What is Planned Giving?
Planned giving is charitable giving coordinated with your personal charitable financial, tax and estate goals. Good planning with tax-wise gifting strategies enables you to make significant charitable gifts during your lifetime and leave a meaningful, lasting legacy for Wheaton students.
Planned gifts may be established during a person's lifetime or through their estate and usually involve careful consideration with professional guidance. Unlike simple cash donations, planned gifts often take the form of assets such as appreciated securities, real estate, business interests, retirement accounts, life insurance, or valuable collectibles. In some cases, donors use blended giving strategies, combining current gifts with future commitments to maximize the impact of their philanthropy.
Planned giving offers numerous benefits for individuals incorporating philanthropy into their estate plans. It allows donors to make larger contributions than they may have thought possible during their lifetimes, increasing the impact of their support for a nonprofit today and in the future. In addition to making a meaningful gift, donors may receive a charitable income tax deduction, estate tax savings, and the ability to avoid capital gains taxes. Some planned gifts provide a donor with a lifetime income stream, while others deliver income to the nonprofit while preserving principal for the donor's heirs.
There are several types of planned gifts:
- Outright asset gifts
- Qualified charitable distributions (QCDs)
- Bequests via will or trust
- Beneficiary designations
- Charitable life income plans
- Charitable lead trusts
- Donor advised funds (DAFs)
- Charitable life estates
- Zero-tax gift and sales
These planned gifts can also be combined. For more details, visit our How to Give page.
Your personal financial planning and philanthropic goals will help determine which planned gifts are appropriate for you and your heirs.
Contact us to help you get started achieving your philanthropic goals at Wheaton.
