Q&A | The Smarter Giving Guy

Question: Where Can I Find Charity Ratings Online?

Answer: Few organizations provide ratings of charities, and their coverage is very limited (especially when you consider that there are more than 1 million charities operating in the U.S.). The two most prominent are:

CharityNavigator.org describes itself as “America’s Largest Charity Evaluator” and provides “star” ratings (0 to 4 stars) on roughly 5,400 larger [...]

Question: I donate. What should I expect from the charity?

Answer: The answer depends in part on your type of relationship with the charity (see “What types of charity relationships do you want?”). Expect less from a charity if you are a Distant giver, and much more if you are Fully Involved.

No matter what type of relationship you have with the charity, it should:

Respond reasonably to your reasonable requests for information. Continue reading “Question: I donate. What should I expect from the charity?”

Question: What should I look for in an estate planning attorney?

Answer: Look for the “3 Cs” (capability, cost and compatibility) –

Capability — Does the attorney have the training, skills and experience to handle the work? Continue reading “Question: What should I look for in an estate planning attorney?”

Question: Are there simple ways to leave a gift to charity?

Answer: Yes! Leaving a gift to charity should be considered as part of your estate planning, but it needn’t be a complicated matter. Take a look at the following table – showing several tools available Continue reading “Question: Are there simple ways to leave a gift to charity?”

Question: How can I do a good job selecting charities?

Answer: To do a good (as in thorough) job, you have three tasks:

Focus your giving on what’s important to you by examining what you value and care about, what you’d like to see done better or changed, and whether you want to help locally, regionally, nationally or internationally.
Create a short list of charities whose missions and service areas appear to match what’s important to you.
From your short list, examine each charity more deeply. See whether there Continue reading “Question: How can I do a good job selecting charities?”

Question: I paid $120 for a charity event ticket — how much can I deduct?

Answer: First, let’s make sure you’re talking about an event of a Qualified Organization (QO) — if this wasn’t a QO you don’t get to deduct anything.

Next, you have to look at the value of the meal, entertainment and other benefits you received for attending. If, for example, the value of those benefits [...]

Question: What Can a Volunteer Deduct?

Much more information on what a charity volunteer can deduct (including mileage rates) is now available at SeriousGivers.org at the “What can a charity volunteer deduct?” page. Go there for ongoing coverage (comments are closed on this page).

Answer: First, you can’t deduct the value of your time or services. If you [...]

Question: Is this Charity a Qualified Organization (QO)?

Answer: For IRS purposes, you don’t get a charitable contribution deduction unless you made your donation to a Qualified Organization (QO). To be a QO, the organization must

Be a church or Be a government or Apply to the IRS

Concerning category #3, if it’s not listed in IRS Publication 78 it’s not [...]

Question: What is “φιλανθρωπία”

Answer: “φιλανθρωπία” (pronounced “philanthrōpía”) is Greek for philanthropy and means love for mankind. The English definition of philanthropy is ” . . . concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work . . . .”

If you donate or volunteer for the benefit of others, you are [...]

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