Symphony Space

Gifts from Retirement Assets, Savings or Insurance

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Gifts from Retirement Assets, Savings or Insurance

Gifts from Retirement Accounts
Congress included a special, temporary charitable incentive as part of the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Unless it is renewed by Congress in the next few months, it will expire on December 31, 2007, so you'll need to act now to take advantage of this opportunity. The current law makes it possible for anyone who is 70-1/2 years old and older to transfer up to $100,000 in a given year directly from an IRA to a charitable organization and pay no income tax on that distribution. Not only is the amount not taxed, but it also counts toward your mandatory withdrawal requirements at that age. (Note that pension plans and 401(k) or 403(b) plans are not included in this law – only traditional IRA accounts).

This law presents new tax advantages to those who do not normally itemize their deductions as well as those who do itemize, but who have reached their charitable giving limit. It's important that the money in your IRA not be paid to you. It must be distributed directly to Symphony Space or another 501(c)(3) nonprofit to be eligible for the tax exemption.

If you'd like to explore making a contribution using funds in your IRA account, please contact our Director of Development, Waddy Thompson, at 212.864.1414 x230 or waddy.thompson@symphonyspace.org .

Gifts of Savings Accounts and Certificates of Deposit
Another way you can make a significant gift to Symphony Space is to name Symphony Space a joint owner of your savings accounts and certificates of deposit with rights of survivorship only. In this way, funds from these accounts will come to Symphony Space at your death, without delays or unnecessary expense. This is a revocable gift – you may withdraw the money at any time and close the account(s). Thus, you retain complete control of the gift. In addition, the gift amount is deductible from your taxable estate.

A professional advisor at your financial institution can give you more information about this type of gift.

Gifts of Life Insurance
Some of the life insurance coverage you purchased may no longer be needed for the reason it was originally purchased, because of changes in your family circumstances. A simple way for you to make a significant legacy gift is to name Symphony Space to receive all or a portion of the proceeds of a policy that you no longer need for its original purposes. You might also choose to contribute a paid-up policy during your lifetime and receive a charitable tax deduction for an amount approximately equal to the policy's cash surrender value.

You can also purchase a new policy, naming Symphony Space as owner and beneficiary or co-beneficiary. Such a gift may result in a contribution much larger than its cost, possibly making this a convenient way to make a large gift over a period of time.