Foundation can help optimize your church’s year-end giving

If you have church members who wish to donate appreciated stock, the Foundation will liquidate these gifts for you at no cost.

Required Minimum Distributions 

If you have reached age 72 and are required to take a minimum distribution (RMD) from your IRA, you can authorize gifts from your IRA directly to the church. You reduce your taxable income, and the distribution counts toward your RMD.

To qualify for the tax credit, you must have your retirement plan administrator direct the distribution DIRECTLY to your church; it cannot pass through your hands or it will trigger an income taxable event for you.

If you have questions about how to execute this gift transaction, please contact Susan Cothern at 888-450-1956, ext. 1507 or SCothern@umfwnc.org and she will be happy to help you through the process.

Gifting stock and appreciated securities

Gifts of stock are tax deductible just like cash gifts AND donors can avoid capital gains taxes by donating appreciated stock rather than selling it outright and then donating the proceeds. The result is a lower tax bill for the donor and more of the gift going directly to the church or ministry.

Watch the video above to hear from Rob Byrd, our Board Treasurer and a certified public accountant for more than 40 years. Rob shares insights for donors, clergy and church finance officers.

“As we get toward the end of the year, a lot of people like to take advantage of planning their charitable giving,” Rob said. “Many times, they want to accelerate it into the current year.”

If you have church members who wish to donate appreciated stock, the Foundation will liquidate these gifts for you AT NO COST! For assistance with a stock transfer, contact Andrea Gutierrez at 704-817-3990, ext. 1504 or AGutierrez@umfwnc.org.

We send the proceeds from most stock gifts as a check to a church for its unrestricted use. Additionally, some donors have asked us to apply their gifts toward:

• The outstanding principal on their church’s UMF Development Fund loan
• An existing investment account held by their church and managed by the Foundation
• Creating a new endowment account to benefit their church
• Donor Advised Funds

Click here to visit the Donor Resources tab on our website, where you can download instructions for gifting stock with the Foundation. Please note that we ask all donors to provide a letter of instruction that indicates where gifts should be sent. Donors will receive an acknowledgement letter for their tax purposes after funds have been dispersed.

Click here for a print-ready brochure to inform church members about end-of-year giving, including IRAs and stock gifts. We can customize it with the name of your church.

All stock donations must be received no later than Dec. 31 to be considered a contribution for 2022.