In Indiana, Pennsylvania, "charitable giving" refers to the act of donating money or property, for selfless motives. It necessarily means that the donor does not plan on receiving any direct compensation for whatever they have given.

The simplest way to make a charitable gift is to just give the money or property directly to the organization you want to help.

Some people want to give a larger percentage of their assets to a charitable organization than would be feasible during life, so they formulate some type of arrangement under which the money will be transferred upon the donor's death.

If you decide to make a sizable donation to a charity that will not actually occur until after your death, the easiest (and most typically-used) method is to simply leave the desired amount of money or property to the charitable organization in your will.

Charitable Trusts in Indiana, Pennsylvania

Legal arrangements known as "charitable trusts" are also utilized to give large amounts of money to charity. It can be used to make the gift quickly, or it can be set to take effect after the donor's death.

Under a charitable trust, the money going to the charity technically still belongs to the donor. Nonetheless, the charity, acting as a trustee, has power to use it for charitable purposes (what the money can and can't be utilized for should be clearly laid out in the trust).

The most common kind of charitable trust in Indiana, Pennsylvania is a charitable remainder trust. This allows you to give as much money or property as you want to a charity. The money is then invested by the charity. The investments are usually fairly conservative, sacrificing large returns for security. The charity then returns a portion of these returns to the donor, or another person named by the donor, while keeping the rest. This lasts for a set period of time, at the end of which the charity gets complete ownership of the original fund.

Many charitable donations are deductible from your state and federal taxable income. But, in order for your donations to count, the charity should be registered with the IRS and equivalent institution in .

Do I Need a Indiana, Pennsylvania Attorney?

If you want to set up a charitable trust, you should first speak with a representative of the charity you want to support. You should also talk with an experienced attorney in Indiana, Pennsylvania, who will be able to help you navigate the legal details, making it easier to give effect to your intentions.