DONAting assEtS
When making a charitable gift, you have several alternatives in addition to giving cash. Options for gifts include:
- Publicly Traded Stock - While your checkbook may be the usual means for making gifts, for many people a gift of securities makes good sense. Stocks you have owned for more than a year may be more valuable today and are subject to capital gains tax on the increased value if you sell the stock. When you give that stock to charity, however, you pay no tax on the gain and receive an income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the stock. See 3 Easy Steps below.
- Mutual Funds - You may give mutual funds to the Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia. To learn more about this giving option, please contact the Foundation.
- Real Estate - For most people, one of their greatest assets is real estate, which has appreciated rapidly in recent years. Similar to appreciated stock, when you give real estate that is more valuable today than when you acquired it, your tax deduction is the present market value and there is no tax on the gain. If you are thinking about giving real estate, please allow adequate time to complete the transfer, subject to review and acceptance by the Foundation.
- Life Insurance - If you have paid-in-full life insurance policies originally intended to protect your family while you acquired sufficient assets and raised your children and they have accomplished their purpose, making the Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia the owner and beneficiary of them may make sense. This can provide an income tax deduction to you and a great gift to support your favorite causes. Whether you decide to support specific nonprofit organizations or create a scholarship fund to help students, the Foundation will provide ongoing stewardship to ensure your wishes are fulfilled
Donating Stock in 3 Easy Steps:
The Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia currently has an account at the Newport News, Virginia, office of Merrill Lynch and receives all stock through that account for immediate liquidation. If your stock is held at another financial institution, you need to authorize your financial institution to transfer that stock to Merrill Lynch. Here's how:
Step #1
Write a short "authorization letter" addressed to the financial institution or stockbroker that is holding your stock. Your financial institution will not transfer stock without your written authorization. The letter needs to contain the following:
Step #2
Fax or mail letter to your financial institution, and confirm that they have received the letter.
Step #3
Contact the Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia at 757.327.0862 or email, to let PCF know that your stock is being transferred. The Foundation will contact Merrill Lynch to alert them to expect the transfer.
Merrill Lynch will notify the Foundation when the stock has been transferred. The Foundation will authorize the broker to sell the stock, and the proceeds from the sale minus the commission will be placed in your fund at the Foundation. You will receive a gift acknowledgement from the Foundation confirming this stock gift.
The Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia currently has an account at the Newport News, Virginia, office of Merrill Lynch and receives all stock through that account for immediate liquidation. If your stock is held at another financial institution, you need to authorize your financial institution to transfer that stock to Merrill Lynch. Here's how:
Step #1
Write a short "authorization letter" addressed to the financial institution or stockbroker that is holding your stock. Your financial institution will not transfer stock without your written authorization. The letter needs to contain the following:
- A list of the names and numbers of the specific stocks you want to transfer
- Where you want the stocks transferred to: Merrill Lynch, DTC #8862
- What account at Merrill Lynch you want credited: The Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia, Account #708-04015
- Your signature
Step #2
Fax or mail letter to your financial institution, and confirm that they have received the letter.
Step #3
Contact the Peninsula Community Foundation of Virginia at 757.327.0862 or email, to let PCF know that your stock is being transferred. The Foundation will contact Merrill Lynch to alert them to expect the transfer.
Merrill Lynch will notify the Foundation when the stock has been transferred. The Foundation will authorize the broker to sell the stock, and the proceeds from the sale minus the commission will be placed in your fund at the Foundation. You will receive a gift acknowledgement from the Foundation confirming this stock gift.
For more information about donating assets, please contact Michael Monteith, Email/757.327.0862
