Read Pt. 1 of “Partial Interest” Rule by clicking here. Last time, we developed an analogy to grasp the concept of a partial interest and also learned that a charitable gift of a partial interest is generally not deductible. The analogy was a handful of uncooked spaghetti strands. The handful represents full and complete ownership …Read More
The partial interest rule denies a charitable deduction for many different kinds of charitable gifts, including some that are valuable. The key to understanding this rule is to grasp the concept of a partial interest. An analogy helps. Imagine you’re holding a handful of uncooked spaghetti. This is analogous, for example, to holding legal title …Read More
A bargain sale is the sale of an asset to charity for a price less than the asset’s fair market value (FMV). For example, a donor sells stock or real estate having an FMV of $100,000 to ABC Charity for $60,000 (selling price, or SP). Remember the meanings of “FMV” and “SP.” This situation is …Read More
Last week the Dow Jones Industrials Average closed at over 20,000 points, a record high that was inconceivable eight years ago. Back in March 2009, the Dow had fallen 54 percent in 17 months, from over 14,000 in October 2007 to just over 6,500. Last week, the Standard & Poor’s 500 and the Nasdaq Composite …Read More
Perhaps we’re about to see. In the early to mid-1980s, interest rates were high and gift annuities were out of favor. Why out of favor? Because a fixed payment rate less than the prevailing safe interest rate is a sure money loser. Rising interest rates, even if not yet “high,” ratchet down the value of …Read More
With the legislative and executive branches of the federal government about to be under the control of one party, the time is growing ripe for a major tax bill. Already there is much being written about a push for a lower top federal income tax rate. A lower top rate would diminish the tax savings …Read More
That is, not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Gift of services – A gift of services (say, specialized investment or accounting services) may be valuable to a charity; but the value of the services is not deductible. The provider of the services may be awarded gift credit, of course. The IRS doesn’t care about …Read More
Read part one here. Let’s continue, beginning with credit card gifts. Charities typically don’t know the date of gift for a gift via credit card. Why? Because the date of gift is the date the charge is posted to the donor’s account as shown on the credit card statement. This is the date the donor …Read More
Year’s end is approaching, bringing with it the potential for some sticky date-of-gift questions. First, let’s be clear about what’s meant by “date of gift.” This is the date the gift is made for federal income tax purposes. There is only one such date (day). For this year-end, it’s going to fall into either 2016 …Read More
A lot, a whole lot. Here are just some highlights: Pledges: Whether the donor’s executor must honor the donor’s pledge to the extent it remains unpaid at donor’s demise. Trustee’s obligation to provide information: Whether and to what extent the trustee of an outside-managed trust has a duty to provide information about the trust. Charitable …Read More