Yimby Action EIN 81-5140915 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

Yimby Action FY2021 filing

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Advocates for building more housing to improve communities and empower others. For fiscal year 2021 it reported $1.0M in revenue, $821K in expenses, and $546K in net assets.Pt I

Type
Membership association · Community Development
Location
San Francisco, CA
Website
www.yimbyaction.org
Filings
6 on file (2019–2021)
Revenue
$1.0MFY2021
Expenses
$821K
Net assets
$546K
People
11
Filings
6
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  81-5140915 Membership association San Francisco, CA
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2021 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →
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Figures match the IRS filing checked 9/3/26 · see original: IRS
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Advocates for building more housing to improve communities and empower others.
Leadership
Laura Fingal-Surma · CEO · $121K
Money in and out
$1.0M revenue, $821K expenses
Bottom line
+19% operating surplus
Membership & operating revenue · FY2021
Total revenue
$1.0M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$821K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$546K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $188K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.70 Management & general $0.15 Fundraising $0.15
Operating surplus
+19%
revenue over expenses
Earned revenue
0%
of revenue from program services & dues
Payroll share
79%
of spending is salaries & benefits

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2021 · Form 990
Revenue
$1.0M
FY2021▲ +57%
Expenses
$821K
FY2021▲ +51%
Total assets
$559K
FY2021▲ +47%
Total liabilities
$13K
FY2021▼ -58%
Total revenue
$1.0M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$821K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$546K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$188K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$559K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B70%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 311
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 411

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CYimby Action
EINHdr · item D81-5140915
Principal addressHdr · item CSan Francisco, CA
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.yimbyaction.org
Year of formationHdr · item Lpending
State of legal domicileHdr · item MCA
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(4) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFCommunity Development (S01)
Ruling yearIRS BMFSep 2019

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a11
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b11
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13No
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
$121,407Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$109,706Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Gillian Pressman’s $141K as Managing Director is at the 42nd percentile of top reported officer pay among 2832 $1–10M community development nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 6 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021
Gillian Pressman$141,427
Jane Natoli$129,749
Laura Foote$127,363$124,077$99,459$109,706
Leora Ross$126,538
Laura Fingal-Surma$121,407
Amy Klein$107,824

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $576K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2021.
01

Direct and grassroots advocacy to influence policymaking and governmental decisions: yimby action lobbies state and local appointed and elected officials on housing issues, including proposed housing legislation and the approval of housing development, including through participation in at the public meetings of local and state…

$367Kprogram expense
02

Public Education

Yimby action prepares and distributes information to the general public about the lack of housing in and around san francisco, the bay area, and the state of california, proposed legislation solutions and governmental activities to address these issues, and the current state of affairs around housing policy.

$130Kprogram expense
03

Coalition Building

In order to facilitate its public education and grassroots and direct lobbying efforts, yimby action connects with community members, recruits housing advocates, and organizes coalitions of housing activists together with community leaders. It also works with others in the formation of similar organizations.

$79Kprogram expense

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants100%$1.0M
Investment income$96
Total revenueLn 12$1.0M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.70 Management & general $0.15 Fundraising $0.15
Program services70%$576K
Management & general15%$124K
Fundraising15%$121K
Total functional expensesLn 25$821K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$471K
Total assetsLn 16$559K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$13K
Total net assetsLn 32$546K
Months of cash on handcomputed6.9

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2021 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $471K · Operating expenses/yr $821K
6.9 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $576K · Total expenses $821K
70%
Management & General
Management & general $124K · Total expenses $821K
15%
Fundraising
Fundraising $121K · Total expenses $821K
15%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $108K · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $700K
$0.15 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.0M · Total revenue $1.0M
100%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $1.0M
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $1.0M
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $96 · Total revenue $1.0M
<0.01%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $821K
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.0M · Prior year $644K
+57%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $546K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.0M · Expenses $821K
+19%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $559K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $546K · Total assets $559K
98%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $559K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Laura Fingal-Surma · Reported title CEO · Highest reported compensation $121K · Total expenses $821K
15%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $650K · Total expenses $821K
79%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 70%
Overhead ratio 15%
Fundraising cost ratio 12%
Revenue growth 57%
Legal fee ratio 0.9%
Accounting fee ratio 2%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2024
Total grants receivedfrom 3 funders$1.2M
See all 3 funders →
Grants paid · 3 grants · $200K · 2022–2024
Abundant Housing LaCA · FY2024$50,000
Abundant Housing LaCA · FY2023$100,000
Abundant Housing LaCA · FY2022$50,000

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2024 (Latest)$2.2M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$1.6M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$1.4M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$1.0M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$644K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2019$419K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2021IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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