Over the years, you’ve no doubt experienced the wide range of what clients perceive as “wealthy,” and different assumptions about what it means to be a “philanthropist.” The interplay between a client’s perception of personal wealth and charitable giving capacity presents interesting opportunities for client engagement. You may find yourself helping a client get comfortable with pursuing their charitable objectives while remaining secure in the knowledge that their financial plan is on track.

Here are a few themes to keep in mind as you work with clients who skew toward the more frugal end of spending practices, especially in situations when estate planning may be top of mind.

Stay within budget

A client’s fear of running out of money may be preventing them from investing more meaningfully in the causes they care about. When savings-minded clients express charitable intentions, you can certainly guide the conversation toward showing them that their assets, income sources, expenses, and long-term projections are in good shape and leave them plenty of room to make charitable donations. When you lay out the big picture, even your historically cautious clients may see that they truly have more flexibility than they realize.

Every gift counts

Some clients who watch every penny are concerned that giving modestly doesn’t really rise to the level of “philanthropist” and might not make a difference. CFHZ is happy to help your clients get started with impactful charitable giving at a level that makes the most sense for them, whether that’s setting up a donor-advised or other type of fund, talking about gifts beyond their lifetime, or structuring a gift from an IRA to a designated fund if your client is 70 ½ and older.

Bang for the buck

CFHZ can help your clients identify meaningful giving opportunities based on their budget and areas of interest, while also thinking about tax-advantaged giving strategies. For example, gifts of highly-appreciated stock to a fund at CFHZ can avoid capital gains taxes, thereby freeing up more resources to support favorite charities than if the client had sold stock, paid the tax, and then given the proceeds to charity.

See results

By activating philanthropy plans during their lifetimes, your clients can experience the joy of giving and witness tangible returns on their investments. We can help foster relationships between your clients and the local nonprofit organizations they support or keep them informed about particular areas of charitable interest that matter to them. This real-time feedback also allows your client and the community foundation team to adjust giving strategies to more closely align with your client’s evolving intentions. Philanthropy is meant to be fun and rewarding. CFHZ is here to help make that happen for your clients!

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.