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The options for making planned gifts are many. They include bequests made through wills, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, private and community foundations, charitable annuities, and donor-advised funds, to name only a few. Each option presents advantages and disadvantages, so you will want to review those options with National Philanthropic Trust or your advisor to see which ones best fit your values and personal financial situation.

The act of giving a gift, whether we're alive or deceased, helps us continue a particular cause or interest after we're gone.

People give for a variety of reasons ranging from deeply personal to highly practical. The result also may range from a tax deduction to a sense of deep satisfaction.

Influence
The nature of how charitable giving is done changed in recent years, particularly as the front end of the baby boom generation reaches the point where they can afford to make sizeable gifts. First, many of today's donors are less inclined to simply pass on most of their wealth to their children, and are more inclined to pass on a greater portion to charitable organizations.
Second, donors, particularly the self-made affluent, want greater influence over how their gifts are spent. Instead of simply writing a check to an omnibus charity that makes the distribution decisions, they want to be actively involved in how and where their money targets those charities they deeply care about. That is why those who plan their donations often establish various foundations or charitable remainder trusts, or restrict their giving wishes for their donor advised funds.

Efficient Use of Money
Planned giving makes use of techniques that maximize the dollar amount that ultimately benefits the charity. For example, the gifting of stock avoids the donor's payment of capital gains taxes, and thus leaves more to the charity. However, sometimes it's not possible to gift stock directly to smaller charities, so the donor must employ other charitable vehicles to accomplish such a gift. It may make more sense to give during one's lifetime instead of waiting until death. On the other hand, you might be able to leave more to a charity over the long run by deciding on a five percent payout rate from a charitable remainder unitrust rather than a ten percent payout rate.

Tax Benefits
Although many individuals make donations out of a genuine desire to give, tax benefits play an important role. For one thing, the tax benefits often make it financially feasible for the donor to make a gift. Charitable remainder trusts and gift annuities, for example, provide the donor with lifetime income while ultimately benefiting the charity. Furthermore, as exemplified by the gifting of appreciated property, the tax savings benefit the charity as well.

Teach Your Children
Planned giving involving ongoing influence such as through donor advised funds or foundations can be an excellent way to involve the donor's children. They can help decide who is to receive gifts, and in some cases can continue that role after the donor's death. Our legacy of being philanthropic is one of the values each parent should pass on to their children.

Provide a Legacy
Some donors wish to leave an ongoing philanthropic legacy, something that generally cannot be done with standard checkbook giving.