How the IRS Calculates Your Good Will
Jan 12th, 2010You are to be congratulated! In a time when others may be holding on to every worldly possession in sight you are considering giving what could be the largest charitable contribution you've ever made. But how does the Uncle Sam look at this generous gift? The simple answer is this: the IRS wants proof of how much the charity benefited from the donation.
Believe it or not, when you donate a car to charity what happens to the car after it's picked up by the charity is very important to the IRS. The Internal Revenue Service is attempting to get as accurate a figure as possible representing the benefit of your car donation to the charity. They've set up of a tiered value system with the following rules to arrive at the value of your contribution.
- Up to $500: A vehicle donor can claim a charitable contribution deduction up to $500 of the vehicle's value, regardless of what the charity does with the vehicle.
- Over $500: The tax deduction claimed must match the sale price the charity received when they put the car up for sale, or the fair market value if the vehicle is used to further the charity's programs.
- Over $5000: In the case of the sale of the vehicle by the charity, the sale price is all the documentation you need to claim a deduction of over $5000, in the case of the vehicle being put into use by the charity you will need to obtain an independent appraisal to substantiate your claimed value.
Initially this could be a little bit overwhelming to someone considering donating their vehicle for the first time. However, there's no need to panic, at DonateACar2Charity we've been handling vehicle donations just like yours for over 10 years. If you need more details regarding your particular donation just pick up the phone and dial 1 (877) 505-5775 to speak to one of our experienced operators. You can also browse our site where we've posted a wealth of information about car donations and the most common IRS questions and tax form issues.
Thanks for visiting! We're here to help if you have any further questions.
Donating A Car And Getting One With Better Mileage
Aug 3rd, 2009
Donating A Car Lets You Get A Better One
Most of us get into donating a car to charity for just that: the charitable aspect of it all. You do it because you're helping someone in need and providing a fantastic service to a family who really needs it. And we are continually going to stress that aspect of the donation process; after all, helping people is why we got into this business in the first place. But there also exist other reasons for people to get into donating a car to charity, reasons that might technically be a bit more "selfish" but that also provide objective, measurable benefits for society at large.
Think about the reasons why people decide they're doing to donate. People usually do it out of the kindness of their hearts, but they don't donate a brand new car, do they? No. They'll donate a car only have it's been acting up, failing to start, or something better comes along. And that is totally natural, understandable behavior. I mean, we're nice, good people, but we're not nice enough to give away a brand new car!
Gas prices are going up once again, and they'll only continue to get more and more expensive as time goes on. Eventually you're going to want to upgrade to a car with better fuel economy, and donating a car to charity - a car that currently gets poor gas mileage - can be seen as the impetus for the change. If you're thinking about getting rid of your old clunker anytime soon, consider donating a car to charity. You'll help a family, help the environment, and you'll be able to justify purchasing a better, newer, cooler car that gets more miles to the gallon.
Donate A Car Tomorrow
Jul 10th, 2009Donate A Car Tomorrow, Or ASAP
The weekend is fast approaching, and you probably don't have a whole lot on your plate. Even if you do have a ton of activities planned, set aside a few hours for the one you're about to hear. Instead of lazying around, doing not much at all, donate a car tomorrow. It could be that car that's been sitting in your yard collecting dust for two years, or it could even be the car you take to work everyday but that you've been thinking about selling - whatever it is, donate a car! It's summer, the perfect time for reinvention, and you would be doing a whole lot towards reinventing yourself and improving yourself if you were to donate a car to charity. You'll help out a needy family with a nice hefty donation, and you'll be improving your internal engine and mood by giving to charity. Trust us.
Donate A Car That Someone Else Has
Okay, so what about the guy who doesn't even own a car himself? Or what about the guy who needs the only car he's got? Obviously, we can't expect him to donate a car to charity, but we can expect him to find someone else who's willing and able to donate a car. Ask your friends, your family, your neighbors - do they have any old cars that need donating? Almost everyone has or knows someone who has an old car that doesn't get play, but that still works just fine. These are the perfect car donation situations. Seize them, and you'll be helping your fellow man receive benefits and your friend receive a tax break.
Donating A Car Can Mean Different Things To Different People
Jul 8th, 2009
Donating A Car To Charity
People decide they're interested in donating a car to charity for a number of different reasons, all of them equally valid and equally commendable. An older gent who never really had the chance or the inclination to give back to his community, but who always felt like it was the right thing to do, might decide he's going to be donating a car to charity. He'll do it to fulfill a dream he had, to realize his idea of a good, moral human being. After all, we all want to do the right thing - even if our idea of the right thing is sometimes a little misguided. In the case of donating a car to charity, however, that is unequivocally the right thing to do.
Donations Help Everyone
At the same time, the people receiving the donation will also see the act as a charitable, kind-hearted gesture, but from a different perspective. They are the recipients. They are the ones receiving the tangible object or objects. The donor receives something for his effort, too, but it's intangible - but no less important or effecting. Thus, everyone benefits when people are donating a car to charity. All too often we only think about how we're personally affected by charitable acts, whether we're the givers or the receivers, but it can sometimes help to understand how the act of donation is perceived from multiple points of view. Understanding from multiple points of view makes donating a car to charity a more meaningful act; the donors tend to become more aware of the effects of their donation, while the recipients tend to become more thankful. All in all, everyone wins.
Car Donation Offsets Job Losses
Jul 1st, 2009
Car Donation Can Actually Ease The Situation When Jobs Are Being Lost
I know, I know - it sounds crazy. Just what does car donation have to do with job losses? If you look at the situation carefully and objectively, you'll find that the two are linked very closely. When job losses are high, car donation numbers can go in one of two ways. People will either start donating their junky cars that they never use in larger numbers in order to obtain the tax breaks, or they'll be even less likely to donate their still working cars because they need transportation in order to hunt for jobs, attend interviews, and get around town. So as job losses mount, car donation both increases and decreases. It's all in how you look at it, and which types of car donation incidences you're actually searching for.
Car Donation: Can It Ease The Pain Of A Lost Job?
I think it can, actually. Imagine it's tax time, and you're worried you're going to have to pay up a hefty set of taxes. That would be okay in regular, bountiful times, but right now it's terrible timing. You just lost your job. Your spouse's hours are being cut, so he or she isn't pulling their regular amount of weight anymore. And now you have to pay taxes. What if, a few months prior, you had decided to donate that old clunker collecting dust on your front lawn? Not only would you have gotten rid of a car that barely even works and that no one ever drives anymore, but you would have also offset your tax burden by engaging in a little tax-friendly car donation. The lesson is clear: if you have a car you're no longer driving, don't let it sit around and get in the way. Try car donation. Make the decision to plan ahead for tough times, because they can strike at the most inopportune moments.
Donate A Car In Time For Summer
Jun 29th, 2009Donate A Car And Save Some Money For Vacation
Summer is here. The hot weather is raining down upon us, the shorts are out in full force, and taking a vacation is starting to sound better than ever. If you donate a car to charity, the tax break you receive can help to offset the cost of taking a vacation. In difficult economic times like these, every little bit helps. And although you won't receive your tax break immediately when you donate a car to charity, if you keep good records - as you should be doing already - you can plan your expenses ahead of time and account for the tax break you will be receiving in the future. But I didn't have to tell you that; if you're already considering car donation, you're most likey already a very conscientious, organized person. So if you have an old busted junker sitting in your yard that hasn't been driven in years, donate it! Donate a car to charity and you'll be able to have a bit more money for that vacation you've always wanted.
Donate A Car Today
Donate a car today, folks. Get rid of that blatant eyesore on your lawn and get the heck outta Dodge! Depending on the value of your car, donating a car to charity can get you thousands back in tax breaks. Thousands! Imagine if you have several cars to donate - you'd be able to save enough money from taxes to take the entire family to Hawaii or the Caribbean. Chances are, you were already planning on going on vacation somewhere this summer. Getting the tax breaks when you donate a car simply allows you to expand on the vacation and spend a little extra. Go for the five star hotel instead of the four star. Rent a car instead of deciding to just stick around town.
Car Donation: Possible Health Care Parallels?
Jun 26th, 2009
Can Car Donation Help Health Care Costs?
The current debate raging on around public health care seems to revolve around cutting costs. At first glance, this sounds like a noble pursuit. Who doesn't want to reduce costs? Lowering the price of health care will be a good first step toward making it more available to more people. But getting the insurance companies, the doctors' associations, and the bitter partisans in Washington to agree on something is a tall order; maybe a better way to increase our ability to pay for health care in the short term is to increase our money supply - or decrease our tax burdens. Car donation allows people to reduce their taxable income. When you don't have to pay as many taxes as you once did, you can put that money you save toward other, more important items - like health care premiums. Or if you don't want to put the saved money directly toward health care, at least you can spend money on healthier, organic food so you can stay healthy and avoid the doctor altogether.
Car Donation Puts The Power In Consumers' Hands
Consumers deserve choices. The importance of choices in health care is paramount and, as of right now, depends on the amount of money in a customer's wallet. Car donation can actually help augment that money by decreasing the end-of-year taxes that get taken out. With more money in hand, a consumer is free to choose what type of health care plan they're willing and able to purchase. We can't just wait for politicians to make a move, because they'll take forever. Car donation is simply a way for us to wrest back power and put more money in our wallets, right now.
Donate A Car When You Get A New One
Jun 10th, 2009Just Bought A Car? Donate A Car, The Older One
When you buy a new car, or even a used one, what do you usually do with your older one? Unfortunately, most people just sell the old one, usually for a pittance. They're so caught up with having a new car that they don't give any thought to their older one, and intrepid buyers can just snatch it up for a fraction of the actual value. You get careless when you have new merchandise, and that's when you get taken advantage of by swindlers and cheaters. Rather than forget all about your old car and let it go for next to nothing, why not donate it? When you donate a car to charity, you still get financial incentives - tax breaks - and you're helping out the less fortunate. When you sell a car after buying a new one, you're just letting some sneak come and get it - and you're probably not getting what it's worth!
Donate A Car To Charity Instead
When you donate a car instead of selling it, you can help out a family in need. Whoever buys the car from the charity will be getting a great deal, and the charity will make all the profit and be able to fund its operations even further. For the cost of donating your car (absolutely nothing, if you use DonateACar2Charity.com!), you will help at the very least two sets of needy people: the people who buy your car from the charity and the charity who receives the proceeds from the sale of your old car. Plus, you get a nice tax break to help ease any financial difficulties you may be suffering. To donate a car is to do the right thing, whether you're doing it for the tax break or to help out other people. Even the most selfish person stands to gain when he or she decides to donate a car.
Donate A Car And Get Closer To A New One
Jun 3rd, 2009Donate A Car So You Can Get A Brand New One
Donate a car in order to get a brand new car? How does that work, exactly? Well, I'm sure we've all been there. We've all looked at everyone else driving brand new cars while we're stuck with some old one that, while definitely operational, just doesn't get us excited. Admit it! We all like new cars. They're exciting, fresh, fast, and fun to drive. But they're also rather expensive, and, with the economy the way it is today, it's hard to pinch enough pennies in order to get money to buy one. If you donate a car, an old car that still works but that you don't have much use for, you can get a big, nice tax break that will help you save money for a big future purchase. A big future purchase like, perhaps, a brand new car! Just make sure that when you do donate a car you're maximizing the value of it. You can donate a junker, but you won't get nearly as big of a tax break, so be aware of that.
Donate A Car And Get Free Money
When you donate a car, you don't have to spend a dime. We here at Donate A Car 2 Charity will simply handle everything; we'll come pick it up and all you need to do is make the decision, make a call, and sign some papers. Best of all, there are no hidden fees and no fine print. Call us, we come to you, give us the car and sign it over to us, and we give you the paperwork you need to file your tax claim. Sounds pretty easy, right? It is. It's easier than you think. So, next time you're thinking about buying a brand new car, look around at your own cars. If you decide to donate a car, you can probably get a nice chunk of money in the form of a tax break that can go towards helping you buy that car. See you!
Donating A Car Makes Perfect Sense
May 15th, 2009Donating A Car Should Be First On Your List
Everyone who owns a car is eventually going to be faced with the prospect of figuring out what to do with it when they upgrade. Cars just aren't built to last anymore, and you will eventually have to upgrade to a new car. Rather than simply tossing the old car or letting it rot on your lawn, you should consider donating. Donating a car has plenty of advantages, and all car owners should prepare themselves for it. In order to prepare yourself for donating your car in the future, have your ownership papers in a safe, easily-accessible place at all times. Keep yourself constantly apprised of the value of your car, either by consulting the Blue Book or actually getting it analyzed by an expert. Next, figure out which charity you'll want to donate your car to - might I recommend DonateACar2Charity.com?
It's Much Easier Than You Think
Once you've got your papers in order, you've chosen a charity to donate to, and you know the current value of your car, the rest is incredibly easy. Simply contact DonateACar2Charity.com by phone or email and we'll handle the rest. We'll even come pick up the car for you. Even if your car is inoperable; even if you can't start it; even if it's recently been in an accident and is in no shape for driving, we will take your car. When donating a car, be aware that you get something out of it - and I'm not just talking about the warm feeling that comes with donating to charity. You also get a tax break on your donated car. The amount depends on the value of the car, so a more valuable car will obviously get you a bigger tax break. That's not to say that donating a car that's worth less isn't worthwhile, because you will still get a tax break - just not a big one.





