Gifts from Retirement Accounts
IRA’s and other retirement plans have recently begun to comprise a large percentage of many prospective donors’ assets. As well as helping to ensure financial security in later years, these assets can also represent an attractive source from which to make charitable gifts.
Amounts remaining in retirement accounts at your death may be subject to federal and state estate taxes, as well as to combined federal and state income taxes accruing to your heirs after distribution of the balance of your retirement accounts to them. Therefore, if you intend to give a gift to the Museum, a retirement account may be an attractive option, since it is the asset most costly when distributed to your heirs, and therefore the most cost-effective to you and your heirs as a resource for charitable giving.
You might also wish to make annual gifts using mandatory yearly distributions from retirement accounts. In doing so, you can avoid the payment of income tax on those distributions by making a gift which the Museum can use today, and which will be very welcome. In 2006, the regulations for making charitable contributions during your lifetime were modified and may be modified again, so it is best to consult your tax adviser before considering such a gift.
Members of the Museum’s Professional Advisory Committee will be pleased to discuss with you the advantages you may realize by making a gift of funds from your retirement accounts to the Museum.
Gifts of Savings Accounts and Certificates of Deposit
Another meaningful way you can make a gift to further the Museum’s mission is to make the Museum a joint owner of your savings accounts and certificates of deposit, with rights of survivorship only.
In this way, funds from these accounts will come to the Museum at your death, without delays or unnecessary expense. This is a revocable gift – you may withdraw the money at any time and close the account(s). Thus, you retain complete control of the gift. In addition, the gift amount is deductible from your taxable estate.
A professional advisor at your financial institution can give you more information about this type of gift.
Gifts of Life Insurance
Your need for life insurance changes as your circumstances change. Children become self-sufficient, investments may provide unexpected income and security, and federal law now exempts many estates from taxation. As a result, some of your life insurance coverage may no longer be needed for the reason it was originally purchased.
One of the most convenient ways for you to make a significant future gift is to name the Museum to receive all or a portion of the proceeds of a policy that is no longer necessary for its original purposes. Or, you might choose to contribute a paid-up policy during your lifetime, and realize a charitable tax deduction for an amount approximately equal to the policy’s cash surrender value.
Another way to make a gift of insurance is to purchase a new policy, naming the Museum as owner and beneficiary or co-beneficiary. Such a gift may result in a contribution much larger than its cost, possibly making this a convenient way to make a large gift over a period of time.
Members of the Museum’s Professional Advisory Committee will be pleased to discuss with you the advantages you may realize by making a gift of life insurance to the Museum.