Donating your car to charity

           

             
Giving your car can gain a charity -- and your tax return. To maximize the benefit for the charity and for yourself, keep these things in mind:

1 - Make sure you're giving to a 501(c)(3) charity organization if you wish a taxes deduction. You are able to look up the charity by looking its name on the Exempt Organizations Select Examine at irs. gov or by calling (877) 829-5500. You can look up the group's tax processing at guidestar. org.

2 - You get the tax benefit only when you itemize expenses on your return. Although there are exceptions, the amount of the allowed tax reduction is usually equal to the amount the charity gets when it provides the car.

3 - The exceptions might allow you to deduct the good market value of the car, which will often be higher than the sale price. Those exclusions apply if the charity uses the car itself, makes substantial repairs before selling the vehicle or sells it to a needy individual for a discount. Keep any documents that verifies the allowed exceptions.

For The Record
Los Angeles Times Thursday, July 25, 2012 Residence Edition Main News Component A Page 4 Media Desk 1 inches; twenty eight words Sort of Material: Static correction
Car donations: An article in the July twenty-two Business section about giving cars to charity misidentified Daniel Borochoff as director of Charity Navigator. This individual is president of CharityWatch.
For The Record
Are usually Times Sunday, July up to 29, 2012 Home Edition Key News Part A Site 4 News Desk one particular inches; 28 words Type of Material: Modification
Car donations: An article in the July 22 Organization section about donating autos to charity misidentified Daniel Borochoff as president of Charity Navigator. He is president of CharityWatch.



4 - Avoid liability by signing over the sign up to the charity yourself. That way you're sure the car won't stay in your name, which could leave you on the hook with the DMV for fees or even with law enforcement if the automobile is later used in against the law.

5 - Ask to find the agreement the charity has with the for-profit company that collects and sells vehicles on their behalf. If the charity gets less than 60 % the proceeds, you could be dealing with an inefficiently run program, Charity Navigator President Daniel Borochoff said.