Gifts of Personal Property
Donations of personal property can make great gifts and can establish your charitable legacy. Your treasures like valuable antiques, stamp and coin collections, works of art, cars, boats, and other personal property can make suitable charitable gifts today or after your lifetime.
The financial benefits of the gift depend on whether we can use the property in a way that is related to your designated charity’s mission. Related use property, such as a piece of artwork donated to an art museum, is deductible at the full fair market value. Any other property is deemed nonrelated use property and the deduction would be limited to the lesser of fair market value or your tax basis in the property.
How It Works
- You transfer a valuable painting, antique, or other personal property to your favorite charity.
- The charity may hold and display the property or use it in the furtherance of its mission.
- The charity may sell the property at some point in the future and use the proceeds for its mission.
- If the federal income tax charitable deduction claimed for a gift of tangible personal property exceeds $5,000, you must obtain an appraisal from a qualified appraiser and submit a special IRS form with the tax return on which the deduction is claimed.
- NOTE: Some nonprofit organizations cannot accept non-standard gifts such as personal property. Please contact the Valley Community Foundation to receive assistance in facilitating this transaction in support of your favorite charity.
Benefits
- You receive an immediate income tax deduction for the appraised value of your gift and pay no capital gains tax, so long as the gift can be used by your favorite charity to carry out its mission.
- In certain cases, you can use personal property to fund a life-income gift that provides you and/or other loved ones with an income now and benefits your favorite charity in the future.
- Without using cash, you can make a gift that is immediately beneficial to your favorite charity .
