In Lexington, South Carolina, "charitable giving" refers to the act of transferring 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 vast majority of charitable gifts are made using the most simple method possible: giving the gift to the intended beneficiary.

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

If you want to make a donation that's effective after your death, there are a few ways to do this. The most prevalent method is also the simplest: leaving the charity whatever property you want to give to it in your will - this is known as a "testamentary gift."

Charitable Trusts in Lexington, South Carolina

Legal arrangements identified as "charitable trusts" are also used to give large amounts of money to charity. It can be used to make the gift immediately, 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. However, the charity, acting as a trustee, has authority to use it for charitable purposes (what the money can and can't be used for should be clearly laid out in the trust).

In Lexington, South Carolina, a "charitable remainder trust" is the most common kind of charitable trust. This permits the money or property to immediately pass to the charity of the donor's choice, so they can benefit from it as soon as possible. The charity takes the money, and invests it (usually in reliable, but not necessarily high-yield, investments). They keep most of the income that this generates, but return a portion of it to the donor on a regular basis, for a set period of time. When this time runs out, the original donation, along with all the income it will generate, becomes the legal property of the charity, to dispose of as it pleases.

Obviously, if you want to help a good cause, you want to make sure that any charity you donate to is legitimate. Sadly, there are quite a few fraudulent charities out there. The best way to do this is to check and make sure that the charity is registered as a tax-exempt organization with the IRS, and the tax authorities in

Do I Need a Lexington, South Carolina 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 efficient attorney in Lexington, South Carolina, who will be able to help you navigate the legal details, making it easier to give effect to your intentions.