In Abilene, Texas, "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.
What if, however, you want to give all or most of your assets to a charity, to really make a big difference? This is frequently not practical while the donor is alive, since they presumably have expenses, and want to maintain for themselves the lifestyle to which they're accustomed. However, there are a few arrangements authorizing you to have your assets transferred to a charity after your death.
There are many ways to give a charitable gift that does not take effect until after the donor dies. The easiest and least intricate way to do this is a simple testamentary gift in a will - wherein a specific amount of the donor's money is transferred to the charity upon the donor's death.
Charitable Trusts in Abilene, Texas
Charitable trusts are arrangements that involve handing possession (but not always ownership) of money or property over to a charity, either during the donor's life, or after their 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).
The most typical type of Abilene, Texas charitable trust is identified as a "charitable remainder trust." Under this arrangement, some of your money or property is given to your charity of choice. The charity then invests the money, while giving a percentage of the income generated by these investments to you or a beneficiary of your choice, for a determinate period of time. Once this time is up, ownership of the original fund transfers to the charity.
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 Abilene, Texas 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 Abilene, Texas, who will be able to help you navigate the legal details, making it easier to give effect to your intentions.
Mr. B. is a terrific lawyer and I am extremely happy with his work. What I liked most about him was his timely responses. I highly recommend Mr. B..