Executive Director / CEO
This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Melanie Steele, Executive Director / CEO ($56,835) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 1084 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.
Compensation sits at approximately the 58th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range
Benchmarked executive: Melanie Steele — reported title “CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.
Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to CA cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.
| Organization | State | Revenue | Matched title | Comp (reported) | Comp (adjusted) | FY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 North Croskey Development | PA | $280,632 | President | $62,690 | $76,509 | 2023 |
| Bay Aging Apartments Colonial Beach Inc | VA | $280,508 | President | $17,050 | $19,569 | 2024 |
| Common Ground Development | MA | $280,360 | Vice Preside | $30,745 | $32,841 | 2024 |
| Hermandad La Economic And Community | CA | $281,383 | Executive Dir. | $52,800 | $55,798 | 2023 |
| Community Homeless Outreach | TN | $280,112 | Director | $53,989 | $69,452 | 2023 |
| Sparta Retirement Community Inc | MI | $280,087 | President & Ceo | $31,878 | $40,268 | 2023 |
| Wilson County Casa | TN | $281,479 | Executive Director | $75,000 | $93,712 | 2024 |
| Macarthur Manor Senior Residences | KS | $281,484 | President | $2,639 | $3,389 | 2024 |
| Lupine Housing Inc | CA | $279,929 | Executive Dir. | $3,602 | $3,697 | 2024 |
| Obx Room In The Inn | NC | $279,914 | President Ceo | $26,000 | $31,935 | 2024 |
| Santa Fe Community Housing Trust | NM | $279,879 | Ceo | $190,833 | $243,986 | 2024 |
| Goodwin House Development Corporation | VA | $281,848 | Ghi Ceo | $51,381 | $58,972 | 2024 |
| The Mountain Moving Ministry | MO | $279,591 | President | $1,100 | $1,385 | 2024 |
| 91 Carlton Avenue Housing Development | NY | $281,966 | Ceo | $59,698 | $64,125 | 2024 |
| Piedmont Senior Housing Corporation | SC | $282,120 | Exec Director | $5,140 | $6,374 | 2024 |
| Spring Meadows Ii Senior Non-profit Housing | MI | $279,312 | Administrator | $30,745 | $37,722 | 2024 |
| Southwest Philadelphia Presbytery | PA | $282,406 | Chief Executive Officer | $292,739 | $347,020 | 2024 |
| Dupage Housing Solutions Inc | IL | $282,438 | President & Ceo | $7,460 | $8,718 | 2024 |
| Cross Lanes Unity Apartments Inc | WV | $279,009 | President | $53,483 | $68,836 | 2024 |
| Family Promise Of Bradley County | TN | $282,567 | Executive Director | $52,525 | $65,631 | 2024 |
| Alt Affordable Housing Services Inc - | TX | $282,598 | Executive Director | $18,000 | $21,403 | 2024 |
| The Haven Of Manitowoc County Inc | WI | $278,915 | Executive Director | $62,250 | $77,280 | 2024 |
| Oaklawn Apartments Inc | IN | $278,851 | President & Ceo | $52,409 | $65,699 | 2024 |
| Higher Living Inc | NC | $278,813 | Executive Di | $39,959 | $50,530 | 2023 |
| United Church Residences Of Holly | OH | $278,636 | Treasurer | $34,230 | $44,369 | 2023 |
Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CA cost of living and 2025 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.
Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to CA cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.
Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:
| Basis | Subject percentile |
|---|---|
| Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default | 58th |
| Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments) | 68th |
| Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted | 76th |
| All sources (D + E + F), adjusted | 18th |
If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.
Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:
Draft board minutes — executive compensation
Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.