Leave a Legacy
There are many ways to leave a meaningful, lasting legacy on homelessness in Chicago. Planning a charitable gift to HOW helps women, children, and families in need by providing them with affordable housing, support, and the tools they need to rebuild their lives and create a brighter future. Learn more below.
Contact your financial adviser and/or attorney about how you can use your assets to make a charitable impact while maximizing your financial and tax benefits.
Your last will and testament, estate plan and/or trust allow you to pass down a legacy to family, friends, and charitable causes that are important to you. You may make a bequest to HOW by directing in your will and/or other legal documents that certain assets (a specified sum of money, a percentage of your estate, or other financial assets) be transferred to HOW upon the execution of your will. During your lifetime, such assets will remain under your control and you can continue to update your bequest as circumstances chance.
You can designate HOW as the beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of a life insurance policy, which can reduce the value of your taxable estate.
Retirement Plan Assets
Funds held in retirement plan accounts, including 401Ks and IRAs, can often be subject to income and estate taxes when the account holder passes away, reducing the amount that is passed on to heirs. You can name HOW as a designated beneficiary in the retirement plan or direct that an IRA distribution be made directly to HOW.
A Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) has a donor transfer assets (such as cash, stocks, property, and artwork) to a trust. Income from the invested assets generates income for the donor (or another named beneficiary) for a set amount of time. After the end of the term or the death of the donor, what remains in the trust goes to the donor's designated nonprofit. A Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) pays an annuity to one or more charitable organizations for a term specified by the account creator, providing steady, reliable income for a nonprofit organization to make an impact, then remaining assets are distributed to one or more non-charitable individual beneficiaries when the term ends.
Charitable Gift Annuities
Sometimes called "Life Income Plans," charitable gift annuities benefit a nonprofit and serve as a way for individuals to invest safely with a predictable return. A charitable gift annuity involves a contract between a donor(s) and a nonprofit. The donors gift the nonprofit certain assets. The nonprofit, in return, pays a fixed annuity (usually quarterly or monthly payments) to the donor(s)for their lifetimes.