How low would Administration and Fundraising costs have to be to meet
or exceed World Best Practices?

ktea..

Thanks for your question.  According to the American Institute of
Philanthropy, your concerns regarding the amount of administrative
costs is one that should always be looked at when donating.  The AIP's
"Charity Rating Guide and Watchdog Report"
[http://www.charitywatch.org/ratingguide.html] recommends that at
least 60% of all charitable donations be used for a charity's programs
and services and less than 40% be used for administrative and
fundraising.  Several things, including the number of years a charity
has been running, the overall size, etc., are determining factors in
establishing costs.  The National Charities Information Bureau
[http://www.give.org] requires that charities spend at least 65% of
its total expenses on program activities and no more than 35% on fund
raising expenses using the following formulas:

Total Program Service Expenses / Total expenses should be at least 65%

Total Fund Raising Expenses / Total related Contributions should be no
more than 35%

Thanks again for your question. I hope the information I have provided
has been helpful.  If you need any additional clarification, please
let me know prior to rating my answer.

Regards,

-THV

Search Strategy:
percentage charity fundraising administrative costs

References:
Tips for Giving Wisely
http://www.charitywatch.org/tips.html

How to Read a Nonprofit Financial Statement
http://www.nonprofits.org/lib/how.html

The BBB Wise Giving Alliance Standards for Charitable Accountability
http://www.give.org/standards/newcbbbstds.asp

administrative costs should not exceed 20%, but ideally fall somewhere
between 10 and 20%. People who give money to fundraisers feel very
uncomfortable when administrative and other costs run higher than the
percentages given above