charity - Linkenheimer LLP CPAs & Advisors

Giving Back During the Holidays at the Redwood Empire Food Bank

On Tuesday, December 3rd, the team from Linkenheimer, along with significant others and kids, met up after work at the Redwood Empire Food Bank to lend a helping hand. Holiday months are always tough for REFB in terms of finding volunteers, so we were excited to be able to participate and assist a great local non-profit that has been serving Sonoma County for over a decade, providing meals to elderly, children and those in need. Over the course of our two hours there, we formed into teams to put to sort through and box bread and baked goods. In total, we boxed 3, 697 lbs of bread to be sent out in the community. This helps provide over 2,900 meals to be distributed to our neighbors in need. Local charities like these are what makes Sonoma County such a great place to live and do business in and we are proud to support them. So during these busy holiday months, we encourage everyone to take some time and think about how they can give back and help those less fortunate. If everyone does a little, the impact can be huge. Happy Holidays from the Linkenheimer […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:03:24+00:00December 12th, 2019|Community|0 Comments

IRA Charitable Donations are an Alternative to Taxable Required Distributions

Are you charitably minded and have a significant amount of money in an IRA? If you’re age 70½ or older, and don’t need the money from required minimum distributions, you may benefit by giving these amounts to charity.

IRA distribution basics

A popular way to transfer IRA assets to charity is through a tax provision that allows IRA owners who are 70½ or older to give up to $100,000 per year of their IRA distributions to charity. These distributions are called qualified charitable distributions, or QCDs. The money given to charity counts toward the donor’s required minimum distributions (RMDs), but doesn’t increase the donor’s adjusted gross income or generate a tax bill.

So while QCDs are exempt from federal income taxes, other traditional IRA distributions are taxable (either wholly or partially depending on whether you’ve made any nondeductible contributions over the years).

Unlike regular charitable donations, QCDs can’t be claimed as itemized deductions.

Keeping the donation out of your AGI may be important because doing so can:

Help the donor qualify for other tax breaks (for example, a lower AGI can reduce the threshold for deducting medical expenses, which are only deductible to the extent they exceed […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:03:32+00:00November 5th, 2019|charity, ira, retirement|0 Comments

Volunteering for Charity: Do You Get a Tax Break?

If you’re a volunteer who works for charity, you may be entitled to some tax breaks if you itemize deductions on your tax return. Unfortunately, they may not amount to as much as you think your generosity is worth.

Because donations to charity of cash or property generally are tax deductible for itemizers, it may seem like donations of something more valuable for many people — their time — would also be deductible. However, no tax deduction is allowed for the value of time you spend volunteering or the services you perform for a charitable organization.

It doesn’t matter if the services you provide require significant skills and experience, such as construction, which a charity would have to pay dearly for if it went out and obtained itself. You still don’t get to deduct the value of your time.

However, you potentially can deduct out-of-pocket costs associated with your volunteer work.

The basic […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:03:49+00:00July 9th, 2019|charity, expensing, New Tax Laws, tax|0 Comments

Donating Your Vehicle to Charity May Not be a Tax-Wise Decision

You’ve probably seen or heard ads urging you to donate your car to charity. “Make a difference and receive tax savings,” one organization states. But donating a vehicle may not result in a big tax deduction — or any deduction at all.

Trade in, sell or donate?

Let’s say you’re buying a new car and want to get rid of your old one. Among your options are trading in the vehicle to the dealer, selling it yourself or donating it to charity.

If you donate, the tax deduction depends on whether you itemize and what the charity does with the vehicle. For cars worth more than $500, the deduction is the amount for which the charity actually sells the car, if it sells without materially improving it. (This limit includes vans, trucks, boats and airplanes.)

Because many charities wind up selling the cars they receive, your donation will probably be limited to the […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:03:54+00:00June 18th, 2019|charity, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

The 2018 Gift Tax Return Deadline is Almost Here

Did you make large gifts to your children, grandchildren or other heirs last year? If so, it’s important to determine whether you’re required to file a 2018 gift tax return — or whether filing one would be beneficial even if it isn’t required.

Filing requirements

Generally, you must file a gift tax return for 2018 if, during the tax year, you made gifts:

That exceeded the $15,000-per-recipient gift tax annual exclusion (other than to your U.S. citizen spouse),
That you wish to split with your spouse to take advantage of your combined $30,000 annual exclusion,
That exceeded the $152,000 annual exclusion for gifts to a non-citizen spouse,
To a Section 529 college savings plan and wish to accelerate up to five years’ worth of annual exclusions ($75,000) into 2018,
Of future interests — such as remainder interests in a trust — regardless of the amount, or
Of jointly held or community property.

Keep in mind that you’ll owe gift tax only to the extent an exclusion doesn’t apply and you’ve used up your lifetime gift and estate tax exemption ($11.18 million for 2018). As you can see, some transfers require a return even if you don’t owe tax.

No return required

No […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2020-09-03T20:04:13+00:00March 12th, 2019|gift tax, tax deadlines|0 Comments