Planned giving is a unique philanthropic tool that allows you to promote New York University's continued excellence while also fulfilling your own financial objectives. Learn about the many ways in which you can leave a positive legacy to the University that will shine on into the future.
Appreciated Securities
If you contribute appreciated assets—such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds or real estate—you obtain an income tax charitable deduction for the full current market value of the asset and avoid the capital gains tax you would have paid if you sold the asset outright.
Types of Planned Giving
- Bequests or Living Trusts
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A gift through your will or a living trust perpetuates your support for the Law School while yielding estate tax advantages. You can bequeath a specific dollar amount, or a portion of what remains after your obligations to others are fulfilled.
You can include NYU School of Law in your will or living trust by using the following language: “I give, devise and bequeath [assets/% share of the residue of my estate] to NYU School of Law, a New York education corporation with its principal office at 40 Washington Square South, New York, NY 10012.”
(Please consult with your tax professional to see how these alternatives might affect your tax liability.)
- Retirement Plan Assets
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With careful planning you can help avoid unnecessary estate taxes that would otherwise be incurred by your spouse and/or children. By naming NYU School of Law as survivor beneficiary on your qualified retirement plan, the gift becomes completely exempt from estate tax, income tax and generation-skipping transfer tax.
- Life Insurance
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When properly arranged, life insurance offers an attractive way to leverage relatively low premium payments to make a major gift to the University. If you no longer need all the life insurance that you own, you may want to name the University as a beneficiary or contingent beneficiary. Any benefit the University receives from your insurance will be excluded from your taxable estate.
By taking the additional step of naming the University as irrevocable beneficiary and owner of your life insurance policy, you obtain an income tax charitable deduction equivalent to either the policy's cash surrender value or replacement value. If additional premium payments are due, you can deduct those premiums as charitable contributions each year.
(Please consult with your tax professional to see how these alternatives might affect your tax liability.)
- Annuities
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There are a number of life-income gifts available that allow you to shape a gift arrangement that best fits your needs. You can arrange for your life-income gift to pay income to yourself or another person. Your gift can pay a fixed or variable income; it may include tax-free income in whole or part, and you can arrange for the income payments to commence immediately or at a future date, such as the date of your planned retirement.
The following are three examples of many planned gift opportunities. We suggest that you carefully consider all planned giving vehicles and work closely with your financial and legal advisors to construct a gift that makes sense for you and your family. It will be our pleasure to speak confidentially with you about a legacy gift for NYU School of Law.
Please note that these are sample amounts based on rates calculated on February 28, 2014. These rates are variable and should be considered samples only. Visit the Gift Calculator link to see calculations specific to your own information or call us with questions.
Charitable gift annuity
Mary, an alumna 75 years of age, wants to support the University but needs the income from her assets. She contributes $10,000 and receives a guaranteed income from the University at a rate of 5.8% for the rest of her life. This amounts to an annuity of $580, of which $437 is tax-free. When she makes her gift, she obtains an income tax deduction of over $4,577.
Charitable remainder trust
Walter and Amy, ages 77 and 74, want to increase their income from their stock holdings. They own stock worth $250,000, with a cost basis of $100,000. If they sell the stock outright and reinvest the proceeds, they would lose a substantial portion of their investment to capital gains taxes. However, when they transfer the stock to an NYU life-income trust, they avoid capital gains tax and have the entire value of their asset working to earn income for them. They select an income rate of 7%, increasing their earnings from $5,000 to $17,500. They also receive an income tax deduction of nearly $100,000.
Deferred gift annuity
Lois, age 50, wants to save more for retirement, but she has already contributed the maximum amount for the year to her employer's qualified retirement plan. She contributes $10,000 to NYU's deferred gift annuity, instructing that income payments must commence when she turns 70. NYU will pay Lois a guaranteed fixed annuity of $950, for a rate of return of 9.5%. In addition, Lois obtains an income tax charitable deduction of about $4,533 in the year she makes the gift. With this gift, Lois increases her future retirement income. There is no limit on the amount Lois can contribute to this plan each year, and she can designate when the income payments will commence.
Contact Us
For more information about planned giving, or to notify us of a planned gift that you have already arranged, please contact:
Nick Vagelatos
NYU School of Law
22 Washington Square North, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10011
(212) 998-6007