We recently announced our annual donation drive in partnership with Midwest Financial Partners, to benefit City Union Mission of Kansas City, Missouri. Donations will be accepted at our office until Friday, December 8. Click here for a list of the most-needed items.
As a qualified 501(c)(3), City Union Mission and other 501(c)(3) organizations can receive monetary gifts in many forms that are tax-advantaged for the donor. Given the needs of this and other qualified organizations, gifts are welcomed throughout the year, though there can be some nuances to the timing of the gifts.
A few of the tax-advantaged ways to give:
- From a taxable account – Perhaps the easiest and quickest to do, especially if you have a linked checking account or debit card. At a convenient IRS website, donors can search for tax-exempt organizations by name, state or other criteria.
Also from your taxable account, you can donate long-term appreciated securities like shares of stock, bonds and mutual funds. By doing so, you can receive a tax deduction for the value of the donated asset and avoid the associated capital gains and associated taxes that would otherwise come with selling the securities.
- From your traditional IRA – Similar to gifting from your taxable account, though not limited to securities. An added benefit for donors aged 73 or older after December 31, 2022, is that the value of the gift can count towards your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) in the year of the gift.
Also from a traditional IRA, donors aged 70 ½ or older can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), that is, a gift directly from their IRA to a qualified organization. QCD limits for 2023 are $100,000 per individual or spouse, rising to $105,000 in 2024. Timing is an important nuance for QCD donors who are RMD eligible. To be fully deductible, QCD funds must leave the IRA account before the RMD amount for the year is completed. So, making a QCD early in the year can help reap the most benefit. A different nuance is that the year-end 1099-R tax form that confirms your RMD may not separate out your QCD portion. It’s important to document the QCD and RMD amounts and have them entered on your tax forms appropriately. Our office is happy to walk you through the processes.
- From a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) – This can often be accomplished by a phone call or online, regardless of where your DAF is held. To review, cash or highly appreciated securities can be gifted to your DAF, with you receiving full tax deductibility in the year of the gift. Gifting to the cause(s) you care about most can occur anytime. DAFs offer many advantages including ease of use; accountability; simplicity of establishing and handling compared to a private foundation; and ongoing support from your sponsor. Additionally with a DAF, you can employ a “bunching” strategy, where years of gifts known well in advance can be added to your DAF in a single tax year. This can be beneficial in a high-income year to help exceed that year’s standard deduction amount.
As both a MS Financial and Schwab client, you have convenient access for starting or continuing a DAF through Schwab Charitable, and Schwab has short and informative videos here.
A word of caution: If you’re responding to a phone solicitation or a TV, radio or online advertisement, be aware that many fraudsters are out there with names or websites that sound or look familiar but are actually illegitimate. To verify an organization’s authenticity online, look for the padlock icon next to the web address or URL. If mailing a check, it’s most secure to deliver it to a nearby United States Post Office rather than leaving it in or near your mailbox.
Gifting, especially to qualified causes, has many benefits—from the way you give back to the way you show up in your community. But most importantly, it’s how the recipients will feel in response to your generosity. At MS Financial, we look forward to helping you foster philanthropy to benefit City Union Mission and other well-deserving organizations.
Thank you for reading this, and Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones!