As a financial advisor who prepares taxes, I see various degrees of substantiation when it comes to non-cash charitable donations (i.e. Goodwill). Everything from handwritten receipts (which don’t work) to detailed records show up in my office. The difference between the two can affect your taxable bottom line. Remember, the better the substantiation, the easier it is to properly value your donation.
This past Sunday, while the weather was cold and dreary, we decided it was time to clean out our closets. Molly and I went to work piling up Goodwill items. We enlisted the help of our kids with the task. Hanna created a spreadsheet to itemize and categorize the goods. Yes, even our teenager was eagerly involved since the work revolved around a computer. Greta took pictures and packaged up the items. Michael simply added sound effects and destroyed piles, so we sent him off to his lair where he could build and destroy his own piles.
Within an hour or two we had several bags of well-organized goods to deliver to Goodwill. Hanna finished the spreadsheet and printed the pictures. I made a quick trip to Goodwill and dropped off a car-load of clothing. Of course, I retrieved the receipt and returned home to finish up the job of filing away my records.
The IRS requires substantiation of non-cash donations. I always tell clients to do four things when donating non-cash items:
- Get a receipt with a date of donation
- Create and itemized list of goods donated
- Take pictures
- Track mileage
Following the above protocol will allow you to properly value your donations, which will more than likely lead to higher donation values…..which in return saves you tax dollars.
One note: remember that all items donated need to be in good or better condition for the IRS to allow the donation. Pictures should cover this need, as well as substantiate the value of your donation.
Our Sunday afternoon proved to be a profitable venture. When all was said and done, our donation will save us over $200 in taxes…..that’s like putting $200 in our pocket. Plus my closet is clean! The bad news is my kids want their cut of the loot, but that’s a blog post for another day!
Any of the above information is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended to be considered tax advice or implemented as such.
Hi there! This article could not be written much better! Looking through this post reminds me of my previous roommate!
He always kept preaching about this. I am going to
send this article to him. Pretty sure he’ll have a great
read. Many thanks for sharing!
my blog – donate my car
Undeniably believe that which you stated. Your favorite reason appeared to be on the net the simplest thing to
be aware of. I say to you, I definitely get irked while people think about
worries that they just don’t know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and defined out
the whole thing without having side effect , people can take a signal.
Will likely be back to get more. Thanks
My weblog physical therapist
My partner and I stumbled over here from a different web page and thought I might
check things out. I like what I see so now i am following you.
Look forward to finding out about your web page for a second time.
Also visit my webpage :: donate your car
Hi, of course this piece of writing is genuinely
pleasant and I have learned lot of things from it regarding blogging.
thanks.
My web-site … pure garcinia cambogia
Hello There. I found your blog using msn. This is
a very well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to
read more of your useful information. Thanks for the post.
I’ll certainly return.
Thanks gta 5! I hope you continue to read my blog posts and find them useful.
Hi there! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog.
Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty fast.
I’m thinking about making my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any points or suggestions?
Appreciate it
Howdy I am so glad I found your weblog, I really found you by error,
while I was searching on Aol for something else, Anyways I am
here now and would just like to say thanks a lot for a incredible post
and a all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I
don’t have time to read it all at the minute
but I have bookmarked it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I
have time I will be back to read much more, Please do keep up the awesome b.
Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets
I could add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates.
I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this
for quite some time and was hoping maybe you
would have some experience with something like this.
Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look
forward to your new updates.
Every weekend i used to visit this website, for the
reason that i want enjoyment, since this this web page
conations truly good funny information too.
White, head of retail stores and dedicated ‘e-lounges’.