Growing Your Fund

There are several different ways of giving to your fund besides making gifts of cash. Click on any of your options to learn more!

Stock
Real Estate
Life Insurance
Charitable Remainder Trust and Pooled Income Fund
Charitable Lead Trust
Qualified Retirement Plan Beneficiary Designation
Charitable Bequest

Stock

While your checkbook may be your usual means for making your gifts, consider making a gift of stock. Stocks that you have owned for more than a year are probably significantly more valuable today. If you choose to sell them, you will pay a capital gains tax on the increased value of the stock. When you give that stock to charity, however, you pay no tax on the gain and receive an income tax deduction for the full value of the stock.

Real Estate

One of California residents' greatest assets is real estate. Similar to appreciated stock, when you give real estate that is more valuable today then when you acquired it, your tax deduction is the present market value and there is no tax on the gain. If you are thinking of giving real estate, however, you should allow a few months for completion of the transaction.

Did you know that you could give your home to charity, continue to live in it for the duration of your lifetime, and additionally receive an income tax charitable deduction? This transaction is called a Retained Life Estate.

Life Insurance

Do you have a paid-up life insurance policy that has been gathering dust in a drawer? It was intended for your children, who are now grown and have sufficient assets of their own. Making a charity the owner and beneficiary of that policy provides an income tax deduction for you and a great gift for the charity.

Charitable Remainder Trust and Pooled Income Fund

If you really want to do some planning, here are some other options. A charitable remainder trust (CRT) permits you to make a gift and receive an income in return. Moreover, if appreciated assets are used to fund the trust, you will not be subject to capital gains taxation. You will also be entitled to an income tax charitable deduction.

A similar vehicle is the pooled income fund. The same tax benefits are yours and you can usually use this vehicle with a smaller sum ($5,000 or more).

Charitable Lead Trust

Then there is the reverse of the CRT- the charitable lead trust (CLT). In this instance you have the trust distribute income to the charity for a period of years with the assets returning to you or, more typically, to family members. Income tax benefits are not the result, but gift and estate tax savings. If planned correctly the CLT will allow you to make a significant gift to charity and transfer assets to family members with reduced or no gift and estate taxes.

Qualified Retirement Plan Beneficiary Designation

Most of us today have assets in a qualified retirement plan to provide us with financial security during our retirement. It is reasonable to believe that some of these assets might remain after our lifetimes. If we plan to pass those assets on to anyone but our spouse, they will be subject to significant taxation, starting at about 70 cents on the dollar. Making a charity the successor beneficiary of your spouse for those remaining assets gives the full dollar value to the charity.

Charitable Bequest

One final planning note! Consider including a charitable bequest in your will or trust.

To speak to a charitable giving advisor, please contact us and someone will follow up with you shortly.