Planned Giving

An estate gift is a donation or bequest that Beyond Liberty will receive only after your death, or the death of you and your spouse/partner. It may come through a provision in your will or living trust. An estate gift can encompass various assets, such as cash, securities, real estate, retirement plan, life insurance policy, personal property, and may be a specific amount or a percentage of the estate’s value.

If you would like to plan an estate gift to Beyond Liberty, please fill out and submit our Estate Gift Contribution Form; someone from our planned giving team will be in contact with you.

Making a gift from an estate often enables donors to make the gift they dream of making but, due to family, retirement or other related financial needs, are unable to make it during their lifetime.

If your gift will be a percentage of your estate, rather than a specific amount, Beyond Liberty would appreciate receiving a good faith estimate of the value of the gift intention as of the current date.

An estate gift intention is not legally binding. If your estate is unable to fulfill your intended  commitment, we will accept whatever remaining funds, if any, are earmarked for Beyond Liberty

There are many reasons why we appreciate knowing about your estate gift commitment.

• • Most importantly, these types of gifts are often the embodiment and reflection of your goals and  values and, as such, have great meaning. We want you to know how much we appreciate your commitment, and be able to thank you while you are living for making such a thoughtful commitment to Beyond Liberty.

• • We want to be able to assure you that your gift can be used for the purpose you have designated.

• • Your gift can be a wonderful inspiration to others, who may not be aware of the magnitude of the impact an estate gift can make in the future lives of horses and current experience of the horse-human-nature connection, and inspire them to make an estate gift of their own.

• • Estate gifts are often the greatest source of support to a non-profit.  Informing Beyond Liberty of your estate gift intention enables us to have a better understanding of these potential future gifts, as we plan for the future.

While unrestricted estate commitments allow Beyond Liberty to use your gift where the need is greatest, you may designate your estate gift to a specific program or need, or it can be used to create an endowed fund. If you choose to designate your estate gift or create an endowed fund, please contact us and we will work with you to ensure that your wishes to support Beyond Liberty can be honored.

Donating real estate, such as a ranch, farm, personal residence, vacation home, commercial property or undeveloped land is a generous gift that allows us to continue our work with horses and connect more people into the world of horses through education, nature and direct personal experience, for many years to come.

You can deed real estate directly or ask an attorney to add your wishes to your will or trust agreement. If you include us in your will or trust plans, please use our legal name and federal tax ID: Beyond Liberty, Tax ID 92-3381437.

Or, contact the Donor Services Director at Community Foundation Santa Cruz County who will work with you to ensure that your wishes to support Beyond Liberty with a donation of real estate can be honored.

If you’ve owned real estate for over a year and choose to gift it, you’ll enjoy similar federal tax benefits as with securities gifts. This includes a tax deduction for the property’s full fair market value, along with the perk of avoiding capital gains tax, provided the donation occurs before entering a sales contract.

Also, you avoid the burden associated with selling the property and are no longer responsible for maintenance costs, property taxes or insurance.

An Outright Gift is the simplest way to give real estate. When you make a gift today of real estate you have owned longer than one year, you qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction equal to the property’s full fair market value. This deduction lets you reduce the cost of making the gift and frees cash that otherwise would have been used to pay taxes. By donating the property, you also eliminate capital gains tax on its appreciation.

You can gift real estate through your estate by incorporating it into your will or living trust. This allows you to retain the use of the property during your lifetime, with the added flexibility to adjust your plans if circumstances or priorities change. By including your real estate gift in your estate plan now, you can ensure that your wishes will be carried out later, and you may also potentially save on estate taxes.

A memorial gift of real estate typically refers to a donation or bequest of real property made in honor of someone who has passed away and can be a perfect way to honor your loved ones in perpetuity.  It’s a way to commemorate the memory of the deceased individual by contributing a significant asset, such as land or a building, to a cause or organization that was meaningful to them during their lifetime or that aligns with their values.

Real estate may be an asset used to establish a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF). When you transfer real estate to a donor advised fund, you avoid capital gains taxes and qualify for a federal income tax deduction based on the fair market value of the property when you itemize your taxes.   Contributions to a donor advised fund are tax-deductible in the year they are made, which can provide immediate tax benefits but still allow you to give when the time is right. Consider contacting the Donor Services Director at Community Foundation Santa Cruz who can work with you to establish a DAF to ensure that your wishes to support Beyond Liberty can be honored.

If you or your/spouse want to continue living in your personal residence for your lifetime but would also like the tax advantages a gift of real estate to Beyond Liberty would offer, you can transfer your personal residence or farm but keep the right to occupy or rent out the home for the rest of your life. This is called a Retained Life Estate.  Please note, you continue to pay real estate taxes, maintenance fees and insurance on the property. We won’t assume ownership of the residence until after your lifetime.  Since your gift cannot be revoked, you qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction for a portion of your home’s value.

Yes.  In a Bargain Sale, you sell your property to our organization for less than its fair market value. The difference between the actual value and the sale price is considered a gift to us. A bargain sale can be an effective way to dispose of property that has increased in value, and it is the only gift that can give you a lump sum of cash and a charitable deduction when you itemize at the same time.

You can contribute any type of appreciated real estate you have owned for more than one year, provided it is unmortgaged, in exchange for an income stream for life or a term of up to 20 years. The donated property may be a residence (must be vacant upon contribution), undeveloped land, a farm or commercial property.

A Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) is a type of irrevocable trust that allows you to support Beyond Liberty while also potentially reducing estate and gift taxes. In a CLT, assets are transferred into the trust, and the trust makes regular payments (the “lead interest”) to Beyond Liberty for a specified period. After the lead interest period ends, the remaining assets in the trust typically pass to non-charitable beneficiaries, such as family members or heirs.  It is advantageous to fund the charitable lead trust with real estate that is income-producing and expected to increase in value over the term of the trust.

Again, we highly recommend you seek the advice of your financial and/or legal advisor to fully understand the requirements for tax planning purposes and the legal implications of your donation.

Giving real estate requires some extra steps of which you should be aware, including:

• • You will need to establish the value of your property by obtaining a qualified appraisal. To be valid for claiming your charitable income tax deduction, your appraisal must be conducted no more than 60 days before your donation and no later than the due date, including extensions, of your next tax return.

• • Once we accept your gift of real estate, we become responsible for cleaning up any environmental problems your property may have. This sort of cleanup could be very expensive. Therefore, before we accept any gift of real estate, we routinely conduct a review to make sure the property has no environmental issues.

• • Again, we highly recommend you seek the advice of your financial and/or legal advisor to fully understand the requirements for tax planning purposes and the legal implications of your donation.