Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen has paid off a $100 million loan to renovate his church in just 19 years with donations thanks to the “faithfulness” of his congregation.
Osteen broke down in tears as he tore up the loan agreement Sunday during a service at the 17,000-seat NBA stadium-turned-church in Houston, Texas.
He has led the nondenominational Lakewood Church, popular with celebrities like Kanye West, for more than two decades and has grown the congregation to more than 50,000 people, with some 200 million viewers tuning in online each week.
The pastor – who is estimated to have a personal fortune of more than $40 million – has courted controversy in the past for taking out a $4.4 million Covid government loan and initially refusing to shelter Hurricane Harvey victims in his church.
He has also been criticized for his extravagant lifestyle and palatial home, which was recently valued at $14 million, but he defends his wealth, once saying, “We just feel like these are God’s blessings.”
Osteen and his wife Victoria announced during a service on Sunday that they had paid off the loan
The pastor burst into tears when he announced the news
He cried as he thanked the congregation for their “faithfulness” and their donations
The 60-year-old Osteen took over the arena from the Houston Rockets in 2005, signing a 60-year lease for $11.5 million. In his Jan. 14 sermon, he said, “Dad left us that kind of money, so we just signed that lease.”
Getting the building was “quite an ordeal” and they received a $100 million offer to renovate it from an arena to a church.
Osteen said the first bank they approached for a loan had been “so negative” and told him, “Man, that’s not going to happen.”
But he said he let their negativity “go in one ear and out the other” and approached Bank of America instead.
He said, “They showed up at our office the first day we were there without even knowing us, they hadn’t even seen our financials, and they had a check for $25 million that they said we could to borrow.’
The Bank eventually agreed to loan them the $100 million needed to convert the building from a stadium to a church.
On December 31, he said they had officially paid off the loan, saying, “It’s because of your loyalty. What God has done for Lakewood, he will do in your lives.”
He also acknowledged that interest rates had been “historically low” for much of the 19 years, meaning they were “good stewards” of “God’s money.”
Joel Osteen and his wife Victoria who often appears with him during services
The couple’s Houston home has been appraised at $14 million
Osteen with his daughter Alexandra, who is heavily involved in the church – she is the Worship Director and also runs Lakewood Music
Osteen’s son Jonathan is a singer-songwriter who is also heavily involved in the church
Osteen’s personal wealth is estimated to be somewhere between $40 million and $100 million.
His sprawling home, in Houston’s exclusive River Oaks area, is valued at $14 million by real estate site Zillow.
The 17,000-square-foot property has six bedrooms, six bathrooms, three elevators, a one-bedroom guest house and a pool house.
Osteen has two children, Jonathan, 28, and Alexandra, 25, both of whom are heavily involved in the church, along with his wife and business partner Victoria.
Victoria, 62, is co-pastor of the church and has written several books with her husband.
When asked by Oprah if he felt the need to apologize for his wealth, Osteen said, “No way… We just feel like these are God’s blessings.”
He added: “We live what we preach. We’ve given millions of dollars and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a nice place to live and being blessed.”
During a 2013 interview with PennLive, Osteen said, “It’s not that tradition that says you’re supposed to be poor and humble.
“I believe Jesus died so that we can have abundant life and be leaders. I believe this is a part of ministry that resonates with people.
“I believe God wants you to prosper in your health, in your family, in your relationships, in your business, and in your career. If that’s the prosperity gospel, then I believe it.’
Osteen said he doesn’t feel the need to apologize for his wealth because it’s all ‘blessings’ from God
Lakewood Church is popular with celebrities, including Kanye West, who has appeared at its Sunday Service
Osteen has appeared on Oprah and written several books that have sold millions of copies
Osteen came under fire in 2017 in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey when he reportedly refused to allow evacuees to shelter at his church until he was the subject of fierce public backlash.
He initially claimed he couldn’t let people in because the building was flooded, but when people shared videos of the apparently dry church, he opened it.
He later appeared on the Today show and described the scandal as a “false story” spread by critics of his church.
He came under fire again in 2020 when his church received $4.4 million in bailouts as part of the federal government’s COVID-19 relief program for small businesses.
A year later, he paid back the loan after being widely convicted.