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 CRT,
The Perfect Gift!
Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33°
Director of Development
Photo: ©Maxwell MacKenzie,
Washington, D.C.
A Charitable Remainder Trust makes a perfect
philanthropic gift. You benefit, as does your local and/or national
Scottish Rite Foundation.
A CRT (Charitable Remainder Trust) is a trust you set up to give
yourself, or people you designate, an income for life or a term
of years and to give the balance to the charity or charities of
your choice. To create a CRT, you decide (1) how much you want
to put into the trust, (2) how much income you want to receive
each year from the trust, and (3) whether you want the income
you receive to vary each year or to be a fixed amount. You also
choose who will serve as trustee.
There are two basic types of CRTs: the Charitable Remainder Annuity
Trust (CRAT) and the Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT). The
CRAT pays out the same dollar amount annually. The CRUT pays out
a fixed percentage of the fair market value of the trust's assets,
valued annually. So, if you want to receive a set dollar amount
each year, no matter how the investments of the trust perform,
you might prefer the CRAT. If you think the assets of the trust
will increase over time or you are concerned about inflation eating
away at your income, then you may prefer the CRUT.
Another thing to consider in choosing between the CRAT and CRUT
is whether you will be donating all of the assets to the trust
when it is set up or if you want to add amounts to the trust over
several years. With a CRAT, you must donate all of the assets
to the trust when it is established, and you cannot add to it
later. With a CRUT, however, you can add more assets to the trust
at later dates.
You also can choose the dollar or percentage of income you will
get each year from your CRT within limits set by the IRS. But
remember that under the IRS rules, your charitable income tax
deductions will be higher if you choose a lower payment or percentage.
When you receive your payments from the CRT, the income will be
taxable based on the historical pattern of how income in the trust
was earned. Income distributions are taxed in the following order:
first, ordinary income; second, capital gains, either current
or undistributed from prior years; third, tax-free income; and,
finally, tax-free return of principal.
Why should you consider a CRT? With a CRT, you can get the following
benefits:
- Income tax deduction for a portion of the current value of
the trust assets
- Pay no tax on gains when you give securities or other assets
that have appreciated in value
- Eliminate estate taxes and settlement fees
- Increased income if the trust investments yield more than
the donated property
- Freedom from investment worries
- Secure investment management on the assets you give
- Select multiple charitable beneficiaries, such as your local
Scottish Rite Foundation(s) and the Scottish Rite Foundation(s),
Southern Jurisdiction.
But, best of all, by making a gift to the Scottish Rite Foundations
through a Charitable Remainder Trust, you have the satisfaction
of supporting the RiteCare Childhood Language Program, scholarships,
and national disaster relief. So, if you like the idea of making
a charitable gift while getting an income for life or for a term
of years, consider the CRT. If you would like an analysis of a
CRT, please call Ill. Earl E. Ihle, Jr., Director of Development,
Barbara G. Golden, Director of Planned Giving, or Dr. Thomas M.
Boles, Advisor on Philanthropies, using the information at the
end of this article. Either Earl or Barbara will be happy to assist
you with any type of planned giving or outright gift.
To download a donation form, please click here.
To visit the Mandatory Charitable Solicitation Disclosures
page, click here. To
download a form for a free analysis of a contribution to the Scottish
Rite Foundation Charitable Gift Annuity Program, click here.
If you do not have Adobe® Acrobat® Reader™, you can
download it for free by clicking here.
Please Note: This information is distributed
with the understanding that the authors are not engaged in rendering
legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice
or other expertise is required, the services of a competent professional
should be sought. From: A Declaration of Principles jointly adopted
by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of
Publishers.
- Our Development Team
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Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33°, is the
team's Director of Development. He has been a member of the Fraternity
for 30 years and served in 1978 as Master of Lafayette Lodge,
#111, Baltimore, Maryland. He is also a member of Boumi Shrine
Temple in Baltimore, the York Rite, and a dual member of the Scottish
Rite Valleys of Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Contacts: Tel.
202-777-3143; Fax 202-884-0183; or call 1-866-RITECARE (748-3227)
Toll Free; eihle@srmason-sj.org.
Barbara G. Golden, Esq., is the team's
Director of Planned Giving. Barbara is an attorney with experience
in tax, corporate, and commercial real estate law. She managed
a non-profit legal services organization for several years and
has extensive experience in fundraising, grant writing,
and program operations. Contacts: Tel. 202-777-3163; Fax 202-884-0183;
or call 1-866-GIVESRF (448-3773) Toll Free; bgolden@srmason-sj.org.
Dr.Thomas M. Boles, GC, is the team's
Advisor on Philanthropies. A member of the Los Angeles, San Francisco,
and Santa Ana Valleys, he has worked extensively in fund-raising
for children's programs throughout our Fraternity. Contacts: Tel.
562-691-4227; Fax 562-691-5327; or call 1-800-SRMASON (776-2766)
Toll Free; tboles@srmason-sj.org.
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