5 Tips for Year-End Giving

Keep these five tips in mind as you consider your year-end giving:

1. Charitable Bunching: "Bunching" means you are "front-loading" charitable donations into the current year, knowing that you plan to make these donations anyway in future years. By structuring a large year-end gift to your donor-advised fund at the community foundation, you could surpass the standard deduction threshold to further reduce your taxes in 2023.
2. QCDs from IRAs: If you are over the age of 70 1/2, you can direct up to $100,000 from your IRA, satisfying your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD), to certain charities, including a field of interest, designated, unrestricted, or scholarship fund at the community foundation. That means you avoid income tax on the fund distributed to charity.
3. Stocks vs. Cash: Gifts of long-term appreciated stock to your donor-advised or other type of fund at the community foundation is one of the most tax-savvy ways to support your favorite charitable causes because capital gains tax can be avoided.
4. Standard Deductions: The 2023 standard deduction for single taxpayers ($13,850) and married filing jointly ($27,700) is up nearly 7% over 2022. Keep your household's standard deduction amount in mind when you tally your deductible expenditures, including your gifts to charities.
5. Year-End Deadlines: Contributions must be made online, postmarked, or hand-delivered no later than December 31 to be legally completed during this tax year. All checks must be made out to the Community Foundation with the fund of choice on the memo line. Please note that the Community Foundation will not be open for hand-delivered gifts on December 30 to January 2.

This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice.