As 2014 comes to a close, it's important to be thinking about charitable giving and year end. Many times families are stressed over the holidays and forget about taking advantage of the tax benefits associated with year end gifting.
A simple low cost solution is a Donor Advised Fund(DAF). A DAF allows the donor to donate by year end without having to make the decision of which charities to support. Making grants in the future can allow families to put more thought into their gifting rather than being put under pressure at year end. A DAF also allows for accelerated gifting so a family can get the tax benefit in the year when they have had a taxable event and then use the DAF to support future grants to their favorite charities.
Happy Gifting!