Retired and semi-retired individuals often turn their attention to gifts of time, talent, and treasure that will benefit the community they love. Here are five ways CFHZ can assist retirees with their unique philanthropic goals.

Promoting Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs)

Donors who are at least age 70½ can direct a tax-free distribution (up to $100,000 per spouse in 2023) from an IRA to a qualified charity such as a field-of-interest or unrestricted fund at CFHZ. If you must take Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), the Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) is especially beneficial. This is because the distribution to charity counts toward the RMDs and therefore never lands in your taxable income.

Offering ways to itemize deductions

Many retired individuals apply the standard deduction on their income tax returns because they don’t have many expenses that qualify for itemization, such as business expenses and mortgage interest deductions. However, it might be worth speaking to your financial or tax advisor about whether itemizing deductions in certain years could be beneficial. Through a donor-advised fund at CFHZ, you may be able to concentrate charitable contributions into particular tax years and benefit from the deductions above and beyond the standard deduction. This is called “bunching.” A donor-advised fund can help you take advantage of itemizing tax deductions while still allowing you to provide steady support to nonprofits in years that follow the itemizing year.

Engaging children and grandchildren in philanthropy

CFHZ is happy to help donors fulfill their desire to stay connected with their children and grandchildren, including formalizing roles for these family members as advisors and successor advisors of a donor-advised fund. This is often an excellent and easy way to structure philanthropic priorities for generational wealth as well as create positive, authentic communication channels across an extended family.

Helping you create a legacy

Retirees are likely to be thinking about their estate plans and the legacy they would like to create for their family and community. CFHZ offers charitable estate planning services to assist donors with achieving their charitable goals during their lifetime and beyond. Combining overall financial and estate planning with charitable planned gifts can help you impact our community while minimizing your tax burden, providing for your family, honoring loved ones, preserving your family name, and reinforcing your personal values. We will work with you to create a highly customized plan for the charitable portion of your estate – making things simple for your estate financial representative and ensuring your wishes are met beyond your lifetime.

Making connections

Retirees often feel a greater connection to their community and favorite organizations. Whether it’s because their income and corresponding giving capacity are more predictable, or because they have more time, getting involved with a nonprofit by volunteering can help individuals remain active and engaged. Our team stays connected with the many nonprofit organizations in our region, and we are happy to serve as a sounding board for individuals who want to get involved with a cause close to their heart.

We always encourage donors to first seek the advice of their legal, financial, or tax advisors when considering a gift of non-cash assets. While our team does not offer tax advice, we stay knowledgeable on charitable giving strategies. Please contact Colleen Hill, Vice President of Development & Donor Services, at chill@cfhz.org or by calling 616–994–8853 if we can help you serve your clients.