Planning your estate intelligently means that you should maximize the taxes you save and at the same time increase the dollars you give. Charitable giving can play an important part in your financial plans, and it can be one option for reducing or even eliminating your estate tax liability.
Charitable estate planning can include donating property directly to a charitable organization, and that value is directly deductible from your gross estate.
Another option is to give the interest earned by a trust to a charitable organization. However, for the charitable interest to qualify for a deduction, it must be directed to a public pooled income fund, or it has to be a charitable remainder annuity trust, a charitable remainder unitrust, a charitable lead trust, or a qualified terminable interest trust with a charitable remainder beneficiary. All this may sound foreign to you, but what it means is there are options available to you if you know how to leverage them.
An experienced estate planning attorney can help you identify which options fit your goals and situation best. If you would like to know what your best charitable planning options would be, call us at (612) 206-3701 or fill out our contact form to schedule an estate planning consultation.