Tax Rewards For Charitable Trusts

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Are you thinking of giving a large gift to charity? A charitable trust can help you satisfy your philanthropic goals, preserve wealth for your heirs, and collect tax breaks, all at the same time. One of the most popular of these is the charitable remainder trust, or CRT.

A CRT requires you to give up control over the assets that you transfer into the trust and it's irrevocable. There's no going back, so make sure this charitable vehicle suits your needs before you commit to it.

Typically, you will set up a CRT with a particular charity you want to support. The charity must be approved by the IRS as a tax-exempt entity. During its term, you (or another income beneficiary or beneficiaries that you specify) receive regular payouts. The CRT may last for terms of years or for your lifetime. Finally, when the trust ends, whatever is left—the remainder—goes to the charity.

There are three main tax advantages to this setup:

1. Regular income tax: You're entitled to a current tax deduction for the projected value of the remainder that will go to the charity at the end of the trust's term. Your tax adviser and charity officials can help determine the amount of your deduction.

2. Capital gains tax: If you transfer appreciated assets into the trust you won't owe any tax on the appreciation. And if the charity sells property from the trust and turns it into cash, you don't have to worry about capital gains tax then, either. But you pay income tax on the annual payments you receive.

3. Estate tax: When the remainder eventually goes to the charity at the end of the trust, those assets are removed from your taxable estate. So there aren't any estate tax concerns with a CRT.

Let's not forget that you'll be receiving annual income from the CRT. It can be structured in one of two ways, which must be determined when you set up the trust. You can't change your mind later. Here are the two ways:

  • Fixed annuity method: The CRT pays out a fixed dollar amount each year. So even if trust earnings fall, you'll still receive the same amount of money.
  • Percentage of assets method: Another version, which is more common, is to base the annual payment on a percentage of assets. For instance, you might arrange to receive 6% of the value of the trust assets each year. Accordingly, your annual 6% payments generally will provide larger payouts over time, assuming the assets go up in value, but the amounts are based on market conditions.

In any event, the IRS requires you to receive at least 5% of the value of the trust each year and the charity's remainder value must be at least 10% to preserve the tax breaks.

This is just a brief overview of CRTs. For more information about this rewarding tax planning technique, reach out to your advisers.

This article was written by a professional financial journalist for Advisor Products and is not intended as legal or investment advice.

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