The most popular planned gift is the charitable bequest. Bequests are popular because they give you the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy.
When you make a charitable bequest, you retain full use of your property during life. There is no disruption of your lifestyle, and no immediate out-of-pocket costs. You simply direct that a part of your estate is to be given to one or more of your favorite charities. That’s one reason why it’s so important that you have a will. A will gives you the opportunity to direct the use of your “social capital” through bequests; without a will, the government may make that decision for you.
Since a charitable bequest can take many forms, you have considerable flexibility. You can leave a specific asset, a specific sum of money, a percentage of your estate, or what remains of your estate after you have provided for other beneficiaries. You can designate how you want your bequest to be used or leave it unrestricted so that we have the flexibility to meet our changing needs. Most importantly, you can change any bequest provision during your life, keeping you in complete control of the process.
While a bequest does not offer income tax benefits, it is fully deductible for estate tax purposes when basic requirements are met. Keep in mind that estates may be subject to provisions of estate tax laws, which frequently changes the exemption and tax
Let us know if you wish to make a bequest or have already done so. We want the opportunity to thank you for your generosity and include you in the Illinois State University Heritage Society. We also want to help you plan your bequest so that you get the most satisfaction out of it. Whether your bequest is large or modest, good planning can magnify its impact.
We invite you to consider the impact you can have through a charitable bequest. Making a bequest is easy. Or, if you already have a will, you can have your attorney include us through a simple amendment. We can provide you and your attorney with the suggested language for the various forms of bequests or other pertinent information that may be helpful to you.
There are other ways to make a “bequest” type of arrangement without a will. You can make similar beneficiary designations with a life insurance policy, a revocable trust, or a retirement plan. More and more astute donors use retirement account assets in their charitable gift planning because retirement account assets left to family members (other than your spouse) may be subject to higher taxation than other types of assets. By using retirement account assets to fund your charitable bequest (and leaving different assets to family members) you may be able to reduce taxes that otherwise would be imposed and leave more to your intended beneficiaries.
We will be happy to discuss with you the best way to include us in your plans. Whether you make a bequest to us under your will or include us as a beneficiary in one of your other plans, keep in mind that these arrangements are revocable. You maintain control over your assets and can make changes in your beneficiary designations should circumstances so dictate.
While tax savings are usually confined to estate taxes, the potential savings can be tremendous in view of the severity of the estate tax. More importantly, you have the opportunity to direct your hard-earned assets to a charitable cause that you know can make a difference in our society’s quality of life.
