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TKE House Fund
At the 1959 Conclave in Detroit, the Chapter House Fund was conceived. The fund was supposed to be fueled with allocations from a portion of the initiation fee ($15 was being allocated in the 1969 edition of The Black Book; $10 in the 1979 edition; $0 in the 1981 edition). The fund, which would later be known as the TKE House Fund (THF), would be used to make small loans to chapters for housing projects.Meanwhile, another entity known as the TKE House Building Corporation was established. Unlike the THF, which provided second mortgages, the purpose of this entity was to partner with developers and build fraternity houses from scratch. The first project turned into a colossal failure and the TKE House Building Corporation was eventually eliminated.
The Fraternity eliminated the separate THF entity in the early 1980s. At the 1981 Conclave in Roanoke, an amendment changed the language of The Black Book to reflect that the assets of THF were transferred to the Fraternity, and that the Fraternity would make future housing loans. This same amendment eliminates the monetary contribution to THF from initiation fees.
Even though the THF no longer existed as a separate entity, funds were still maintained separately at the Offices of the Grand Chapter and these funds continued to be known as THF. Loans continued to be issued through the 1980s and 1990s by the Offices of the Grand Chapter.
During the 1990s, the Fraternity experienced a membership recession, and many of the THF loans were in trouble. In many cases, initiates decreased to the point that house operations were insolvent. The THF had to stop lending because so many chapters had defaulted on loans.
Unfortunately, many of these outstanding loans had to be written off, and the THF no longer exists. There is no more cash available for housing loans. However, many chapters have Special Projects funds with the TKE Educational Foundation. Alumni donate to these funds, and the TEF makes grants for educationally-related housing projects.