• Give Early ‑ By December 31
A charitable gift is made on the date of delivery. You can only deduct donations in the year you make (deliver) them. Act now to ensure your philanthropic plan is completed before year end.

• Give Appreciated Assets
If you own appreciated assets such as stocks, mutual funds or real estate, you may have a meaningful opportunity to pay less tax, give more, and enhance your personal cash flow. By donating long-term appreciated non-cash assets, you avoid capital gain taxes thus contributing more to charity.
Tip: initiate transfers early. Long delays arise at year end.

• IRA Charitable Rollover
People age 70.5 or older who own an IRA now can transfer up to $100,000 directly from their IRA to an eligible charity. The transfer can count as your required minimum distribution and will not be included in your taxable income for the year. For many, this is the best tax-wise way to give.

• Update Beneficiaries
Including CWRU as a beneficiary in your estate plan (on life insurance policies, investment, retirement or other financial accounts) is a great way to accomplish your charitable goals and extend your personal legacy. CWRU makes giving easy and offers a variety of ways to assure that your goals are satisfied long after you have passed away, taking the obligation off your family to administer your philanthropic plan.

• Create Your Legacy
Design a named endowment at CWRU for $25,000 with current assets, pledged over time or through a commitment in your will.

• Remember Special People
Consider a gift to honor someone important or of blessed memory.

Tax Reform and Charitable Giving

In December 2017, Congress enacted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, overhauling the federal tax code. The changes, such as nearly doubling the standard deduction, affects most Americans and impacts charitable giving. In addition to rate cuts, many popular income tax deductions, credits and adjustments were repealed or curtailed. Good news: the charitable deduction remains and is enhanced for some donors. The adjusted gross income limit on cash gifts is boosted from 50% to 60%. The repeal of the Pease Limitation makes charitable and other deductions more valuable for many high income taxpayers.

Consider: To increase the likelihood of exceeding the standard deduction, bunch multiple years’ worth of donations in a single year.

Give online using a credit card through our secure site, giving.cwru.edu/casgiving. To make a gift to a specific department or area, please select “Other” and enter the information in the “Special Instructions” box.

Or mail your check with a note to:

Case Western Reserve University
College of Arts and Sciences
Crawford Hall, 7th Floor
10900 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio, 44106-7035

For more help with your year-end giving, contact:

Case Western Reserve University
Office of Planned Giving
2040 Adelbert Road, Suite 409
Cleveland, OH 44106-7091
216.368.4460
giftplan@case.edu
plannedgiving.case.edu