It all starts with one question
Six out of ten U.S. households give to charity – and your clients are among them. Have you talked about giving as part of your client’s financial or estate plan? Such opportunities often arise when clients make major business, personal and financial decisions. You can help by listening for these opportunities, explaining options and suggesting solutions. And you can count on us to support you, when you do.
Conversation Starters
Professional advisors often ask us for our advice on how to begin a discussion about charitable planning with their clients. A conversation that explores charity can lead to deeper, more meaningful planning and a stronger client relationship.
To get the idea brewing in your client’s mind, we suggest asking the following questions to each of your clients:
- Are there charitable organizations that you support on an annual basis?
- Would you like to include any of these organizations in your financial or estate plan?
- If there were a way to shift dollars from taxes to charity, would you be interested in exploring the options?
If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” then you have opened to door to a deeper conversation.
Helpful In-Depth Questions (fake – I have a sample I could show you)
Typical Scenarios
Here are some common situations where opening the door to charitable giving can make some sense:
Your client is selling the farm or family business
The planning goal: offset capital gains taxes
The charitable conversation: Reduce capital gains exposure by making tax-deductible contributions to a Fund at Napa Valley Community Foundation. Planning tip: real property and privately-held securities are valued at cost-basis if contributed to a private family foundation, and Fair Market Value if contributed to a Fund at NVCF. Your client can offset capital gains tax more effectively by working with us.
Your client has significant retirement plan assets
The planning goal: enjoy a comfortable level of income and transfer assets to heirs
The charitable conversation: Gift retirement plan assets to a Legacy Fund at NVCF, and transfer non-retirement plan assets to heirs instead. After taxes, non-spousal heirs will typically receive 63 to 76 cents for each dollar transferred to them from a retirement plan, and far less if your client has a taxable estate. One dollar transferred to a Legacy Fund at NVCF nets one dollar for your client’s favorite causes.
SCROLL for MORE
DONOR QUOTE or OTHER ADVISOR QUOUTE
Dave's Quote is below
Your client is bunching deductions, or in a hurry
The planning goal: offset a spike in taxable income, and get it all done by the end of the tax year
The charitable conversation: reduce tax liability by starting a Fund at NVCF, then make grants from the Fund over time. This separates the tax event, which needs to happen quickly, from supporting worthwhile nonprofits, which can happen at a more thoughtful pace with guidance and support from our staff.
Your client wants to involve the next generation in giving
The planning goal: to transfer family values to children or grandchildren.
The charitable conversation: create a Fund at Napa Valley Community Foundation and share decision-making over charitable distributions with the next generation(s). We can help create a philanthropy plan that weaves family members together. And we expertly manage charitable assets to maximize tax benefits, reduce cost and remove administrative headaches.