Ways to Give

A cash gift is the simplest way to establish a fund or give to an existing fund. Cash gifts are fully deductible up to 50 percent of the donor's adjusted gross income in any one year. Deduction amounts exceeding this limit may be carried forward for up to five additional years.

Gifts of appreciated securities (stock, bonds and most mutual funds) also provide tax advantages. If you have held the securities for one year or longer, the current value generally is tax-deductible up to 30 percent of your adjusted gross income, with a five-year carryover if the gift amount is more than the 30 percent limit.

We can accept a gift of a house or other personal residence, farm, commercial building and income producing or non-income producing land. A gift of real estate you have owned for more than a year entitles you to a tax deduction for the fair market value of the property, and you avoid paying capital gains taxes.

When you name the Community Foundation as the owner and beneficiary of an existing or new life insurance policy, you receive an immediate tax deduction that usually approximates the cash surrender value of the policy. All premium payments made thereafter are deductible as a charitable contribution.

A charitable bequest to the Kalamazoo Community Foundation enables you to retain control over your assets during your lifetime and support the community you love later. A charitable bequest can be a specific dollar amount, a percentage of your estate, or what remains after other bequests are made.

Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) or other qualified retirement plans are often one of the best types of assets to leave to charity because they are taxed so heavily when left to heirs. When you leave retirement plan assets to a nonprofit––such as the Community Foundation––100 percent of the gift will be available to support your charitable interests.

Charitable Gift Annuity
When you establish a Charitable Gift Annuity you can receive guaranteed income for life, benefit from an immediate income tax deduction, and leave a legacy that will support the causes that are important to you forever. Payments are based on your age: the older you are the greater the annuity payment. If you choose, you can receive an income tax deduction now and defer receiving the annuity payments until a future date of your choosing. After receiving annuity payments for life, the remainder interest may be used to establish a named charitable fund, or be added to an existing fund. The tax advantages of both a current and deferred annuity are two-fold. First, you receive an immediate charitable income tax deduction when you create your annuity. Second, a portion of the payments you receive may be treated either as tax-free return of principal or long-term capital gains. These tax advantages increase the effective value of the annuity payments.

Charitable Remainder Trust
A charitable remainder trust offers you a great deal of flexibility. Payments may be made to you or another beneficiary for life, or a specified number of years. The income beneficiaries annually receive an amount equal to a fixed percentage of the trust's fair market value, or a fixed dollar amount. A charitable remainder trust may be set up during your lifetime or through your will. The eventual distribution to the Community Foundation will only take effect upon the death of the trust's income beneficiaries, or at the end of the specified number of years. At this time, the remainder of the trust transfers to the Community Foundation to support your charitable giving goals.

View a Comparison Chart of These Two Options >

A Charitable Lead Trust enables you to make significant charitable gifts now while transferring substantial assets to beneficiaries later. A trust is set up from which the Community Foundation receives annual payments for your life or for a specific number of years. These funds may be used to support nonprofits you choose or be added to an Advised Fund. When the trust terminates, the principal is returned to you or distributed to others you designate. The trust assets pass to the recipients at reduced tax cost—sometimes even tax-free.

You can turn your property's value into community good by making a gift of real estate to the Kalamazoo Community Foundation. You can continue to live in and fully enjoy your home (or vacation property) as long as you like while giving the future ownership of it to the Community Foundation. This is called a Retained Life Estate. The gift of the "remainder interest" is a charitable contribution in the year the gift arrangement is made, which may result in a substantial income tax charitable deduction. When the life tenancy terminates, the Community Foundation becomes the owner of the property. The proceeds of the property's sale may be used to establish a fund at the Community Foundation, or add to an existing fund.