Year-end is closing in, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the advice floating around about what to do before Dec. 31. But the NCCF team can make it easy for you! Here are three reminders that are among the most important for year-end charitable giving.  

Give stock. Evaluate your highly appreciated stock positions and use these assets to give to your fund at NCCF, coordinating with your tax and financial advisors to optimize your 2024 goals. Appreciated assets generally are far better charitable gifts than cash because you not only can take advantage of the income tax deduction, but also you can avoid capital gains tax.  

“Bundling” charitable gifts is still an effective tax strategy. Consider deploying a “bundling” or “bunching” technique by making a gift to your donor advised fund this calendar year that allows you to leverage itemized deductions, and use your donor advised fund over the next few years to support your favorite charities. Charitable contributions can only reduce your tax bill if you itemize your taxes, which generally happens when the combined total of your anticipated deductions – including charitable gifts – add up to more than the standard deduction. The standard deduction in 2024 for a single filer is $14,600, for married filing jointly is $29,200, and for head of household is $21,900. If your anticipated deductions are less than the standard deduction, you’ll likely choose to take the standard deduction and will not itemize. 

Explore a QCD. Donors aged 70½ or older can transfer up to $105,000 annually from their IRA accounts to a qualified public charity without having to recognize the distribution as income and to satisfy RMDs (Qualified Charitable Distribution).  The Qualified Charitable Distribution may not be given to a donor advised fund, but may be made to other NCCF funds such as your local NCCF affiliate foundation’s grantmaking fund, our Disaster Relief Fund or scholarship funds. Contact the NCCF team right away to learn why the QCD is so powerful.   

November is the time to set things in motion so you don’t get caught up in the year-end rush. Reach out to our team today! We are here for you! 

This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice.