The smartest ways to give to charity

Shares Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest

*|MC:SUBJECT|*

We've been keeping up with the latest headlines...
here are two of our favorites worth sharing.

Your Money

If you’re donating to charity by writing checks, you might be leaving money on the table. Here are three ways to give more efficiently:

1. Gift appreciated investments.
Most charities can accept gifts of stocks or mutual funds, which they can sell tax-free. This means the charity receives the full value of your donation without capital gains taxes. Plus, you can use the cash you would have donated to repurchase the same investment, potentially improving your cost basis.

2. Bundle donations with a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF).
If you’re charitably inclined but don’t itemize deductions, consider “bunching” several years of donations into a DAF. This strategy lets you claim a larger deduction upfront while supporting your favorite causes over time.

3. Use your IRA for qualified charitable distributions.
If you’re over 70½, you can donate directly from your IRA to a charity through a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). The donation counts toward your required minimum distribution (RMD) and bypasses ordinary income taxes—a win-win for you and the charity.

At PWM, we integrate charitable and legacy planning into our wealth management process. If you have questions about optimizing your year-end giving, we’re here to help. Contact us today!

How Seniors Can Donate More to Charity and Pay Less in Taxes
by Laura Saunders

Your Life

Remember the days of manually rolling down your car window or changing the brightness of your car lights with a clicker at your feet? Vehicles have come a long way since the time when wearing seat belts was not required by law. There are not only conveniences to make driving and riding in cars more comfortable and enjoyable but also so many advancements in safety features. These safety features are also included in standard vehicles, not just the luxury brands. Features such as automatic emergency braking, traffic sign recognition and driver monitoring systems that ensure you’re alert behind the wheel are being the standard. If you’re in the market for a new ride, check out these vehicles, which USNews ranks with safety and overall scores.

Cars With the Best Safety Features in 2024
by Cherise Threewitt

Complexity Simplified

While fresh spinach is great, don’t overlook frozen spinach. In general, we all know that spinach is a powerhouse food containing vitamins and minerals. The nutrients and other protective compounds in spinach are similar, whether fresh or frozen. However, compared to the frozen form, freshly harvested spinach provides more folate, a B vitamin that some studies have found may prevent heart disease, according to the American Heart Association. However, a study at Pennsylvania State University shows that when fresh spinach sits in a truck for transportation over long distances or sits in your refrigerator for a week, folate content drops so much that frozen spinach becomes the better source. Freezing spinach does not seem to mean any loss in beta-carotene content.

Frozen spinach is terrific to keep on hand for an easy nutrient boost in soups and sauces. When using frozen spinach, you can reduce vitamin C losses by cooking it directly from the freezer without thawing it first. However, to add frozen spinach to a casserole or pasta dish such as lasagna, your dish may turn out best if you first thaw it (using the microwave makes it quick and easy), then place it in a sieve or colander and use a large spoon to squeeze out the excess water. By squeezing this water in a bowl, you can refrigerate it and save it to add to soup or pasta sauce, thus avoiding the loss of vitamin C or other water-soluble nutrients.

Difference Between Frozen and Fresh Spinach
by Karen Collins

Trivia

A: Leonardo da Vinci
Q: Which country was the Caesar salad invented in?

Back in 1968, this song reached #1