Planned Gifts
Leaving a gift to Halifax Humane Society in your will, trust, or other planned gift by designating the organization as your beneficiary can make a lasting difference in our vital and compelling work to save the lives of more dogs and cats. Many gifts cost you nothing now; there is no minimum contribution, and you are not locked into a decision you make today.
BEQUEST
A bequest to the Halifax Humane Society is a beautiful way to express your love for animals as part of your legacy.
How It Works
Include a bequest to Halifax Humane Society in your will or trust. Make your bequest unrestricted or direct it to a specific program within the Halifax Humane Society.
Indicate a specific amount or a percentage of the balance remaining in your estate or trust.
Sample Language:
“I bequeath _________(dollar amount or % of estate) to be used for its general purposes (or you may restrict the gift to a specific program) to the Halifax Humane Society, Inc., or its successors and/or assigns by merger or purchase, federal tax identification number 59-0530990, whose permanent address is 2364 LPGA Blvd., Daytona Beach, FL 32124.”
Benefit to You
Your assets remain in your control during your lifetime. You can modify your bequest to address changing circumstances.
You can direct your bequest to a particular purpose (be sure to check with us to ensure your gift can be used as intended).
Under current tax law, the estate tax deduction for your charitable bequests has no upper limit.
LIFE INSURANCE
Halifax Humane Society accepts gifts of life insurance, either as the beneficiary of a policy or as the sole owner and sole beneficiary. This can be an existing, employer-provided, or paid-up policy.
You can name Halifax Humane Society as a primary life insurance beneficiary or contingent beneficiary should your other beneficiaries not survive you.
After your lifetime, the benefits from your policy pass to the Halifax Humane Society, free of the federal estate tax.
Existing or Employer-Provided Life Insurance
How It Works
Contact your life insurance carrier and request a beneficiary form.
Designate Halifax Humane Society as a primary or contingent beneficiary.
Benefit to You
Simple to give: Involves little effort or paperwork.
Financial advantage: Continued ownership of your policy.
Flexibility: You can change your mind and your beneficiaries at any time.
Future tax savings: Removes the asset from your potential gross taxable estate.
Paid-up Policy
How it Works
You transfer a paid-up life insurance policy ownership to the Halifax Humane Society.
Halifax Humane Society cashes in the policy now or maintains it and receives the death benefit later.
Benefit to You
Income tax savings: You’re entitled to a current income tax deduction.
Future tax savings: Removes the asset from your potential gross taxable estate.
RETIREMENT PLANS
Retirement Plan Retirement assets include tax-deferred retirement saving accounts, like Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA), 401(k), 403(b), annuities, Keogh, and pension plans. While you live, gifts from these accounts may have withdrawal penalties and income tax consequences. However, naming the Halifax Humane Society as the beneficiary of your retirement assets at your death avoids income tax and estate tax obligations.
Suppose the largest asset in your estate is your retirement plan, such as a 401(k), IRA, or Keogh. In that case, you may be surprised that the IRS will impose income tax on the remaining balance in the account if you designate it to a beneficiary other than your spouse.
The income from the after-death distribution of a tax-deferred retirement plan to an heir is taxable as income and is in addition to the estate tax that may be imposed on the account. For estates fully subject to the estate tax, the result can be that up to 75 percent of the value of your retirement plan will be consumed in taxes before your child, relative or friend receives it.
How It Works
Name the Halifax Humane Society as a beneficiary of your IRA, 401(k), or another qualified plan.
Designate Halifax Humane Society to receive all or a portion of the balance of your plan through your plan administrator. The balance in your plan reverts to Halifax Humane Society after your lifetime.
Your gift to Halifax Humane Society is not taxed for income nor the estate because Halifax Humane Society is a tax-exempt organization.
Benefit to You
Avoid the double taxation your retirement savings would incur if you designated your heir(s) as beneficiary(ies). Continue to take regular lifetime withdrawals. You can remove us as a beneficiary if your family’s needs change.
STOCKS, BONDS, and MUTUAL FUNDS
These are the most common types of securities in a person’s portfolio. By making a gift of securities to the Halifax Humane Society, you can claim the full-appreciated value of the Securities as a charitable contribution deduction and avoid the capital gains tax.
Charitable Gift Annuity
Your contribution of cash or securities to a charitable gift annuity not only supports Halifax Humane Society but also provides you or your loved ones with a fixed income payment for life based on your age at the time of the gift.
How It Works
You transfer cash or securities to Halifax Humane Society. Halifax Humane Society pays you or another beneficiary you name fixed income for life.
The remaining balance passes to the Halifax Humane Society when the contract ends at the death of the last beneficiary.
Note:
Beneficiaries must be at least 65 at the time of the gift.
Our minimum gift requirement is $10,000.
Benefit to You
Receive dependable, fixed income for life in return for your gift. In many cases, increase the yield you currently receive from stocks or CDs.
Receive an immediate income tax deduction for a portion of your gift. A portion of your annuity payment will be tax-free.
Pet Safe – Pet Trust Program
Ensuring the Care of Your Pets After You’re Gone
If you have pets, you want to know they will be cared for and loved if anything happens to you. We strongly recommend that you remember your pets when crafting your estate plan. Find someone you can trust to leave them to and talk to this person so they know your plans. If you do not have anyone to leave your pets to, Halifax Humane Society offers a Pet Safe program to ensure your pet is taken care of in their new home with a loving family when you are gone or are disabled.
Halifax Humane Society is a local, non-profit corporation funded through the support of community members like you.
(If your will or trust document does not specify who will transport the pets to our agency in Florida, we can work with your personal representative, trustee, or other responsible party to have your pet safely transported to our shelter facilities. The cost of transport outside of the boundaries of Florida is the responsibility of the pet owner or his/her estate.)
We suggest a minimum planned gift of $5,000 bequeathed to Halifax Humane Society, Federal Identification Number 59-0530990, to support your pets’ enrollment.
A planned gift may be:
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- A bequest in your will or trust;
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- Naming Halifax Humane Society as a beneficiary of your life insurance or qualified retirement plan;
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- Naming Halifax Humane Society as the beneficiary of a “transfer on death” bank or stock account;
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- A charitable gift annuity or a charitable remainder trust.
Required next steps for enrolling a dog or cat in Pet Safe:
Complete one Pet Safe Enrollment Agreement for each of your pets;
Complete one Pet Safe Pet Profile for each of your pets;
Please make a check payable to Halifax Humane Society for $250 for each pet as a nonrefundable Reservation Fee.
Mail completed documents and check to Pet Safe – Pet Trusts, Halifax Humane Society, j2364 LPGA Blvd., Daytona Beach, FL 32124.
Pet Safe – Pet Trust Enrollment Agreement Cat Intake Profile Dog Intake Profile
For more information and other ways to set up planned giving options, please contact Sean Hawkins, our Chief Executive Officer, at sean@halifaxhumanesociety.org.
