Advisor

  • Disaster giving: Perspectives for your clients

    Both the recent one-year anniversary of the start of the Ukraine conflict and the earthquake that has devastated Turkey and Syria are causing more and more people to explore ways they can help. In an era of abundant giving methods and (sadly) potential fraud, YouthBridge Community Foundation is a source of reliability and expediency to help your clients act on their charitable instincts. 

  • In case you missed it: Three tax tips worth smiling about

    Nonprofits and other exempt entities are often left out of discussions when new tax incentives are proposed in Congress, primarily (and logically) because these organizations don’t pay tax. Fortunately, nonprofits are not left out of a recently enhanced tax provision known as the 179D deduction, which is intended to encourage incorporating energy efficiency measures into new or renovated buildings.

  • Valuable conversations: Why it’s smart to talk with your clients about charitable giving

    January is a good time to start helping your clients plan for their annual giving. With the year-end flurry of donations still fresh in many clients’ minds, you may discover that clients will welcome your suggestion to make 2023 the year to get organized early, particularly as economic headwinds make planning especially important.

  • It just keeps getting better: Why charitable gift annuities are having a moment

    Charitable gift annuities (CGAs) are becoming more attractive to philanthropists, making this planned giving vehicle a good fit for your clients who like the idea of an up-front tax deduction, a steady lifetime income stream, and a remainder gift to charity.

  • Celebrating the new Legacy IRA and a boost for QCDs

    Congress passed the much-anticipated, $1.65 trillion-dollar omnibus spending bill known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (“CAA”) on December 23, 2022, followed by President Biden signing the Act into law on December 29, 2022. At more than 4,000 pages, the Act includes a wide range of provisions that impact multiple sectors.

  • Five of 2022’s most-asked questions about Qualified Charitable Distributions

    Qualified Charitable Distributions, or “QCDs,” are becoming a very popular financial and charitable planning tool. At the same time, QCDs are growing as the source of more and more confusion.

  • So long, 2022: Important charitable tax planning reminders as the year winds down

    Now is the time to share important reminders with your clients about year-end gifts. Time is indeed of the essence!

  • How NFTs are connecting makers, investors and donors with causes they love

    As if advisors didn’t have enough financial acronyms to explain to their clients—DAF, RMD, IPO and ETF come to mind—along comes NFT to stir the multi-letter madness further. Even under the shadow of recent turmoil in the cryptocurrency marketplace, “non-fungible tokens,” or “NFTs,” are still creating quite a buzz.

  • Strong year-end giving in a bear market: Donor-advised funds come in handy

    Giving appreciated stock to charitable organizations is certainly a highly-effective tax strategy. During years when highly-appreciated stock is in short supply, however, implementing this strategy may be easier said than done.

  • It’s a big deal: Answering clients’ questions about GivingTuesday

    Among the many client questions you and other attorneys, accountants, and financial advisors can be prepared to answer as year-end approaches is, “What is Giving Tuesday? And why the hashtag that often precedes it in print or online?”

  • Adopt a “donor beware” attitude when clients make non-marketable gifts

    Market declines and inflation have made 2022 a more challenging year for some clients to fulfill their traditional giving objectives or early-year gifting intentions. With annual inflation hovering at 8% (and no relief in sight) and liquidity perhaps less than ideal, cash may be hard … More →

  • Counseling your clients about nonprofits: The good, the bad, and the big leaps

    The nonprofit sector accounts for more than 12 million jobs in the United States, and job growth in the nonprofit sector in recent years has outpaced job growth in the private sector. As an advisor, you are more likely than ever to represent clients who hold executive positions at nonprofits, serve in key roles on nonprofit boards of directors, or do business with nonprofit organizations.

  • Disaster philanthropy: Your clients and the important role of individual philanthropy

    Sadly, your philanthropic clients have likely grown accustomed to making charitable donations to support disaster relief. Individual donations provide critical resources to help communities recover from the many disasters–weather, fire, humanitarian, disease, war–that occur each year.

  • Hanging in there: Charitable giving in a challenging economy 

    Three messages worth sharing with your philanthropic clients as bear market conditions hang on into the fourth quarter.

  • The “i’s” have it: Two key topics for client meetings

    Inflation, interest rates, income tax, and the IRS are ever-present topics during discussions with your clients. Right now, there’s a lot to talk about, especially related to charitable giving. Let’s look at two examples of hot topics that may take a front seat in your client conversations this fall as you are helping your clients consider their options for structuring charitable giving and philanthropic legacies in the current economic environment.

  • Highly-appreciated stock: If your client missed the ideal window, it’s still not too late to support charity

    During a routine check-in meeting, your client casually mentions that the client’s employer, a local company, was just acquired. The client and dozens of fellow employee shareholders are now flush with cash. “I’d like to use some of the money to give to charity,”…

  • Inherited IRAs: Big headache, or big opportunity?

    Until the law changed a few years ago, a client who was named as the beneficiary of a parent’s IRA, for example, could count on a relatively straightforward and tax-savvy method of withdrawals called the “stretch IRA.” With the passage of the SECURE Act, that changed for many clients who inherited an IRA after December 31, 2019.

  • Cryptocurrency: What if your clients own it and you don’t think they should?

    Most advisors exercise extra caution when advising clients about cryptocurrency. Indeed, 68% of investment fund executives surveyed do not believe it is a good idea for their clients to own cryptocurrency in the first place. Still, according to some sources, 43% of clients hold cryptocurrency in their portfolios.

  • Summer legislative updates–and looking ahead to sunsets

    Reconciliation legislation is back in play, and while it includes a few tax provisions (e.g., adding a corporate minimum tax and eliminating the carried interest tax break), the proposed legislation is far less sweeping than reforms proposed in earlier versions.

  • Farms, tax planning, and funding a family legacy

    A gift of farmland to a fund at YouthBridge doesn’t just provide tax benefits. The gift also helps your client overcome the emotional challenges associated with letting go of an asset that in many cases has been in the family for generations.