Planned Giving

During life we often become passionate about certain causes, whether it be education, animal shelters, arts, human rights, or needy children. There are ways other than donating money at the grocery store checkout line to support these causes. Planned giving, which is sometimes referred to as “legacy giving” or “gift planning,” is a way for individuals to support their favorite non-profits either during life or after death. The law recognizes that a little motivation is sometimes needed for people to carry out their charitable wishes. If done properly, the benefits of planned giving go both ways: the non-profit receives the benefit of the gift and the donor receives the benefit of reduced estate taxes. There are endless possibilities of the types of gifts an individual may plan to make, including cash, retirement assets, personal property, and real estate, just to name a few.

Proper estate planning is an important, if not the most important, tool in ensuring your legacy is carried out according to your wishes. For instance, you may wish for your gift to provide a steady income stream for a number of years or you may wish for your gift to be a one-time event. Here at Chepenik Trushin LLP, we help ensure that your legacy is what you want it to be. We do this by first engaging in a discussion about your financial needs, your family, your goals, your assets, your debts, and of course, your favorite causes and charities. By doing this, we can come up with an estate plan tailored to your planned giving wishes, while also taking you and your family’s needs into account.

Chepenik Trushin LLP uses a variety of estate planning tools, such as charitable trusts and wills, in order to effectuate the planned giving wishes of our clients. If you decide you would like to make a charitable gift while also receiving tax benefits, we will advise you on how to best achieve your goal.