Consider Mount Vernon for the Gift of Your Lifetime

Our professional development staff can help you plan the right charitable gift given your assets, income, and other estate or financial obligations. With a well planned charitable gift arrangement, you may be able to become a greater philanthropist than you realize.

Would you consider making a gift to Mount Vernon if we can show you how and knowing that these same ideas can be applied to other charities you also care about?

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OUTRIGHT GIFTS THAT IMMEDIATELY FUND OUR PROGRAMS

• Donations of cash, securities and other assets.  Cash and stock gifts go to work right away supporting our efforts and can be fully deducted from your taxable income.  Gifts of other assets (real estate, artwork, jewelry, etc.) also finance our operations; these gifts may require qualified appraisals.  Donating appreciated assets eliminates capital gains taxes, so we suggest using assets with the lowest cost basis.   If you’re planning to sell real estate, you could consider including Mount Vernon as a minority owner on the deed prior to sale so that a percentage of sale proceeds would come directly to Mount Vernon upon sale—reducing your capital gains taxes and entitling you to an income tax deduction.

• Foundation grants.  Contributions from foundations of all types provide invaluable operating funds.  Please let us know whether your foundation is interested in preservation, history, beautification and/or education and would welcome a proposal. 

PLANNED GIFTS THAT PROVIDE FUNDS NOW—AND IN THE FUTURE

Certain assets you possess may make you a good candidate for a charitable gift plan, which can be designed to further your own personal planning goals and support charities that you care about, such as Mount Vernon.

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What are some of the most commonly used assets for funding planned gifts? 

·      Appreciated stock or real estate.  If these assets produce a low yield and are highly appreciated, some or all could be given to Mount Vernon as an outright gift or to fund a charitable gift arrangement—a potential savings of both capital gains and income taxes.

·      Qualified retirement plan assets.   These are among the most heavily taxed assets to try to pass on to children, so other assets are best to leave to family.  Retirement plan assets are the optimal assets to direct, after lifetime uses, to charity.  These assets can be used first to support both the plan owner and spouse, before some or all is designated by percentage to Mount Vernon and other charities you care about—a simple, revocable choice made on a change of beneficiary form.

·      Real estate.  Part or all of a real estate asset can be deeded directly to Mount Vernon or used to fund a charitable remainder trust, with favorable tax and income advantages.  Personal residences, vacation homes, and farms can also be deeded to Mount Vernon while first retaining a life estate (the lifetime right to live in the property) for the donor and spouse.   Please always contact Mount Vernon or any other charity first before completing any gift of real estate, due to its “cost of carry.”

·      Life insurance.  Ownership of a life insurance policy that an individual no longer needs can be given to Mount Vernon at any time during life.  Mount Vernon also can be included as a beneficiary of an insurance policy—again, a revocable choice.

·      Certificates of deposit or savings bonds.  These often are no longer paying income to an individual, who can redeem or cash them in and, then, make an outright gift made of all or some of the proceeds to Mount Vernon.  The proceeds also can be used by older individuals to fund charitable gift annuities, which provide income to one’s self and/or another, in addition to supporting Mount Vernon

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·      Closely held businesses.  Such assets can sometimes be used to fund a charitable remainder trust or even a charitable lead trust, with a charitable lead trust returning the asset at some future time to the family, usually children or even grandchildren, with favorable estate and gift tax consequences.

These are but a few of the assets that can be most advantageous for gifting into a charitable plan, providing many advantages to the donor and others—as well as philanthropy too.

We invite your questions about how any of these or other assets could be used to benefit Mount Vernon and other charities you care about.

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What are the most attractive types of gift planning options?

•  Bequests. A bequest is the most common gift planning type in America today, but it requires “magic language” that must be included in a properly executed will or trust.  Our suggested language for an unrestricted bequest to  Mount Vernon is available at mountvernon.org/bequestlanguage.  If you wish to restrict how Mount Vernon uses your gift, that language may also be included; please contact us for an amendable gift agreement that documents your intent.

•  Beneficiary designations on qualified retirement plans or life insurance policies.  This is a revocable choice, a designation by percentage or all, that is made on a beneficiary designation form that a donor completes, dates and returns to the company holding the asset.   Retirement plan assets often result in multiple taxes after the death of the plan owner and spouse, so they are best suited for charitable giving—with other assets given to family.  Life insurance can also be given in percentage or wholly on a beneficiary designation form, but giving it is less advantageous to a donor than giving from a retirement plan, with its multiple future tax liabilities.

• Charitable gift annuities.  These appealing plans, known as CGAs, have been around since about the 1840s and provide a higher-than-market rate of return for one or two older individuals.  They are simple contracts and can be funded by cash or other assets.   Many donors like these uncomplicated plans so much that they fund one each year.  Only charities can offer these plans.

• Retained life estates.  An older couple or single individual can deed a personal residence, vacation home, or farm to Mount Vernon or any charity, retaining on the face of that deed the donor’s—and even spouse’s or other owner’s—rights to continue to live in the gifted property for their lifetimes.  This gift type results in a current income tax deduction and simplified probate, while not changing lifestyle.  Probate is the sometimes cumbersome, lengthy and expensive legal process of settling the estate of a deceased person, specifically resolving all claims and distributing the decedent's property.

• Charitable remainder trusts.  These statutory trusts have been around since 1969 and offer either fixed (a charitable remainder annuity trust) or variable (a charitable remainder unitrust) income to a donor, spouse or others like siblings, partners, children or grandchildren.  The variable income trust, a unitrust, follows market activity with an annual revaluation feature and can, with a good trustee, be a hedge against inflation.  More than one charity can share the trust remainder after the life income beneficiaries’ interests end. 

• Charitable lead trusts.  The income generated during a charitable lead trust term is paid to one or more donor-designated charities, so that the donor can witness how the charities use those dollars.  When the trust term ends, the assets are returned to the donor’s family, often children or even grandchildren.  These taxable trusts are created to support charities and to stretch out the value of federal gift and estate tax exemptions—not for income tax purposes.

You can support Mount Vernon programs and its endowment with one or more of these giving options that have proven both popular and effective in having a deep impact on Mount Vernon’s timeless mission that is important to every American.

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Unrestricted contributions are preferred because Mount Vernon can use those funds today for its programs. We welcome a conversation if you would like to fund a specific program, as we have many at Mount Vernon that we wish to finance today—and tomorrow, when posterity will visit and revere George Washington’s home and legacy.

In addition, Mount Vernon may benefit from your gift beyond the level of your donation, because we sometimes have matching gift opportunities that increase the value of contributions we receive. Check with your employer to see if it offers such matching contributions.

Gifts may be made in memory of any deceased person(s) or in honor or tribute of any living person(s)—a wonderful gift and meaningful commemoration of a special loved one.

Only gifts in the best interest of the donor will be accepted. Consult your advisor while making any significant giving decisions; we are pleased to work with you and your advisor to integrate a charitable plan within your overall planning.

During the planning process, we want to help maximize the attainment of your personal goals, like supporting loved ones and minimizing taxes, while also providing for Mount Vernon and your other charities.

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Since its inception in 1853, the Mount Vernon’s Ladies’ Association—protector of Washington’s legacy for more than 150 years, pioneer in historic preservation, and steward of the estate and gardens—has neither requested nor accepted government funding. We depend on the special gifts of patriotic Americans for our programs and endowment.

Your legacy will support Mount Vernon’s timeless mission, which is important to every American. Your planned gift entitles you to become part of our Ann Pamela Cunningham Society; more information is at mountvernon.org/legacy.

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Planned Giving Calculator

Our web-based calculator can provide you with charitable deduction calculations for a broad range of planned gifts. You may explore a variety of gift options privately, by entering your basic information, customizing your figures, and changing your options any time. This interactive planned giving calculator provides you with an additional tool to evaluate your various planned gift options.

Note: Mount Vernon does not provide tax or legal advice. Gift calculations are provided for illustrative purposes only. The actual values may vary based on the timing of your gift. Please consult your attorney or tax advisor prior to entering into any gift planning arrangement.

Mount Vernon Gift Planning, P.O. Box 110, Mount Vernon, VA 22121

1-800-780-1799 / specialgifts@mountvernon.org