What are the financial benefits of making an estate gift through tax-qualified retirement accounts or IRAs?
Designating a charity as the beneficiary of a retirement account causes the charitable gift to be deductible for estate tax purposes. Also, heirs may prefer to receive assets that are less highly taxed, leaving the retirement assets instead to charity. A tax-exempt charity will not have to pay the income taxes otherwise due and will therefore enjoy the full value of the gift. CHARITABLE IRA TRANSFERS EXTENDED THROUGH 2009 Transfer up to $100,000 from an IRA to a charity without tax complications! Posted January 2009 Thanks to a deadline extension added to the recently enacted Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, if you are 70 or older you now have the opportunity until the end of 2009 to use your IRA funds to make charitable gifts without the amount of the gift counting as a taxable distribution. To qualify: • You must be 70 or older. • You must transfer your funds directly from your IRA accounts to the charity. • Qualifying gifts are limited to $100,000 per year. • You must m
