An example of this type of gift is when a donor writes a check directly to an organization. This benefits the donor because of the simplicity of the gift and the entire gift is tax deductible. (click here to make an online donation). If you would like to mail in your donation download and print the form here.

The transfer of a stock or bond that has gained value since purchase is an example of an outright gift of appreciated property. If the donor gave the WCHS stocks worth $1,000 that had been purchased for $200, the donor would receive a tax deduction for the current value of the donated stock.

The donor would set up a trust and transfer assets to the trust in this case. If the donor transfers $10,000 into a trust, the donor can collect five percent per year as an income stream for the life of the donor. Upon the death of the donor, WCHS would be the benefactor of the trust as well as any other charities or family members designated by the donor. The benefits of this charitable giving method are that the donor receives an income stream for the remainder of their life and the donor avoids capital gains taxes on the assets of the trust. Another option for a Charitable Remainder Trust is for the donor to simply write a provision into the will, directing that a certain amount of money goes into a trust for WCHS upon his or her death. The trust will then make payments to the surviving spouse, if any, until the spouse passes away. At that point, the WCHS will receive the remainder of the trust.

This is the easiest way to make a deferred gift to us. All a donor does is include the Wood County Humane Society into his or her will for a certain percentage of the donor's assets or the total proceeds from the estate to be donated. The benefit of this method of planned giving is that the donor can take an estate tax deduction for the full amount of the bequest.

If a donor sold land valued at $200,000 to the WCHS for $10,000 it would be considered a bargain sale. The difference between the purchase price and the value of the land ($190,000) would be tax deductible for the donor.

There are two options to consider when thinking about life insurance as a charitable gift. One method is to make the WCHS the benefactor of the policy. Upon the donor's passing, the WCHS will receive the designated settlement from the policy. The advantages to this method include the ability to change benefactors at any time and the availability to the donor of the cash value of the policy. The other option is to make the WCHS the owner of the policy. The donor must make payments to the WCHS annually to cover the policy premium. The donor in turn will receive a credit on their income taxes equal to the lesser of the policy's value of the net premium paid.