Sometimes our clients will get requests for charitable contributions towards the end of the tax year. This is understandable since historically charitable contributions have been tied to the tax year in which they occur. But sometimes this ends up putting our clients in a race against the IRS to “hurry up and give“ before the holidays, when a more measured approach would have enhanced both the effectiveness and enjoyment of the act of giving. This is where a donor advised fund can help. If the family knows how much they want to give but would like to take some more time in strategically allocating it, placing charitable contributions into a donor advised fund eliminates the race against the New Year’s Eve clock. Then, after the holidays have died down and a family has more time, they can gather around the table and decide together how to make the best impact in the charitable causes that mean the most to them.
We like tax advantages, but we definitely want our clients to have freedom to pursue what matters most to them. This strategy creates not only freedom of time and money, but also freedom of relationship and purpose. And that’s what we’re all about.