Posts tagged as:

charitable-donations

IRS Issues Guidance for Charities – and a Warning to Donors

8 June 2011

Today, the Internal Revenue Service announced that approximately 275,000 formerly tax-exempt organizations have lost their charitable status as a result of failing to file the proper forms. Loss of tax-exempt status can spell disaster for some organizations: not only does it mean that the organization must file income tax returns and pay tax but perhaps [...]

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Ask the taxgirl: Valuing Your Services for Charity

16 March 2010

Taxpayer asks: Hi, I read your blog entry that explains that service time donated to a charity is not deductible. What if there is an actual assignable value of the service time to the charity? For example, I am donating my services as an auction item for a charity auction; if somebody buys it for [...]

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Congress Wants You To Give To Haiti. But Just Haiti.

26 January 2010

On January 12, a massive earthquake struck Haiti. The earthquake measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale. Devastating aftershocks followed. The confirmed death toll is 150,000 people and the Red Cross estimates that nearly 3 million people will be affected by the disaster. By comparison, Hurricane Katrina, considered to be the largest natural disaster in the [...]

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Ask the taxgirl: Charitable Donations and Estates

9 December 2009

Taxpayer asks: Can you tell me what the tax implications are for donating inherited items? My mother passed away about a year ago and I’m the executor of the estate. Now, my siblings are interested in taking deductions for items they feel they “inherited,” yet were actually immediately donated to charity without my siblings ever [...]

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Ask the taxgirl: Donating an Engagement Ring

28 October 2009

Taxpayer asks: Hi Tax Girl! I got rid of the husband and now I would love to get rid of the engagement ring. I have thought about donating it to a non-profit animal rescue group for them to auction at one of their charity events. What kind of deduction will I be able to claim [...]

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State Tax Primer from A to W: Colorado

18 May 2009

Welcome to my sixth in a series on state taxes! For information about what I’m trying to do, read my introductory bit. Next on the agenda, Colorado. COLORADO Population: 4,939,456 (22nd) Capital: Denver Largest City: Denver Gross Domestic Product: $236 billion GDP per capita: $40,963 (10th) 2008 election winner: Barack Obama web site: http://www.colorado.gov/ Income [...]

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Congress to Obama: Not So Fast

4 March 2009

Just days after President Obama outlined his proposed budget, which includes tax modifications (yeah, it’s a cheesy word, keep reading) for high wage earners, key leaders in Congress are making noise that they might not be in support of the plan. Chief among them is Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) who questioned whether [...]

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Is Obama’s New Tax Plan A Bit Uncharitable?

2 March 2009

There’s a bag of used clothes on my porch that it is on its way to the Salvation Army (though not in this snow!). Like many Americans, my family makes an effort to give to a variety of charitable causes throughout the year. But why do we do it? I was raised to believe that [...]

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Ask the taxgirl: Cash and Charitable Donations

29 November 2008

Taxpayer asks: While we were out shopping, I put a $20 in the Salvation Army kettle in front of the store. I say we can take that as a deduction but my husband says no. Who is right? P.S. I have a new digital camera riding on your answer. Taxgirl says: Gosh. I hope your [...]

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IRS Car Charity Rules Drives Donations Down

14 July 2008

I’m sure that you’ve seen a number of signs and ads that encourage you to donate your vehicle to charity. In our area, they’re plastered all over the place… Do they actually work? Not so much anymore. In 2004, Congress changed the rules regarding car donations for charity. The rules more or less limited the [...]

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