Planned Giving
I want make a gift to charity during my lifetime, or plan a gift for after I’m gone.
The experienced attorneys at Gordon Thomas Honeywell can help you determine how best to make gifts to maximize the benefit for your favorite charities. A gift to charity, whether during your lifetime or from your estate, will avoid estate taxation. If made during your lifetime, it can also yield an income tax deduction.
I want to make a tax-saving gift to a loved one.
We help plan lifetime gifts to family members that also help reduce estate taxes. Large gifts are taxed, but there are gift tax exemptions. There is a lifetime gift tax exemption of $1 million (per giver). You may also give up to $13,000 per recipient per year without using any of the $1 million. Some other things to know:
Gifts need not be in cash. Tax-saving gifts of securities and real estate, and of of family partnership and LLC interests, are fairly common.
Gifts need not be outright. For instance, you may make gifts to a trust for your children rather than to your children directly. You set the terms of the trust, including how distributions beneficiaries are to be determined.
If you want to benefit grandchildren, either now or later, you might consider a “generation-skipping” gift. This might be to a trust for grandchildren, or to a trust for children that eventually goes to grandchildren, thus lessening exposure to your children’s risks of divorce and estate taxation.
If you want some return from a gift, there are ways. If done properly you may retain an income interest, or have the transfer be part gift and part sale.
The following of our newsletters address various aspects of making gifts to charities and family members:
Estate Taxes: We're Not Off The Hook
Adding Purpose and Interest to Your Life's Work: What is the Proper Role of Charitable Giving?
A Flexible Tool For Educational Savings:529 College Savings Plans
Taking Advantage of Low Interest Rates
2 1/2 Reasons to Be an Early Bird
Generation-Skipping
Grats, Gruts, and Grits
Family Partnerships
Saving Estate Taxes With a 'Personal Residence Trust'
The Pine Island Trust
The Abercrombie Trust and Life Insurance
The Abercrombie Family Trust
The experienced attorneys at Gordon Thomas Honeywell can help you determine how best to make gifts to maximize the benefit for your favorite charities. A gift to charity, whether during your lifetime or from your estate, will avoid estate taxation. If made during your lifetime, it can also yield an income tax deduction.
I want to make a tax-saving gift to a loved one.
We help plan lifetime gifts to family members that also help reduce estate taxes. Large gifts are taxed, but there are gift tax exemptions. There is a lifetime gift tax exemption of $1 million (per giver). You may also give up to $13,000 per recipient per year without using any of the $1 million. Some other things to know:
Gifts need not be in cash. Tax-saving gifts of securities and real estate, and of of family partnership and LLC interests, are fairly common.
Gifts need not be outright. For instance, you may make gifts to a trust for your children rather than to your children directly. You set the terms of the trust, including how distributions beneficiaries are to be determined.
If you want to benefit grandchildren, either now or later, you might consider a “generation-skipping” gift. This might be to a trust for grandchildren, or to a trust for children that eventually goes to grandchildren, thus lessening exposure to your children’s risks of divorce and estate taxation.
If you want some return from a gift, there are ways. If done properly you may retain an income interest, or have the transfer be part gift and part sale.
The following of our newsletters address various aspects of making gifts to charities and family members: