Planned Giving

A popular and enduring planned gift is a simple charitable bequest, which is a gift made through your will. Bequests are popular because they give you the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy. When you make a charitable bequest, you retain full use of your property during life, so there is no disruption of your lifestyle and no immediate out-of-pocket cost.

To make a bequest, simply designate that part of your estate passes directly to us. Since a charitable bequest can take many forms, you have remarkable flexibility in how you make this designation. For example, you can leave:

• a specific asset
• a specific sum of money
• a percentage of your estate
• what remains of your estate after you have provided for all of your other beneficiaries.

You can also state exactly how you want your bequest to be put to use. Or, you can provide an unrestricted bequest that can be used whenever and wherever it’s needed most. Most importantly, you can change your bequest whenever you choose—you remain in complete control of the planning process.

We have partnered with FreeWill to help you create your legal will online at no cost, and establish your legacy gift for free. Get started here.

Have you already created a gift in your will or trust to Phi Kappa Psi? Fill out this form to let us know!

Gifts of long-term, highly appreciated securities are the most common type of outright property gift. Donors typically give individual stocks, but bonds or mutual fund shares are also attractive gift options. Outright gifts of securities can be made quickly, and these gifts let you do more with your gift because of the very attractive tax benefits.

A charitable gift of appreciated securities held long term is not considered a sale and does not generate any capital gains tax, no matter the amount of the gain. To encourage gifts of appreciated property, Congress provides a valuable tax incentive—a charitable income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the securities (including the gain) for itemizers.

For example, if you give shares of stock worth $10,000, you can deduct the full amount on your income tax return (subject to certain income limitations) even if you bought the stock for $1,000. In addition, when we sell the stock, Phi Kappa Psi keeps every penny of the proceeds since we are a tax-exempt organization.

Note: Be sure to transfer the stock directly to us. Do not sell the stock, or you will lose this important tax advantage.

Interested in setting up a stock transfer today? The simplest and fastest way to donate your stock is through our online tool. Simply answer a few questions, print your forms, and follow the instructions to send them to your brokerage. Get started today.

For more information, find details regarding the Foundation’s firm and setting up a transfer can be found under “Stocks & Securities” here.

Make a Qualified Charitable Distribution from Your IRA

A qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from an IRA is a simple, tax-savvy way for IRA owners age 70½ and over to support our work.

The simplest way to give from your IRA is through our online tool, which takes just a few minutes to use and auto-fills your paperwork for you. Simply answer a few questions, print your forms, and follow the instructions to send them to your IRA custodian. Get started today.

If you would like to complete the process offline, simply instruct your IRA custodian to make a distribution directly to our organization.

• Although there is no tax deduction, the distribution is excluded from your income for federal tax purposes—no tax is due!
• Up to $105,000 of your gift (annual aggregate limit for 2024) qualifies for this favorable tax treatment.
• Your gift makes an immediate impact.
• A qualified charitable distribution from an IRA counts toward your required minimum distribution (RMD) if one is due.

A new QCD option to consider
IRA owners age 70½ or older may also choose to make a one-time, tax-free IRA distribution of up to $53,000 (in 2024) to create a new charitable gift annuity (CGA) or a charitable remainder trust (CRT). The distribution counts toward your RMD if one is due. This is an option worth considering if you want to make a gift from your IRA and establish a new income stream.

Note that spouses may contribute up to $53,000 each (in 2024) from their individual IRAs into a single CRT or a joint-life CGA. Payments may only go to you and/or your spouse.

Please contact us to learn more about planning and completing a qualified charitable distribution, or go to our online required minimum distribution (RMD) calculator.

Many donors use qualified retirement account assets in their charitable gift planning. This is an easy gift to make and has distinct planning advantages.

Retirement account assets left to loved ones may be subject to higher taxation than other types of assets. By using retirement account assets to make a gift (and selecting alternative assets to leave to family members), you may be able to reduce taxes that otherwise would be imposed on those assets and leave more to your intended beneficiaries.

One method of making a gift with a retained right to income is a charitable remainder trust. Let’s look at some of the benefits a charitable remainder trust can provide:

• An income for you and/or your beneficiaries for life or a period of up to 20 years
• An immediate and substantial income tax charitable deduction (subject to certain income limitations) for itemizers
• Potential avoidance of current capital gains taxes when the trust is funded with long-term appreciated property
• Reduction of your assets to reduce or avoid estate taxes
• Substantial reduction of probate costs, taxes, and other estate transfer expenses

An Immediate Charitable Deduction

A gift to a charitable remainder trust qualifies for an immediate income tax deduction, even though income is to be paid to the donor (and/or other beneficiaries) for life. The exact amount of the charitable deduction depends on the:

• value of the property transferred to the trust
• amount of income benefits that are payable each year to individual beneficiaries
• approximate length of time the income benefits will be paid
• prevailing interest rates at the time the gift is made

Despite the tax and financial benefits of a charitable remainder trust, you should consider this kind of arrangement only if you and your advisors determine it is compatible with your overall estate, tax, and financial plan.

A donor who gives us appreciated real estate can completely avoid capital gains tax on the appreciation and qualify for a charitable income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the property.

Gift of a Remainder Interest in a Personal Residence or Farm

A special provision of the tax law allows an immediate income tax charitable deduction for a gift of a remainder interest in your home or farm. With a remainder interest gift, you retain an absolute right to occupy the home or farm for your life (or the life of a family member). The property passes to us only after termination of the life estate(s).

The charitable deduction allowable for this future gift is the present value of our right to receive the property at some later date. The age of the life tenant is the primary factor in determining the present value of our deferred interest and the charitable deduction. The gift is deductible in the year of the transfer (subject to certain income limitations and assuming the donor itemizes).

Gift of a Fractional Interest in Real Estate

Federal tax laws let donors take a charitable deduction for gifts of fractional interests in real estate. This type of gift can be especially rewarding when you own a vacation home that you use only part of the year.

Example: Mary and Jim own a $300,000 vacation home that they use for only two months of the year. They can give our institution a 50% interest in the property, qualify for a tax deduction for the value of our interest in the property, and still have a right to use and occupy the property for up to half the year.

Life insurance is also an excellent tool for accomplishing philanthropic goals while realizing other important financial objectives. Life insurance may even allow you to make charitable gifts you would never have dreamed possible.

Making a gift of life insurance is quite simple. If you are the insured policy owner, you simply transfer physical possession of your paid-up policy to us and file an absolute assignment or transfer of ownership form with your insurance company. Your company will then send a letter to us showing that we are the sole owner of the policy.

Example: Emmett owns a $100,000 life insurance policy with a cash value of $40,000. No further premiums are due, and he no longer needs the coverage. He can ensure that we will receive $100,000 at his death by making us the beneficiary, or he can transfer ownership of the policy to us now. When he transfers ownership, Emmett receives an itemized charitable deduction equal to the lesser of his cost basis or the policy’s replacement value.