When the elderly feel that their strength is diminishing, they start planning their retirement assets. Among what they opt to do is giving out part or all of their property as planned gifts. There are several benefits of contributing to other lives through donations.
According to the Cancer Research Institute, if an elderly leaves their retirement assets to their heirs at his or her death, about 60% to 70% of it will be subject to tax. However, if they donate part of or all of their unused retirement assets, they will benefit those in need since the government will not tax their donation.
To donate to any organization, they may have to provide a beneficiary designation form indicating who the beneficiary is. The beneficiary will receive the full sum that will not be subject to tax. Consequently, the donor benefits from a charitable tax deduction on their estate for the gift.
The Union of Concerned Scientists also encourages the elderly to donate their retirement assets to their course. They may not see the actual benefits of their retirement asset donation now. However, later their families will reap the benefits along with leaving behind a legacy for themselves.
Only people aged above 70 ½ years are allowed to gift their retirement assets to charity. However, there are gifts like SEP, 401 (k), and 403 (b), among other plans that do not qualify as donations. If a person wishes to make such donations, they have to roll out their assets into an IRA. They can then make the transfer from the IRA to their beneficiary of choice.
