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 indexes also reached record closings. With the stock market and household wealth at record levels, possible tax cuts on the horizon and recent income and capital gains tax increases, there may never be a better time to promote current and deferred gifts with appreciated securities.
Did you know that appreciated securities are the number one source of noncash gifts, according to the IRS, or that the average stock gift is in the $55,000 to $65,000 range or more? Or that in some years the dollar value of securities gifts has exceeded the value of all charitable bequests in America?
If you are unsure about whether you are doing everything possible to support your mission as billions of dollars in stock gifts occur through the year, consider seeking guidance from one of our Sharpe Consultants to help you develop a fundraising plan or better promote your planned giving program through marketing. Click here to contact us.
Read more about securities gifts from these recent articles published in Give & Take:
“Gifts of Securities: How to Motivate Donors to Make These Gifts”
“So, a Donor Wants to Make a Stock Gift . . . What Comes Next?”
“In the Market for Gifts of Stock”
“Creative Ways to Integrate Current and Future Gift Marketing”
Sharpe Group also offers print and electronic resources to help you educate your donors on making charitable gifts from securities.
- Your Guide to Effective Giving in 2017 booklet
- Giving Securities booklet
- Questions & Answers About Giving Securities brochure
- Gifts of Securities information on Sharpe’s Gift Planning Websites
- Articles written for Sharpe Group Newsletter clients
You can learn more by attending one of our gift planning seminars, each of which includes best practices for guiding donors in giving securities. Click here for dates and registration information for our 2017 offerings: “An Introduction to Planned Giving,” “Structuring Blended Gifts” and “Integrating Major and Planned Gifts.”
by Barlow Mann
