• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Unsworth LaPlante, PLLC

Vermont Estate Planning Attorneys

Vermont: (802) 879-7133

Attend A Free Workshop
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Meet Our Team
    • What to Expect When Working with Us
  • Services
    • Estate Planning
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Medicaid Planning & Elder Law
    • Pet Planning
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration
    • Young Families Planning
  • Resources
    • Articles
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Burlington
      • Montpelier
      • Rutland
      • St. Johnsbury
      • White River Junction
    • Estate And Gift Tax Figures
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Elder Law
      • Estate and Gift Tax
      • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning for Blended Families
      • Estate Planning for Parents
      • FAQs for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Incapacity Planning
      • In-Home Elder Care FAQs
      • IRA & Retirement Planning
      • Gift, Estate, and Inheritance Taxes
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid
      • Philanthropy and Estate Planning
      • Planning for Long-Term Care
      • Pet Planning
      • Revocable Living Trust FAQs
      • Special Needs Planning
      • Trust Administration
      • Trusts
      • Wills
    • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
    • Medicaid Resources
      • Medicaid Analysis Worksheet
      • Medicaid Guide
      • Vermont Medicaid
    • Newsletters
    • Presentations
    • Reports
      • Advanced Estate Planning
      • Basic Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning for Niches
    • SECURE Act
    • Top Estate Planning Techniques
  • Webinars/Seminars
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • BLOG
  • Contact
Home » How Can I Include Charitable Gifts in My Estate Plan?

How Can I Include Charitable Gifts in My Estate Plan?

January 25, 2022 by Stephen Unsworth

Essex Junction estate planning attorney

For some people, supporting charities – with time and/or money – is important. If you are one of those people, you may also wish to continue your charitable gifting after you are gone. To do that, you will need to incorporate charitable gifting tools and strategies in your estate plan. To help get you started, an Essex Junction estate planning attorney at Unsworth LaPlante, PLLC explains how you can include charitable gifts in your estate plan.

Charitable Gifting and Your Legacy

If charitable gifting is part of who you are and something you believe is important, why not make it part of the legacy you hand down to your loved ones? You may not be able to continue all your charitable gifting in your estate plan; however, you can certainly incorporate enough to make it part of your legacy. Take some time to decide which recipients and/or which type of gifts are most important for you to incorporate in your estate plan.

Gifting to Charities in Your Last Will and Testament

You can make charitable gifts in your Will; however, there are several reasons why making charitable gifts in your Will is not the best option. To begin with, using your Will to make charitable gifts means you will almost surely miss out on tax benefits that would otherwise be available when making charitable gifts. In addition, when you make a direct gift in your Will, you lose all control over how that gift is used once the transfer is complete. Finally, if you hope to involve your children, or other younger relatives, in your philanthropic endeavors, you will need to use a more complex method of continuing your charity work.

Other Ways to Include Charitable Gifts in Your Estate Plan

Although your Will may not be the best way to continue gifting to charities after you are gone, there are other tools and strategies that can be incorporated into your estate plan to continue your legacy of philanthropy, such as:

  • Charitable Lead or Charitable Remainder Trust. Charitable lead and charitable remainder trusts are specialized trusts that allows you to gift to both a charitable and a non-charitable beneficiary. With a charitable lead trust (CLT) a charitable beneficiary receives distributions from the trust for a specific period first. At the end of the designated period, the remaining assets are distributed to the non-charitable beneficiary. A charitable remainder trust (CRT) works in reverse with the non-charitable beneficiary receiving distributions first and the remainder going to the charitable beneficiary.
  • Charitable Gift Annuity. In some ways a charitable gift annuity is like a trust. You donate cash, or other assets needed by the charity, in return for which you, or another beneficiary (or more than one beneficiary), receives a fixed annuity payment for a designated period.
  • Private Foundation. A private foundation is the most complex, yet most potentially rewarding, option. A private foundation is a non-profit organization that manages its own funds and can be used to make charitable gifts to numerous and varied causes. Because of the cost involved in setting up and operating a foundation, this option is only practical if you plan to donate a sizeable amount to charity in your estate plan. Along with numerous tax advantages, one of the biggest benefits to creating a private foundation is that it gives you the opportunity to involve future generations in philanthropic gifting in a hands-on manner. As the creator of the foundation, you can establish guidelines for what type of gifts will be made and what type of beneficiaries will be considered; however, your children, grandchildren, and future generations will be able to experience charitable gifting first-hand through the operation of the foundation.

Contact an Essex Junction Estate Planning Attorneys

For more information, please attend one of our upcoming FREE webinars. If you have questions or concerns about how to include charitable gifts in your estate plan, contact an experienced Essex Junction estate planning attorney at Unsworth LaPlante, PLLC by calling 802-879-7133 to schedule your appointment today.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Stephen Unsworth
Stephen Unsworth
Stephen A. Unsworth is admitted to practice in both Vermont and Maine, and has more than 30 years of experience in estate planning and business law. His mission is to provide quality estate planning services, including assistance with Living Trusts, Wills, Medicaid Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Powers of Attorney, Special Needs Planning, and Family Limited Partnerships.
Stephen Unsworth
Latest posts by Stephen Unsworth (see all)
  • Does My 401(k) Account Count for Medicaid Eligibility? - October 20, 2022
  • Senior Care Options - October 18, 2022
  • Is an Oral Will Valid in Vermont? - October 13, 2022

Filed Under: General

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Essex Junction elder law attorneys
What You Need to Know about Elder Abuse
Essex Junction Medicaid planning attorneys
How to Apply for Senior Medicaid in Vermont
Essex Junction Medicaid planning attorneys
Does My 401(k) Account Count for Medicaid Eligibility?
Essex Junction elder law attorney
Senior Care Options
Essex Junction estate planning attorney
Do I Need an Estate Plan If I’m Single Without Children?
Essex Junction elder law attorney
How to Pick the Right Nursing Home

Primary Sidebar

Elder Law and Medicaid Planning Attorneys

Unsworth LaPlante, PLC

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING WORKSHEET

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Blog Subscription

Sign up to Unsworth LaPlante's estate planning blog to receive all the latest news and updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Essex Junction, VT

26 Railroad Ave
Essex Junction, VT 05452
United States (US)
Phone: (802) 879-7133
Fax: (802) 879-0408

Map

unsworth_sidbr_map

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

The information on this Vermont Attorneys & Lawyers / Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc. Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.