Congress passes permanent charitable giving incentives

Tax filing time is right around the corner. And Congress has passed the PATH Act making two laws that had expired on January 1, 2015, permanent thereby giving you greater incentives to donate to charities this year and beyond:

·       You are now allowed to donate real property for conservation purposes

·       If you are older than 70½, you many now make charitable donations from your IRA directly to a qualified charity, without being taxed on the distribution amount up to $100,000

Interested in more ideas to reduce your income and estate tax bills while helping your favorite charity? Then download a copy of A Donor’s Guide to Planned Giving. 

Will you give more in 2016?

Charitable giving is expected to increase by 4.1 percent this year and 4.3 percent next year, according to researchers at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Those increases would exceed the five-, 10- and 25-year annualized average rates of growth in total giving, and would fall just below the 40-year average growth rate of 4.4 percent.

The main forces driving this growth are: the projected growth in the U.S. stock market, the rise in personal income, the change in demographics, and the increase in net worths for households and nonprofits.   

To find out who is looking to use their wealth to create a social impact and the tools nonprofits are using to engage these donors, click here for a comprehensive overview and a link to the full report. 

And for ideas on how to give to your favorite charities while saving a bundle on income and estate taxes, download a copy of A Donor’s Guide to Planned Giving for just $8.95.