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United Way of South Hampton Roads Do you give to the United Way?
GoodSearch Toolbar Add the Horizons Hampton Roads toolbar to IE or Firefox. Once you add the Horizons Hampton Roads toolbar for IE or Firefox, each time you shop at one of the more than 1,300 participating stores, a percentage of what you spend will be donated to us at no extra cost to you! (you could even save money as the toolbar provides coupons and deals). The toolbar also has a search box and each time you search the Internet, about a penny is donated to us. No registration is required! http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/horizons-hampton-roads
Planned Giving- Life Insurance If you are among the many people who would like to make a sizable contribution to the charitable organization of your choice, there is a way to do so at a reasonable cost. Through life insurance, an individual or family can donate what may potentially become many times the value of their contribution. A life insurance policy can transform a small giver into a substantial donor. This can be accomplished in several ways. One way is to consider the purchase of a life insurance policy and donate it outright to charity. Depending on your age, a few hundred dollars a year in premiums could potentially return tens of thousands of dollars to the charity after death, provided the insurance policy is kept in force. In addition to leveraging a smaller contribution into a larger one, there may be other substantial advantages to donating life insurance. For the donor, there may be possible tax benefits. If the gift is properly structured* and deductions are itemized, the donor will generally receive a current federal income tax deduction for the charitable gift equal to the lessor of the basis in the policy or its fair market value. An outright gift of life insurance to a charity is not typically subject to gift tax and may carry estate tax benefits as well. Further, since a gift of life insurance is self-executing, it does not require rewriting a will. The proceeds of the policy will be paid directly and immediately to the charitable beneficiary and are not subject to probate. For the charity, there are also benefits beyond the value of the contribution. An outright gift allows the charity, depending on the type of policy, to receive any policy dividends, and gives access to the policy's loan and cash value. Another option is to buy a life insurance policy and name the charity the beneficiary. In this case, one would not receive an income tax deduction, since one would still maintain an interest in the policy. However, one's estate would generally be entitled to an estate tax deduction when the death benefit is paid to the charity. The charity still benefits from the leverage effect, since the death benefit has the potential of being many times greater than the amount paid in premiums. Still another option is to donate an existing policy to the charity. For example, a couple reviewing their financial situation decided that the life insurance policy they carried while their children were dependent was no longer needed now that their children were grown. They decided to donate the fully paid policy to charity. In this case, they were entitled to a charitable income tax deduction of the lower of the premiums they paid over the life of the policy or the cost of a replacement policy, if purchased today. In the case of a couple who were uninsurable, they chose to purchase life insurance for an adult child and donated that policy to charity. The younger the age when the policy is bought, the greater the potential return in death benefits. The potential return on this policy could be as much as 50 times its costs, depending upon when the insured dies. A planned gift is a gift that can be counted on...for the charity, the use of life insurance as a gift can offer significant benefits. Not only is the amount of the donation potentially multiplied, but as a planned gift, it can be included in future calculations of the value of the endowment. Planned gifts are especially valued as they assure a source of future income and encourage others to give. |
