Planned Giving

Planned Giving by Earmarking Funds for Hospice Alliance

By giving a legacy gift, you will be helping ensure that Hospice Alliance can continue to provide compassionate end-of-life care to all in our community, regardless of ability to pay.

Hospice Alliance would be unable to sustain caring for patients at end-of-life or for the families that support them without donor support. Here are some ways which your gift will be helping our mission of adding life to days:

• Ensure compassionate care and support for individuals, their families, our communities, volunteers, and employees
• Expand bereavement services and educational programming to the community
• Grow and strengthen our available services and Complementary Therapies
• Honor Veterans by accompanying and guiding them through their life stories

Gift planning should be part of your overall estate plan, which is designed to provide critical financial resources for you and your family and to also identify how you wish to provide a permanent legacy for Hospice Alliance. It is important that you work with a trusted estate planner such as an attorney, accountant or financial advisor.

Common Types of Planned Gifts

The cornerstone of your estate plan is a properly written will. Your will allows you to make a gift to Hospice Alliance without tapping into your personal assets during your lifetime.

There are several ways to include Hospice Alliance in your will:

• You may identify a percentage of your estate or a specific dollar amount or asset you wish to give.
• Bequests

Bequests

You can make a provision in your will or living trust that directs a portion of your estate to a named beneficiary, such as Hospice Alliance. A bequest offers these benefits:

• You make a major gift while preserving these assets during your life.
• You reduce your federal estate taxes.
• You leave a legacy of goodwill to your family and community by designating your gift to Hospice Alliance.

Cash, securities, real estate and tangible personal property, such as works of art, may be willed to Hospice Alliance through your estate. There are several ways to gift bequests, and there is specific language that needs to accompany these different gifts in your will.

Charitable Gift Annuities

A charitable gift annuity (CGA) provides a fixed income-for life-for you and a loved one first, and a donation for your favorite charity later.

• The payout rates are based on your age.
• Rates are designed to provide a fair return and ensure that at least 50 percent of the initial principal of your gift will be left to Hospice Alliance upon your death.
• The annuity payments you receive throughout your lifetime are partially income-tax-free, and you receive a tax deduction in the year you set up your annuity.

Life Insurance

A gift of life insurance is a relatively low-cost way to make sizeable donation to the Hospice Alliance Foundation. No other kind of gift can magnify your original contribution as much as a gift of life insurance. The annual premiums are deductible, if you itemize. Here are some options if you are considering a gift from your life insurance:

• You can name Hospice Alliance Foundation as the primary, secondary, remainder or residual beneficiary of an existing policy.
• You can establish a new policy and name Hospice Alliance Foundation as the irrevocable beneficiary.
• You can donate a policy you no longer need.
• You can use life insurance to replace the value of gifts to Hospice Alliance Foundation.

Gift of Stock

If you are considering a gift of appreciated property, such as stocks or bonds, to Hospice Alliance, note these financial benefits:

• You receive tax deduction for the full, current fair market value of the donated property.
• You avoid the capital gains tax and other expenses that would be incurred fi the property were sold by you.

Retirement Accounts

Naming Hospice Alliance as the beneficiary of your IRA or other retirement account is an easy way to support our mission and take advantage of tax benefits at the same time.

Endowments

With a gift of $100,000 or more, an Endowment Fund or Term Gift Fund can be established in your name (or in the name of your loved one, or anonymously) to provide support for Hospice Alliance. Your gift can be restricted for a specific focus fund or established for the general support and needs of Hospice Alliance. Endowment funds make it possible for Hospice Alliance to offer comprehensive end-of0life care and palliative care now and in the future.

IRAs

A new financial law called the SECURE Act has changed some rules for individual retirement accounts (IRAs), which may affect your taxes and strategies for charitable giving.

Americans can now contribute to traditional IRAs longer and start taking required distributions later, at age 72, but some will face higher Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) and taxes down the road.

Importantly, most people who inherit IRAs from someone other than their spouse must take the money and pay taxes on it within 10 years, rather than stretching it over their expected lifetime. To reduce this tax burden, IRA holders may want to consider tax-advantaged charitable giving.

Consider making a QCD now: IRA holders can make a qualified charitable donation (QCD) of up to $100,000 after age 70.5 to reduce their taxable income. In fact, there may be tax advantages of making that gift before age 72, to lower future RMDs .

Name Hospice Alliance as your beneficiary: If you believe your heirs would struggle with the tax burden of the new 10-year IRA withdrawal schedule, consider donating your IRA funds to a favorite charity, such as Hospice Alliance, and leaving different assets to your loved ones.

Be sure to talk to your tax and financial advisors about the new IRA rules and advantages of naming Hospice Alliance as a beneficiary as you plan to provide for your loved ones.

• Your tax-free gift can be any amount you choose, up to the $100,000 annual limit (a couple with separate IRAs can each give up to $100,000).
• The gift must be from a traditional IRA, not other types of pension plans.
• The gift must be given to a qualifying public charity, such as Hospice Alliance, and go directly to the charity. Instruct your IR trustee or custodian to distribute the funds directly to Hospice Alliance. (We can provide a template for a letter of instruction, if you need one.)

It will also be helpful to talk with a donations expert to confirm that your wishes are clear and achievable. Please contact Rahel Skowronski at rachel.skowronski@hospicealliance.org or (262) 652-4400.