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If
your junk or used automobile, truck, boat, motorcycle, RV or aircraft
is no longer of use to you, it can still go a long way toward supporting
the charity of your choice. Make sure you know where the title is
when you email about a possible donation. Best of all, by not selling
the car yourself, you don't have to worry about strangers calling
you to get information about where you live, or coming to your house
to see the car or other vehicle.
Repairable used car donations or other vehicles can be accepted
provided the vehicle is repairable for less than what the charity
could sell it for. There are a few exceptions in the new tax law
compared to the old tax law, regarding the fair market value section,
for example, you may base your deduction on the vehicle's fair market
value if the charity ends up selling it to a needy individual at
a discounted price or if the charity uses the car as part of its
mission instead of selling it at a fair price. Charitable car donations
are given to the selected recipients directly or they are sold and
the money is given away as part of the charity function.
A
charity organization car donation is usually picked up within one
or two days of submitting the donation form. The amount you list
on IRS Form 1098-C, "Contributions of Motor Vehicles, Boats,
and Airplanes" will be under the gross proceeds of the deductible
donation. And if you don't plan to deduct the vehicle donation on
your tax return, no further action is needed. There are similar
car donation tax laws in other countries.
You may have a junk, used or old vehicle sitting on your property
or on the street that you don't use very often or at all. Cars or
other vehicle that are not being used make good donations, enabling
many less fortunate people to have a good means of transportation.
Donating rather than selling is a good idea because there is no
need to pay for any advertising, no loss of privacy and possible
security risk, and no need to pay for vehicle registration, insurance
or repairs to keep your car in running condition while you wait
for a buyer.
Charities look at car donations from both the point of view of
the donor of the car, and of the charity receiving it. The vehicle
you plan to donate must not have any major parts missing. Also the
donor is responsible to an extent to determine what the value is
of their car donation.
One
of the exceptions to the new IRS regulations allows donors to still
deduct the fair market value of their vehicle, if the charity materially
improves the car or vehicle. Regardless of the laws, it's a very
good idea to protect yourself by having the proper insurance coverage
on your vehicle until it's donated. In wear and tear, minor repairs
and breakdowns, an average vehicle owner could easily spend $3000
per year.
Don't let your unused vehicle go to waste just sitting around gathering
rust. It's easy to donate your car online to individual charities
or to car donation programs that work for charities. Some charities
that run their own program instead of hiring a car donation program
middleman are discriminating about which vehicles they accept, repair
and materially improve. They sell most of the donated vehicles at
retail.
Also, if your car or vehicle is running, consider dropping it off
at the charity yourself to save the organization from paying for
towing costs. After making a connection by email or phone with the
charity or charity program, just fill out the forms they give you
and have them ready for the driver when he/she comes to pick up
the car.
There
are many charitable car donation programs to choose from today including:
Purple Heart, Kidney Foundation, Our Lady of the Wayside, Salvation
Army, Goodwill Industries, Make a Wish Foundation, American Red
Cross, and blind, Jewish and cancer charities among many others.
From classic cars, antique cars to junk or salvage automobiles,
your donated car may earn you a nice tax deduction, and help make
a big difference in the lives of others. Choosing the best charitable
car donation program or best charity for your car donation can be
overwhelming sometimes and you want to make sure your choice is
the best and right one for you.
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