PLANNED GIFT OPTIONS
Making a planned gift is a great way to show support and appreciation for the Temple
Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation and its mission while fulfilling personal, financial,
estate-planning and philanthropic goals. With smart planning, donors may actually
increase the size of their estates and/or reduce the tax burden on their heirs. More
importantly, they will know they have made a meaningful contribution to the future of the
Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation.
What is Planned Giving?
Planned Giving refers to a variety of ways you can make gifts to The Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation from accumulated assets. These gifts, with their tax and estate
consequences, will require some planning.
Planned Giving is a means by which anyone concerned with the wise use of his/her
personal resources makes a deliberate choice about how to use those assets, no matter
how large or small (it’s not just for the wealthy). A Planned Gift is the gift that can keep
giving forever. Unless you specify otherwise, it is invested in one of Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation’s endowment funds, where the principal grows while providing
interest to help underwrite the organization’s efforts – year after year.
Planned Giving Methods
We spend a lifetime accumulating assets to benefit our families and save for our golden
years. Along the way, we build a portfolio of houses, life insurance, stocks, bonds, mutual
funds, 401ks, retirement plans, and lots of possessions. Someday, these assets will go to
others. Below are creative ways of planning a legacy – procedures and methods that can
have tremendous benefits for an individual, a family, as well as the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation.
A Bequest in a Will
The easiest and most common way of making a Planned Gift is through your will. Yet
over 50 percent of Americans do not have this key document
If you die without a will, the state will divide your assets among your spouse and children
(regardless of age); appoint an administrator that may cost your estate large fees; and
appoint guardians for your minor dependents. The federal and state governments make
no charitable contributions; they keep as much of your estate as they legally can, and
ensure that your estate pays them as much estate tax as possible
By making a will, you appoint your own administrator; you name the guardian of your
minor dependents; you control applicable taxes; you can create a family or charitable trust to minimized estate taxes; and you can share your resources with your family or the
Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation or other institutions as you choose.
A bequest in a will can take the form of a set amount of money, a percentage of an
estate, a specific asset such as your home, a trust, or the naming of the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation as a contingent beneficiary.
Sample language for including the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation in your
will might be “I give, devise and bequeath (state amount, asset or percentage of the
estate) to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation to be designated to the ABC
Endowment Fund.”
Gifts of Life Insurance and Retirement Accounts
A gift of life insurance is easy and a popular way to conveniently make a charitable gift to
the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation. You can make the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation the owner of any paid-up whole life policy no longer needed,
and the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation will add its cash surrender value to
its endowment. You get the cash value as a charitable donation deduction.
You can also buy a new insurance policy, or take an existing policy, and make the Temple
Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation the beneficiary and owner. The current value of
the policy is tax deductible, as are future premium payments. Finally, you can make the
Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation a contingent beneficiary of an existing
policy, or name the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation to receive the proceeds
of the policy if the designated beneficiaries predecease the insured.
The remainder value of many retirement accounts can be heavily taxed when left to
family, but pass tax-free to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation upon your
death. Also, Simple IRA annual Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) that pass
directly to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation for its Endowment do not add
to your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), reducing your income tax.
Gifts of Real Estate, Appreciated Property and Tangible Personal Property
Real estate or securities can be the source of your gift to the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation. Using a Charitable Life Estate Contract, you can deed your
home, vacation home, farm or condominium to the organization and retain the right to
live on the property and/or receive income from the property for as long as you live. You
receive an income tax deduction when the property is deeded to the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation and often for several years in the future, and normally avoid any capital gains taxes when making the transfer. Your inheritance and death taxes may be
reduced at the time of your death.
Gifts of appreciated real estate and securities allow you to avoid capital gains taxes. It
is important to transfer the stock or real estate to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase
Foundation prior to selling it. However, if the securities or real estate have declined in
value from their purchase basis, you should sell the asset before making the gift, thus
establishing a capital loss and a potential tax deduction for you.
Gifts of tangible personal property, such as jewelry, coins, art and automobiles, may
also be given to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation. You are responsible
for setting an appraised value on the gift, and any gift over $5,000 must be individually
appraised.
Life Income Gifts
Life income gifts provide you or your designated beneficiary income for life in exchange
for a gift.
The three most common types of life income gifts are a Charitable Gift Annuity, a
Charitable Remainder Trust and Charitable Lead Trust, and a Pooled Income Fund.
With a Charitable Gift Annuity, gifts are pooled with other gifts and invested in a
professionally managed portfolio on behalf of the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase
Foundation. The minimum gift is $5,000. The annuity guarantees you alone, or you and
a designated beneficiary, a fixed amount of income for life, depending on your age at
the time of your gift. A portion of the original gift is tax deductible, as is a portion of the
regular income.
A Charitable Remainder Trust is available to donors using assets of $100,000 or more,
and can be funded with various types of assets, including real estate. It provides income
for life, an income tax deduction, relief from capital gain taxes (if funded through
appreciated property), and a possible reduction in estate taxes. The income fluctuates
based on the performance of the investment portfolio.
A Charitable Lead Trust enables you to transfer assets to a trust that pays its income to
the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation organization for a set period of time.
At the end of the term (usually 10 to 20 years), the remainder of the trust reverts to the
donor or, in most cases, the heirs. As the donor, you receive favorable tax treatment and
may pass the trust assets to heirs at significantly reduced federal estate or gift tax.
We invite you to talk with your financial advisor and consider including the Temple
Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation in your estate plan. Through planned giving, you
can make a gift much larger than you ever thought possible and the tax benefits can be
very advantageous to you while you ensure a bright future for the Temple Gwathmey
Steeplechase Foundation.
If you have included a gift to the Foundation in your will, need language to do
so, would like an obligation-free complimentary life-income plan proposal or
seek more information about gift planning, contact Executive Director, Alissa
Norman, at Anorman@tgsteeplechasefoundation.org or (484) 897-0096.