There are several ways to contribute to the River Hills/Lake Wylie Lions Community Foundation.

Cash Donation

Cash gifts are an easy and convenient way to support worthy causes through the Foundation. Donors may claim a tax deduction of up to 50% of adjusted gross income (AGI) in any one year when deductions are itemized. Most taxpayers, however, do not itemize their deductions under the new tax rules. A cash contribution may not be tax deductible unless your combined deductions exceed the large standard deduction.

Ways to donate now:

With proper planning, there are several alternative donation methods that provide tax benefits:
• Gift of appreciated stock
• Direct payment to the Foundation from your IRA after age 70 ½
• Name the Foundation as a beneficiary of part or all of an IRA
• Name the Foundation and the amount of contribution in your will or trust

Gift of Appreciated Stock

Rather than giving cash as a donation, you can give appreciated stock (that you have held for at least one year) directly to the Foundation and avoid paying capital gains taxes. The donor can deduct the total current fair market value of the appreciated stock as a charitable contribution if they itemize their deductions.

Distribution From IRA After Age 70 ½ or Qualified Charitable Distribution

If your contribution to the Foundation will not provide you with an itemized tax deduction (your total itemized deductions do not exceed your standard deduction), and you are at least 70 ½ years of age, you can make a contribution from your IRA with pre-taxed funds by a transfer from the IRA custodian directly to the Foundation (limited to $100,000 per year). This Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) can be counted toward satisfying your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year. Under the new rules RMD’s have been delayed from 70 ½ to age 72, but the QCD can still be done once you reach 70 ½.

Normally an RMD requires you to take the distribution into taxable income and that can affect other things, such as phase-outs of tax credits and deductions, taxation of Social Security and AGI or future Medicare premiums. In addition to being able to pay the contribution with pre-tax funds, using a QCD also reduces your taxable income because the distribution from your IRA is not taxable.

Name the Foundation as a Beneficiary of an IRA

In addition to making QCD’s while the donor is alive, oftentimes the donor would like to make an additional contribution upon death. The most tax advantageous method is to name the Foundation as a beneficiary of part or all of an IRA and to leave family members non-IRA assets. The Foundation pays no tax upon receiving the IRA money, but a family member would be subject to taxes on the inherited IRA.

If the IRA has other beneficiaries besides the Foundation, then there are special distribution rules. It may be best to set up two IRA’s—one to go completely to the charity and the other to go to the other beneficiaries. Check with your tax advisor.

Name the Foundation and the Amount in your Will or Trust

Another method to get the best tax treatment of a contribution is to name the Foundation for a specific percentage or dollar amount in your will or trust and instruct the executor or trustee to pay it out of any asset that would maximize the tax advantages. By giving the executor/trustee this flexibility, he or she can choose assets to give to the Foundation which would be a net benefit to the surviving family members.

ALTERNATIVES:

Life Insurance

Gifts of life insurance policies may be made by naming the Foundation as the owner and beneficiary of an existing or new life insurance policy. Life insurance donors receive an immediate tax deduction approximately equal to the cash surrender value of the policy. Any premiums paid thereafter are deductible as a charitable contribution.

Real Estate

The River Hills/Lake Wylie Lions Community Foundation can accept gifts of real property (homes, land, etc.). Gifts of real property require certain procedural steps and must be agreed to in advance by the Foundation.

Please contact R.P. Boggs & Co. at 803-831-0911 for a confidential conversation on how to best make your donation to the Foundation.