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28th October 2006

How to Donate Your Car to Charity and Get Tax Deduction

Donating your used car to charity is a win-win situation; the charity gets your gift and you get tax deduction. Below are some simple steps to make a car donation.

1. Understand the rules. A good place to read the government rule on car donation is IRS Publication 4303, A Donor’s Guide to Car Donations (available on the IRS’s website at www.irs.gov). This guide outlines some important rules regarding car donation. For example, one important rule states that car donation must be made to qualified organizations in order to be tax deductible.

2. Determine the value of your used car. Although the blue book might help you determine the value of your car, you should read IRS Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated Property (available on the IRS’s website), to see what your car really worth.

3. Find a charity to donate your vehicle. If you are associated with any charity or non-profit organizations, that organization might be your choice for donating your car. Otherwise, check the Yellow Book or search on the Internet to find an organization to which you feel like donating your car. After you have identified a candidate, you should review IRS Publication 78, which is a list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions. This document is also available on the IRS’s website and it’s searchable. Make sure the candidate charity is eligible. Otherwise, you might not get your tax deduction!

4. Make your donation. After you have made the donation, make sure to ask for a written acknowledgement from the charity. You will need to attach this acknowledgement to your tax return in order to get your tax deduction.

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28th October 2006

Reduce your taxes with Car Donation

Car donation is a way of giving away some unwanted automobiles to charity organizations. Car donations or other vehicle donations are very much popular in United States. Actually these charitable donations offer tax benefits so people usually donate cars to reap benefits. The process of donating a car is very easy because there are several organizations that provide all information online.

Sometimes you can start your car donation process online by filling certain forms of different organizations. Car donation is an important process for that charitable trusts who receive such donations. Charitable organizations should make a personal visit or phone call to say thanks. Some people donate cars by their own while others processed via auto auction companies. Car/vehicle donation is a great way to reduce your taxes. If you people have some unwanted cars you should make a charitable donation of your vehicle.

There are some great charities that will come to your home and toe your car away in case you leave some message in their office about your car donation. When your car get sold you’ll receive a document in your mailbox that will show how much deductions you can get on taxes.

Some charitable trusts receive clothing, cars, money and other appliances but prior of any donation you should think about your automobiles. With a car/vehicle donation you’re providing help to a person who really needs it a lot. Car donation gives a complete satisfaction to car owners.

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28th October 2006

Tax Time is here. Donate your car to charity and your donation may save you on taxes

Donate your car, boat, truck or motor home to charity and you may find that your fully tax deductible charitable donation will make an amazing difference to someone who needs food, shelter, or medical care.

Car donations via a non-profit charity classified with the IRS as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization help those in need. Individuals can also receive tax deductions for their vehicle donation which may be worth more then the car’s value to you.

The Family Care Foundation is a leader in accepting car donations to do good throughout the world.

Arrangements will be made to pick up your car donation or other vehicle donation at no cost to you, almost anywhere in the United States, and you will be supplied with the necessary paperwork to claim your tax deduction for your car donation.

Your car donation will help provide humanitarian development and disaster relief in over 50 countries. It’s amazing what a difference one person can make, and we thank you for being that person! Please help us make a difference in someone’s life today by donating your car, boat, truck or RV.

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28th October 2006

You Own A Car? Try The Vehicle Tax Deduction

We love our vehicles like we love our pets. We treat them with care ands howler love. So we do incur some expenses on their maintenance and so why not use them as tax deductible expense?

A vehicle with a gasoline engine and an electric motor can get you a deductible expense of unto $2000 while an electric vehicle can get you something like $4000.

The followingfules are considered as clean and green: natural gas, LNG, LPG, Hydrogen or any other fuel that is at least 85% alcohol or less. You must remember that even though gasoline/electric hybrids use an electric motor, they are not eligible for electric vehicle tax credits.

Now what if your vehicle runs on dual types of fuel? In that case the cost you incur to convert the car into a clean-fuel user is up for deduction, subject to the stated limits.

There are other requirements as well. The first rule is to buy and drive it within the USA only. Should be a four wheel drive and no alterations have to be made to the vehicles.

Get prepared for the donations side of the car. Several ads claim to provide that crucial tax break. Remember, you cannot claim a dime more than what a car can actually cost at the current value.

Now to the charity side of it for you to get the break, it is crucial how they use it. Also the organization you have donated to must be recognized by the tax agencies.

Let’s say the charity you gave your vehicle to sold it off at a lower price than your stated value. Then the amount that you get a deduction for is the lower amount. However, if the value is greater than what you stated, you just don’t have to worry…

So if you are planning to give a car to charity, go ahead. Some one will benefit and the good part is so will you. The tax collectors will make sure of that. And you can have the proud feeling of having donated the car for a noble cause. Our reverend pope will also be a happy man. And so will the people athlete department.

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28th October 2006

How the Tax Break from Car Donations Works

Have a car or a truck that you want out of your garage? Want to get that heart warming feeling of having helped the needy? And last but not the least, want to pay less in taxes this year? Well, you can do all three at the same time! Just go ahead and donate that old car to a charity.

The charity can then go ahead and do any thing with the automobile – sell it, use it for ‘not for profit’ activities or even give it away to a needy individual. Whatever it does with the car, it has to be in accordance with the norms laid down by the IRS to benefit you (in terms of taxes). The organization has to justify the sale or re-donation of the donated vehicle. The donor has to be forwarded complete details about what the charity ultimately did with the car. This documentation has to reach the donor within 30 days of the donation being made. Thereafter the donor can submit the papers to IRS and claim a tax break.

Though this might look quite exciting, there are some ground rules that one has to keep in mind. First and foremost there is a threshold value of $500 set by IRS. What this means is that barring few exceptional cases, taxpayer can deduct no more than this amount from his taxable income even if the fair value of the car is higher. However, if the charity manages to sell the car at a price which is higher than the threshold price, all that the donor has to do is collect documents from the charity giving all the details and submit same to IRS and avail a higher deduction.

The $500 rule also states that if the fair price of the automobile is higher than the set threshold value but the charity manages to sell it at a price lower than $500, the taxpayer still gets to deduct $500 from his taxable income.

What happens if the fair price of the donated automobile is less than $500? In this case the taxpayer gets to deduct only the fair price amount from his taxable income.

What if the charity does not sell the donated vehicle within the stipulated 30 days and decides to use the same for humanitarian or public service activities for a couple of months and later decides to sell the car at a price that is higher than the threshold price? Here the donor can actually claim deduction at the fair market value as long as the charity is able to provide the donor with relevant documents pertaining to the selling price as well as how the auto was used for nonprofit works before the sale.

So, if you have a station wagon lying unused and unwanted in your garage after you bought your new shiny wheels, go ahead and donate it. Just make sure to follow the rules when you claim the tax deduction!

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