how to start your legacy giving
A gift for today. A legacy for tomorrow.
Your generosity can sustain the creative life of our region for generations. Explore ways to give to the ArtsWave Endowment.
Join the Visionaries
Your Gift. Your Way.
Whatever your stage of life, the timing of your gift and the type of assets you give can benefit you and your loved ones while helping create a dynamic foundation for our arts and our region. Some planned gifts have an impact now, some after your lifetime. Many offer tax savings, and some even provide you with an income for life.
By planning ahead, you can both care for your loved ones and support ArtsWave’s mission to keep the arts alive and thriving.
Membership is open to those who make a current gift or planned gift commitment to the ArtsWave Endowment. Current members can be found HERE.
Gifts for the Future
Wills or Trusts
When it is time to update your estate plans, you can include a gift in your Will or Trust. You control the assets as long as you and your spouse are alive, so you don’t have to worry about unforeseen future events and expenses. It’s a good idea to review your plans at least every five years or when you have a major life event. Including ArtsWave in your Will or Trust ensures your support of the arts goes on past your lifetime for generations to come. It’s an easy, flexible way to make a lasting impact.
Retirement Plans
Naming ArtsWave as a beneficiary of your IRA, 401(k) or other qualified plan may eliminate both income and estate taxes. For many, this may be the most efficient and easiest way to give. By allocating the remainder of these taxable assets to tax-exempt charities and your non-taxable assets to your heirs, you may reduce the overall tax burden on your estate. Updating your beneficiary designation is simple; check with your advisor.
Donor Advised Funds
Life Insurance Policies
When you name ArtsWave as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy, you make a significant impact with a simple designation. If you give ArtsWave an unneeded paid-up policy, you may also receive a current income tax deduction.
Gifts of Assets
Appreciated Securities
Donating appreciated stocks, bonds or mutual funds is quick and simple and may provide you with significant tax benefits. Your gift is valued at the current market value, and you can avoid recognizing the capital gains on the gifted securities.
IRA Distributions
If you are 70½ or older, you can fund current gifts with all or part of your annual required minimum distributions (RMDs). You may be able to avoid the income tax on your distribution if you direct your custodian to send the gift directly to ArtsWave.
Real Estate
Donate residential, vacation, commercial or undeveloped real estate to save on taxes and reduce ownership responsibilities. Another option is to retain a life estate and continue to live there rent-free for your lifetime. This may create a current charitable tax deduction for the value of the future gift. To learn what a real estate gift would look like for your situation, please contact our office. *Important terms and conditions apply.
Business Interests
When it is time to sell your business, carefully planning your charitable giving well before you enter into an agreement to sell may save significantly more in taxes than gifting some of your proceeds from the sale after the fact. Talk with your advisors and estate planner early in the process to learn how to maximize your savings.
Gifts that Provide Income
Charitable Gift Annuities
There are several options for making a charitable gift that pays you income. One of the most popular (and one that may not necessarily require an attorney) is a Charitable Gift Annuity (CGA). A CGA is a simple contract between you and ArtsWave. You can fund a CGA with cash, transfer appreciated stock that isn’t paying a dividend or convert another underperforming asset like a savings account, money market fund or CD bearing little or no interest. You’ll receive payments for life and a tax deduction for the year that you make the gift. To see what a CGA would look like for your situation, please contact our office. *Important terms and conditions apply.
Charitable Remainder Trusts
A charitable remainder trust is an irrevocable trust funded with cash, securities or other assets. Key features include:
- Income Distribution: Non-charitable beneficiaries, such as the donor or family members, receive income for a specified term (up to 20 years) or for life.
- Remainder to Charity: After the income term ends, the remaining trust assets are distributed to the designated charitable organization.
- Types of CRTs:
- Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust (CRAT): Pays a fixed dollar amount annually.
- Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT): Pays a fixed percentage of the trust’s value, recalculated annually.
- Tax Benefits: Donors may receive an immediate income tax deduction based on the present value of the projected remainder interest that will go to charity. CRTs may also allow deferral of capital gains taxes on appreciated assets.
Charitable Lead Trusts
A charitable lead trust is structured in the opposite manner as a charitable remainder trust:
- Income to Charity First: The trust pays a fixed or variable income to one or more charitable organizations for a set period or the donor’s lifetime.
- Remainder to Non-Charitable Beneficiaries: After the charitable term ends, the remaining assets are distributed to heirs or other non-charitable beneficiaries.
- Types of CLTs:
- Grantor CLT: The donor retains the remainder interest and may claim an immediate income tax deduction for the present value of charitable payments, but pays income tax on trust earnings.
- Non-Grantor CLT: The trust itself pays the income taxes on the trust earnings and claims charitable deductions for distributions to charity. The remainder passes to heirs.
- Tax and Estate Planning Benefits: CLTs can reduce estate and gift taxes on the value passing to family, while supporting charitable causes during the donor’s lifetime.