Furniture Consignments
How To Do a Good
Deed for the VSA
As with any membership organization, there is always a
critical need to raise additional funds to keep the Victorian
Society running in the black.
Good surplus furniture and furnishings can
be of great value to the Society. Instead of simply disposing
of these things, take them to a consignment shop in your area.
Consignment should be made in the name of the VSA, so that at
the time of sale the check will be made payable to and sent to
The Victorian Society in America.
The donor is responsible for obtaining an appraisal to
establish the retail value, and the donor may use this
appraised value as a contribution to the VSA for income tax
purposes. Good photographs of the item(s) and a good written
description (which includes statement of condition) must be
provided if the appraiser is off site. The VSA can offer
suggestions if the donor does not know a qualified appraiser.
When items are sold and payment is received, the VSA will send
an acknowledgement letter to the donor thanking the donor for
his or her gift. The end result of this process is that both
the donor and the recipient benefit--a true win/win situation.
By C. Dudley Brown
(C. Dudley Brown, FASID, is a professional
interior designer and a long standing board member of the
Society.)
|
Estate Planning
Leaving a Legacy
When you calculate the value of your estate, you may find that
life insurance and/or retirement plan assets make up a large
part. As you review your estate and financial plans, consider
turning such assets into convenient, tax-wise ways to make
charitable gifts.
Amounts remaining in Individual Retirement
Accounts (IRAs) and other qualified pension fund accounts can
be subject to double taxation at death. These assets may not
only be included in your taxable estate, but heirs generally
will also have to pay income tax on what remains after estate
taxes have been paid. The result: Total taxes of 70% or more,
with a very small percentage of the funds left to your loved
ones. For this reason, you may want to consider using all or a
portion of remaining pension funds at death to satisfy your
charitable wishes.
Life insurance purchased to protect a spouse or children may
no longer be needed for that purpose, yet it increases the
size of a taxable estate. Consider adding "new life" to your
insurance by making a charitable gift through your estate
plan...in most cases it involves merely a change of
beneficiary form. Check with your advisors.
For further information please contact:
THE VICTORIAN SOCIETY IN AMERICA
1634 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-636-9872
Fax: 215-636-9873
Email:
info@victoriansociety.org
|
TM