Gift Planning

Charitable Gift Annuities

Joyce and Burton had been married for forty-seven years. Not long before he died, they looked into converting some of their certificates of deposit into a charitable gift annuity. They met with their advisors and found out it was a wonderful idea.

Joyce: We met with our tax advisor and looked at the idea. When I saw the income we would have for the rest of both of our lives and compared to what we were receiving from our CD's, I was amazed! Plus there were tax benefits that helped us immediately. And now, I don't have to do a thing - it's all taken care of.

The development officer explained how they could use our support and what it meant to them. It was something Burton and I did together, and I'm happy; really happy we did it when we could do it together!"

A charitable gift annuity can provide tax benefits now and a lifetime income for the donor and a beneficiary if desired. Perhaps also it brought peace of mind to Burton knowing that Joyce would have the resources she needed if he was no longer there.

A deferred gift annuity is a variation on a gift annuity. A gift is made and the charitable organization promises in return to pay you an income stream that begins on a future date you specify. Since the payments do not begin for a period of time, the fund will grow without withdrawals until the payments begin. With more money in the fund once payments begin, the payments will be larger than with a comparably-sized immediate annuity.

An attractive benefit of this arrangement is that it enables a donor to make a gift now and take a charitable income tax deduction now while in a high tax bracket. Income may be deferred, for instance, until after retirement, when the rate of tax will presumably be lower. Deferred gift annuities are creative ways to delay income to pay for children's or grandchildren's college expenses, supplement your retirement income, or assist with assisted-care living arrangements that may be inevitable.

A part of each payment, as in any gift annuity, may be tax-free for a period of years. However, the precise amount of each payment will depend on the tax rules in effect when the payments start.

Charitable gift annuities are the gifts that keep on giving. Rates on charitable gift annuities are based on age and whether the contract is immediate or deferred. If you would like an illustration of this life income to address your particular situation, please click here and fill out the response form and send us the appropriate information. To look at some specific rates on current gift annuities, click here.

Now click here to meet Susan and Fred.

Please note, individual financial circumstances will vary. The information on this site does not constitute legal or tax advice. Donor stories and photographs are for purposes of illustration only. As with all tax and estate planning, please consult your attorney or estate specialist. All material is copyrighted and is for viewing purposes only. Use of this site signifies your agreement with the terms of use. The content in this Planned Giving section has been developed for the Bethesda Foundation by Future Focus. Please report any problems to webmaster. Revised: February 21, 2005 16:19.