Hope Communities Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
We strengthen communities and provide pathways to economic and personal opportunity through affordable housing, educational programs and support services.
- Income
- $4.8 million
- Spending
- $6.0 million
- Spent on programs
- 88%
- Reserves
- -3.4 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 69%
- Employees
- 41
- Volunteers
- 348
- Highest pay
- $208,582, president & ceo
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 25 out of 100. Higher than 3% of charities in its peer group (housing, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
0 of 35Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.
Debt
5 of 20It owes 54% of what it owns.
Living within its means
0 of 15Spending exceeded income by 25% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 16% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1587% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 9 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 70% of charities in its peer group (housing, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2512 of 12 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (2)
- $5.3 million spent. Programs: Real Estate Development, Affordable Housing with Deeply Supportive ServicesHope Communities was established 46 years ago, in 1980, by visionaries Ray and Marilyn Stranske. It was initiated as a means to provide training, support services, and housing to low-income individuals and families either experiencing or at the brink of homelessness. They quickly realized that people had a difficult time advancing toward self-sufficiency if they did not have a safe place to call home. They began a quest to offer quality, affordable housing with supportive programs and services, which has been vitally important ever since. Over the years, Hope has built, purchased, or renovated nearly 800 rental units for low-income renters.The organization's genesis occurred in the historic Five Points neighborhood, though over the years, they expanded their inventory to provide rental units in multiple neighborhoods in Denver. They were the first to build a new mixed-use, mixed-income TOD building on Denver's Welton Street light rail line with 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), renovated a 130-unit apartment complex in East Denver, and purchased 93 townhouses in North Park Hill. Most recently, Hope purchased and renovated a historic building in Five Points to use as a community center with Historic and New Market Tax Credits. In late 2025, Hope sold Welton Homes at the Point to a Five Points developer.Hope currently holds 242 affordable units across Denver. The organization is pursuing a re-syndication to address deferred maintenance and ensure a positive resident experience, and will also look for opportunities for future housing development in a city that desperately needs affordable homes. They continue to offer a full array of programs and services that are customized by property, informed by resident need, and geared to support equitable access to opportunity.
- Programs: Housing Stability, Education, Resource Navigation, basic needs, economic mobility & employment, health & wellness, refugee integration programs, youth programs, and civic engagement/ community-building.We create and offer residents and individuals from area neighborhoods quality educational and enrichment opportunities unique to the individuals we serve. We strive for Hope's residents to be empowered, self-sustainable, and active members of the greater community. We provide both direct programs and services, as well as leverage third-party service providers to assist Hope Communities residents and neighbors. Hope has provided housing, programs, and services to 6,192 clients in the last year. All programs and services are tailored to client needs, cultural nuances, and provided by staff who speak over 21 languages.*Housing Stability: Hope provided affordable housing to about 480 individuals at 4 properties across Denver in 2025. Navigators also helped 1,867 clients from the broader community to secure and retain stable housing. *Resource Navigation many clients who live on Hope properties and from surrounding neighborhoods need assistance securing basic needs and getting resources to advance self-sufficiency and improve their quality of life. The percentage of clients served by Hopes program team that do not live on property comprises 90% of all those served. Many of those clients need assistance finding housing, in addition to basic needs and resources to improve work, school, and health.*Economic Mobility & Employment: Hope Communities residents are diverse. Education and opportunity are keys to economic mobility and self-sufficiency. Hope provides extensive support for hard-to-employ clients to improve their technical skills and work through the employment process. Hope provides direct services and resource navigation for associated career needs and also leverages the resources of area employers and training programs. 2,844 clients received employment support in 2025. Hope Communities provides programs and services that encourage and engage adult learners to acquire and advance skill sets. Some of these include: Computer Classes, Career Exploration and workforce training, Health Literacy, 4,311 clients received legal support and 1,629 got digital literacy training.There has been a consistent focus on upward economic mobility, with clients gaining housing and employment stability, then acquiring stronger financial literacy skills, and many engaging in a path towards home ownership. In 2025, 12 client families purchased homes, over the last four years, 49 families achieved that life goal.*Integration Programs: Hope provides resource navigation and specialized programs to refugee and immigrant clients across the metro region, to help them successfully integrate into the community, become independent members of their neighborhoods, and thrive. The organization has employed staff with cultural competencies in 22 languages in 2025, to support these families and individuals. Community navigators work with clients in Denver, Aurora, Thornton, Lakewood, and other locations across the Front Range from offices on our properties in the East Colfax, Five Points, and Northeast Park Hill neighborhoods of Denver, as well as a program office in Northglenn.*Youth Programs - Hope Communities offers early childhood education, healthy parent-child relationship programs, as well as after-school and summer enrichment, academic support, tutoring, leadership development and programs/activities to advance social-emotional development. Some specific programs include: Ready Tots, Homework Help, Youth Mentoring and Summer Enrichment Programs such as Big City Mountaineering Overnight Camp, Health & Nutrition, Scouting, and the Youth Empowerment Group. Hope aims to help children and youth be school ready, have academic success, further social/emotional development, make healthy choices and build character.*Health and Wellness Hope uses on-site health fairs; health literacy, patient navigation and a myriad of other programs to aid residents in improving health and wellness. In the last year, many more services were expanded to support food insecurity, provide basic needs, and access to health benefits. More than 3,196 people gained access to life-altering social benefits in the last year, and 1,239 received specific health and wellness services. The organization increased outreach programs to support mental health and emotional well-being during this trying time. Hope Communities offers direct services and partners with programs to fulfill health and wellness goals. Addressing food insecurity, we distributed fresh, healthy foods to support 102,737 culturally appropriate meals last year. Our food distribution events also provided a platform for community partner agencies to provide additional resources and opportunities for clients to learn about community systems and opportunities to get involved in neighborhood safety, revitalization and civic engagement.* Civic Engagement and Community-building: Our community-building efforts included facilitating neighborhood alliances, resident councils, and community safety meetings. We hosted five safety meetings in 2025 with 351 participants and engaged with city agencies and partners to empower residents in advocating for their safety. *Holiday Treasure Store - Hope Communities provides an opportunity for parents to shop for their children each December through the Holiday Treasure Store. New, donated gifts are provided to parents free of charge to pass on to their children who live at our properties.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since April 1981.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.