Legacy planning is something to discuss with your attorney if you feel as though you would like to cast a long shadow even after your passing. There are various things that you can do to make your influence felt, and one of them would be to set aside resources for charitable causes.
One way of doing this is by starting a private family foundation. The huge foundations that are named after some of the wealthiest individuals our country has known are going to be staffed, and they incur significant administrative expenses.
For this reason many people will steer clear of this option, however it should be known that there are thousands of smaller foundations out there that do not have staffs, and many of them were started with less than $1 million. So starting a charitable foundation is indeed a possibility for many people who are not billionaires.
Donor advised funds are another option. These funds are set up to accept contributions, even securities, and in turn the donor can recommend that grants be endowed to numerous different charities. So instead of dealing with multiple different charitable organizations, you are interacting with just one entity, and this saves you time and streamlines your accounting processes. Additionally, since administrative costs are spread out among everyone who is utilizing a given fund, these expenses are quite manageable for each individual donor.
To learn more about how you can make charitable giving a part of your estate plan, don’t hesitate to contact us to arrange for a free legacy planning consultation.
Litherland, Kennedy & Associates, APC, Attorneys at Law
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