ReligiousLoans.com Unveils First Web Service Addressing Unique Borrowing Needs of Faith-Based Organizations

Religious organizations enjoy better rates, more borrowing options, faster response to loan applications, and unprecedented access to leading lenders nationwide

Aliso Viejo, Calif., March 12, 2002 - ReligiousLoans.com, the premier online facilitator of loans for faith-based organizations, today announced a full suite of Web-based services to streamline and improve delivery of competitive loan packages to religious communities. The new online services, www.religiousloans.com, are the first to address the unique borrowing needs of religious groups and the stringent underwriting criteria required by the nation's leading lenders.

Faith-based organizations large and small will now have unprecedented access to hundreds of lenders, enjoy faster responses to loan applications, and receive better rates and conditions as financial institutions compete for loans. Lenders also benefit, with substantially lower administrative costs-online processing eliminates time-consuming, inefficient paperwork-and the ability to offer services to a much larger audience.

"Faith-based groups are underserved when it comes to options for borrowing money to support their ministries," says Jeff Rasmussen, President of ReligiousLoans.com. "Many factors have hindered religious lending, from organizations' lack of familiarity with the lending process to lenders that are reluctant to finance smaller loans of $500,000 or less. ReligiousLoans.com overcomes these challenges with an easy-to-use application process that faster than ever matches qualified buyers with the best lenders."

Tremendous Demand for Services

ReligiousLoans.com began offering services on a limited basis in late 2001. In only two months, without any outreach to potential borrowers, demand for the company's services has skyrocketed. Already, ReligiousLoans.com has facilitated the delivery of more than $25 million in loans to faith-based organizations nationwide. The company supports religious groups seeking loans ranging from $5,000 to $25,000,000, with a current average loan amount of $1 million.

Using ReligiousLoans.com services is simple. Interested borrowers complete an online application, and specify parameters such as when an application begins and ends, whether lenders can view each other's proposals, and which terms and conditions are most important. Borrowers then submit applications, and during their specified application periods, can review proposals from lenders; on average, borrowers receive bids from three to five lenders.

"The financing of our school was difficult, full of delays and obstacles," says Elaine Maloney, Director, Montessori School of the Valley, Palm Desert, California. "As a small, private, educational facility, it was a challenge getting the attention of larger, more established lenders. ReligiousLoans.com solved this problem for us. Within 5 days of completing our online application, we received an excellent proposal from one of the many network lenders. In the end, we closed our loan with by far the best terms and conditions we ever received."

Secure, Reliable Processing

In addition to working with hundreds of top-tier lenders, including Bank of America and California Plan Church Finance, ReligiousLoans.com has partnered with Oinke, Inc., a preeminent provider of Internet-based commercial finance solutions. The company's relationship with Oinke not only expands borrowers' access to a nationwide network of lenders but also ensures that faith-based organizations have a secure, reliable Web environment for completing applications and reviewing proposals.

The proven Oinke technology, combined with an extensive network of commercial lenders, offer the more than 400,000 faith-based organizations nationwide a single, unmatched resource for identifying funding to support new construction, expanding ministries, and other activities central to their continued success.

"ReligiousLoans.com was very helpful in securing for our church the refinancing we desired," says Pastor Jay P. Neu, Living Waters Christian Church, Hopkins, Minnesota. " Not only were we able to lower our interest rate, we were also able to cash out enough money to finish our remodeling project. Our ministry was very satisfied with the competence and friendliness of this company."

Saving Time and Money

The online application process saves borrowers and lenders the hassles and expense-copying, mailing, and archiving-of dealing with paper; savings that are compounded by the lower rates and improved terms for customers, and the potential for lenders to close more loans.

"Our goal is to create new opportunities for faith-based groups and expand the number of lenders who serve them," says Rasmussen. "Given the impressive demand we've seen for services thus far, it looks like that's exactly what's happening."

About ReligiousLoans.com

ReligiousLoans.com, www.religiousloans.com, is an Internet based financial marketplace and information resource provider for not-for profit organizations. ReligiousLoans.com acts a conduit between the religious organizations (borrowers) and the financial institutions (lenders). ReligiousLoans.com fosters a competitive bidding environment, encouraging lenders to price loan offers aggressively as they compete for religious organizations business. Religious organizations view us as their advocate. Through the range of online information and tools presented on our website, combined with customer support and service, we aim to reduce the confusion often experienced by religious organizations during the borrowing process and the time it takes to obtain loans.

About Oinke

Oinke provides the only Internet finance center connecting commercial borrowers with qualified lenders in a secure environment for commercial financing. Oinke's standardized online Financial Application Summary Templates simplify the borrowing process for 75 different loan types, dramatically reducing typical loan paperwork and facilitating negotiations with a nationwide network of lenders. Oinke was the first Internet-based commercial finance company to offer Moody's Risk Management Services credit scoring reports to its customers, and has subsequently formed partnerships with Integra and Transunion.

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ReligiousLoans.com is a registered trademark of ReligiousLoans.com Inc. Oinke is a registered trademark of Oinke, Inc. All other products and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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