Required Minimum Distributions

Please consider using your Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) when making gifts to
St. Olaf or other registered charities. Congress made permanent the law enabling individuals over age 70 1/2 to exclude up to $100,000 of their required minimum distribution from income if the RMD is made payable directly to a qualified public charity. This strategy provides the greatest charitable tax benefit as it excludes the total value of the gift from annual income which is taxed as ordinary income.

Please consider gifting appreciated investments (stocks, bonds, or mutual funds) to make charitable gifts to St. Olaf or other registered charities. Giving appreciated investments directly to the charity, as opposed to selling the property, can reduce the exposure to capital gains tax at a normal rate of 15%, and for higher income earners, potentially an additional savings of 3.8% net investment income tax. Through this strategy, as opposed to  gifting cash, the individual making the gift will receive an income tax deduction equal to the fair market value of the property or investment. The charity can then sell the property and pay no capital gains tax because it is a tax-exempt entity. It is critical that the appreciated property qualify as long-term capital gains property (i.e., the property shoud be held for more than one year prior to the time it is gifted.)