

Simplified Example #1

Imagine if:
  • Debi & Carole are the only two members of their Habitats for Happiness
  • Their Center's Monthly Cash expenses for July totaled $2000 (for the mortgage, taxes, & insurance).
  • July's required labor totaled 25 hours @ $20/hr, all of which was performed by Carole
  • Therefore its total monthly expenses = $2,000 + 25*$20 = $2,500
  • Debi & Carole are the only two members, so they split this equally (50/50). Therefore each of them owes $1,250
  • Carole’s labor is credited towards her share, so her cash owed is $1250 - 25*$20 = $750
  • Debi & Carole’s total Dues for the month is thus $1250 (Debi) + $750 (Carole) = $2000, which cover's July's cash expenses.
This way the bills get paid, and Carole’s time contribution is respected. This also creates a built-in incentive to contribute time to your community as it decreases your required cash contribution at the end of the month.

Note that thanks to the opportunity to host DomeGaia workshops, Centers whose members are long on time and short on cash have an excellent opportunity & way to convert their free time to cash by hosting Workshops.

Example #2

New Paradigm Centers usually have a lot more members than that, so imagine the following more realistic  scenario:
  • There are 10 members, who (using the Advice process) decide to build a Community Dome one month.
  • 8 members bust it out and build a Community Dome for 100 hours of labor each + $2,500 in supplies. The other 2 members relax in hammocks all month or tend to their own spiritual / personal needs.
  • Supposing that the Center's monthly cash expenses are the usual $3000 / month…
  • Total expenses that month come to $3000 + 100 * $25/hr (avg) * 8 + $2500 = $25,500 or $2,550 per community member
  • The two members who did not do any labor contribute that much cash. The other 8 members contribute $2,550 - $25 (avg)*100 = $50 each (+ their labor of course). All cash needs are covered, the community has a new Community Building, and all is well…
​However, Habitats for Happiness intrinsically have a profitable business opportunity of hosting workshops and teaching skills, so a *much* more likely scenario becomes:

Example #3

Suppose there are 10 members and 4 interns/volunteers in the Center who decide to build a Community Dome one month & run a workshop to get it done. They invoke their Business Relationship with DomeGaia, which supplies 30 enthusiastic workshop attendees, who pay $1200 each to attend the workshop (of which the Center keeps 70%). The Center also keeps 100% of the fees for the meal plan and camping , which of half the workshop attendees purchase for $400 (meals) & $200 (camping).
That month, their Dome gets built, and the Center receives $25,200 from the workshop + $9,000 in Meal Plan & Camping fees.

If the Center's expenses that month were:
  • The usual $3000 per month for mortgage, interest, taxes, etc...
  • The usual 100 hours per month at $20 hr for miscellaneous necessary labor
  • An extra $2500 for workshop supplies
  • An extra $1500 for workshop food
  • An extra 400 hours of labor hosting the workshop & cooking meals (at $25/hr average)
Then that month the Center's net income is $15,200

Income

    

Host Workshop

$25,200

Meal Plans (15)

$6,000

Camping (15)

$3,000
 

Total:

$34,200
     

Expenses

    

Mortgage, taxes, etc

$3,000

Monthly labor

$2,000

Workshop Supplies

$2,500

Workshop Food

$1,500

Workshop Labor

$10,000
 

Total:

$19,000

Net Income:

$15,200
As an added bonus:
  • The Center has a new Dome for their community to use.
  • A few members had the opportunity to work for a total of 200 hours at $25/hr during the workshop, which is their money to do with as they please.
  • All of the monthly bills got paid
  • Everyone got to eat for free during the workshop (since group meals is part of hosting)
  • All of the Center's Members got to live there for free that month (since there were no dues, no rent, and the mortgage & monthly expenses were covered by the workshop).
  • The community may choose to divvy the Net Monthly Income between them. If they do so, then every single member gets profit-sharing check for $1,520 that month in addition to whatever they may have earned during the workshop or by doing other labor for the Community.

Summary

Members of the Habitats for Happiness have the option to engage in any type of work that interests them so long as they are able to cover their Monthly Dues. They can hold jobs off the land or contribute labor on the land. They may even have home businesses (the establishment of which would invoke the Advice Process to ensure everyone's comfort).

If a situation arises where community members are long on time and short on cash, they have DomeGaia's support & the ability to access the DomeGaia business model of hosting workshops to convert their free time into substantial cash. DomeGaia supplies the clients in exchange for a 30% Commission, and intends to expand the types of workshops they offer to other earth-friendly topics according to the expertise brought by Members of the Habitats for Happiness.

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