By Kelley Caponigro
Assistant to the Chairman & CEO

There are obvious positive reasons for giving back to your community – such as helping others in need, setting a good example for your children, and supporting amazing organizations. In fact, recent studies have shown that giving can also help boost physical and mental health.1 Although most people write a check or donate using cash, we have outlined some interesting and unique ways to be socially responsible.

  1. Give stock or mutual funds that have increased in value during your ownership. You will receive a deduction equal to the full value of the securities at the time of donation, and will never have to pay capital gains taxes on the appreciation.
  1. Create a charitable remainder annuity trust or charitable remainder unitrust. Over a maximum of 20 years, you receive income of at least 5% of the original trust value (annuity trust) or the annually-recalculated actual value (unitrust) each year. Upon your death, or after 20 years, whatever assets remain in the trust are given to the charity of your choice.
  1. Create a lead trust. This is appropriate if your assets upon death would exceed the current estate tax maximum ($5.49 million per individual, $10.98 million for couples). A lead trust is paid to the charity for a 20-year term, and then the assets in the trust pass to your heir(s) estate-tax-free.
  1. Create a charitable inheritance. Just as money can be left to heirs, philanthropic behavior can also be imparted through a donor-advised fund. This leaves your successors in control of designated funds, and gives them the opportunity to decide where they want to donate the money.
  1. Donate your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD). A Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) is the amount that traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA) owners, Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plans, and other qualified plan participants, such as 401(k) plan participants, must begin taking from their retirement accounts by April 1 following the year they reach age 70 ½. If you are age 70 ½ you can choose to give up to $100,000 to charity, tax-free, from an IRA and have it count as your RMD for the year. Keep in mind that the donation can only transfer from an IRA, not from a 401(k), and that the money must go directly from the IRA to the charity to be considered a tax-free transfer.2

Whether you decide to use one of these tax-efficient, creative ways to give to others or not, knowing that you’re helping those in need and assisting organizations that are close to your heart is very rewarding. For a list of organizations that R.W. Rogé & Company, Inc. supports, visit our Community Involvement page.

Feel free to contact us at 631.218.0077 or at info@rwroge.com to schedule a complimentary consultation to discuss your financial future with one of our knowledgeable Senior Wealth Advisors.

 

1 https://www.wsj.com/articles/does-charitable-giving-lead-to-better-health-a-study-finds-a-link-1422849618

2 https://www.kiplinger.com/article/retirement/T045-C001-S003-faqs-about-giving-your-rmd-to-charity.html

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