How to research a foundation before you apply
Published August 29, 2026 · Last updated August 29, 2026 · 6 min read
Before you write a word, read the foundation’s last three filings. They tell you what it actually funds, at what size, in which places, whether new grantees ever get in, and how to apply. Thirty minutes of filing work saves a month of wasted proposals.
The five questions the filings answer
- 1What do they actually fund? The grant list is the truth; the mission statement is the aspiration. Read the recipients and purposes, not just the guidelines.
- 2At what size? Find the typical grant, and use the median, not the average: one flagship grant can drag the average far above what a new grantee should request.
- 3Where? Funders have geographic habits the guidelines may not mention. If ninety percent of grants land in one metro, that is the real footprint.
- 4Do new names get in? Compare grantee lists across three years. A roster that adds new organizations each cycle is open. A frozen roster is a relationship you have to build another way.
- 5How do they want to be approached? A 990-PF’s Part XV states application procedures, deadlines, and sometimes the decisive sentence: contributions only to preselected organizations.
Reading a 990-PF specifically
Private foundations file the 990-PF, and it rewards a focused read. Part I shows total giving and whether it is rising or falling. Part XV holds the application information and the full grantee list. The officer and trustee list shows who governs the money, which is where board-to-board connections surface.
Calibrate the ask to the record. Look at what the foundation gives organizations your size, and note that first grants often come in below a funder’s median while the relationship is new.
When to walk away
- The filing says preselected only and the grantee roster confirms it.
- Giving has shrunk three years running: the pool you would be entering is getting smaller.
- No grant in your state, your budget range, or your field across three years of filings. The record is telling you something the guidelines are not.
The shortcut
Everything above is public and readable by hand. It is also exactly what a SecretAgent990 dossier assembles in one page: the giving pattern, how open a funder is to brand-new grantees, and what to ask for, calibrated to your size, with every figure linked to the filing it came from.
Related questions
What if the foundation has no website?
Most private foundations do not have one. The 990-PF is effectively their public presence: giving history, application procedure, deadlines, and trustees are all in the filing.
What does "preselected organizations only" mean?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals; its board chooses recipients directly. You can still build the relationship through a trustee connection, but a cold application will not be read.
How do I find a foundation’s deadlines?
For private foundations, Part XV of the 990-PF states application procedures and deadlines when they exist. If it is blank, there is no formal process, and an inquiry letter to the address on the filing is the standard approach.
Put the record to work
SecretAgent990 reads two million public filings so you do not have to. Open a case, meet your funding peers, and follow the leads.