PLANNING YOUR LEGACY
YOUR LEGACY GIFT TO CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY
Turn your passion for CSU into a lasting legacy. Establishing a legacy gift to Cleveland State University through estate planning can help you maximize financial goals, provide for loved ones, and meet your charitable aspirations of supporting CSU and our students for generations to come.
Estate planning is for everyone, regardless of age or assets, and is a strategic way for you to make a significant contribution that may not otherwise be possible during your lifetime.
Consider including CSU in your estate plans in a way that best meets your lifestyle and needs. When you do, you’ll be setting your support for CSU’s future in motion, today.
Successful gift planning is a creative process based on your goals and financial situation. There are a variety of legacy giving options to consider:
• Leaving CSU as a beneficiary in your will, trust, or retirement account
• Donating a life insurance policy
• Creating a life income stream through a charitable gift annuity
• Contributing through your IRA or donor-advised fund
Gift advantages can include a current charitable income tax deduction; a guaranteed lifetime income for you and/or your loved ones; savings on capital gains, income, gift and estate taxes, and of course, providing support to advance CSU’s mission.
In addition to being personally rewarding, the majority of legacy gifts are revocable. If your financial needs or philanthropic priorities change, your gift remains yours to use during your lifetime. Most legacy gifts are also affordable. While larger estates may require more protections, many people can make a legacy gift with little to no cost.
For instance, certain untaxed assets such as stocks and bonds, retirement accounts, real property, and other appreciated assets may be subject to extensive taxes if left to the family. Other assets,
such as life insurance proceeds, are generally tax-free. It may be wise to use untaxed assets for your charitable giving while leaving the tax-free assets to individuals.
You can designate your legacy gift to the CSU Foundation to support a specific cause such as establishing a scholarship or professorship, building an existing scholarship, or supporting a College or program. You can also allow the CSU Foundation to direct your unrestricted gift to where it’s most needed. Once you make your gift, you are inspiring others to do the same to support CSU, our programs and our students.
The planned giving strategies presented in this guide summarize options for consideration. To determine what is best for you, your family and estate, it is best to consult with your attorney, tax advisor or financial planner. Our team at the CSU Foundation will work with your professional advisor in whatever capacity necessary. Gifts can be designated to the CSU Foundation:
Cleveland State University Foundation 2121 Euclid Ave, UN 501
Cleveland, OH 44115
Tax ID: 34-1316665
IRA CHARITABLE ROLLOVER
If you are 70 ½ or older, you can gift up to $105,000 from your IRA directly to the CSU Foundation through an IRA Charitable Rollover, otherwise known as a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), without paying income tax on that gift. Your IRA Charitable Rollover can also satisfy all or part of your required minimum distribution (RMD) beginning at age 73. This giving option will benefit you if you do not need the income from your IRA, if the income will substantially increase your taxed income, and whether you itemize or take the standard deduction. Under the Legacy IRA Act, you can make a one-time, tax-free distribution from an IRA account to establish a charitable remainder trust or gift annuity for an amount determined by IRS guidelines, receiving cash back throughout your lifetime. An IRA Charitable Rollover gift to CSU:
• Allows you to give from pre-tax assets and your distribution is excluded from taxable income
• Minimizes the effect your giving has on cash flow as the gift is from your assets, not your checkbook
• Make pledge payments to an existing CSU gift pledge with no out-of-pocket expense, which may help you fulfill your pledge sooner than expected and open opportunities for additional charitable gifts
DONOR ADVISED FUND (DAF)
Create a donor advised fund, make it the recipient of all your philanthropic contributions, and advise it to make grants when you want and to the organizations you want, including CSU. You receive an income tax deduction when you contribute funds to the DAF. A DAF can be established with a sponsoring organization or financial institution which invests your funds, and you advise how and when you want the funds granted. DAFs cannot return the funds to you, and you can only advise grants, although most institutions will follow your advice. DAFs offer a range of benefits:
• You can make gifts anonymously
• You can centralize and time your charitable giving, receiving tax deductions in the year you prefer to make the donations, not disburse them
• The DAF maintains record keeping for your charitable donations
• Your administrator invests your DAF to grow, which will allow you to give more, for longer
• You can name your children and grandchildren as co-advisors to the DAF, instilling a sense of family philanthropy and legacy
• You can name CSU as a beneficiary of your DAF
GIFTS OF APPRECIATED ASSETS
Donating appreciated assets, such as stocks, can be a valuable tool in your charitable gift and estate planning. If you decide to dispose of an appreciated stock, you will pay capital gains tax on the gain. However, making a current gift of appreciated stock to CSU has many potential benefits, including a charitable income tax deduction, the avoidance of capital gains tax and increased income. If you have held the stock for more than one year and it is greater in value than what you paid, you can deduct the fair-market value of the stock at the time you make the gift, not the lesser amount of what you paid. Talking with your financial advisor and the CSU Foundation can be helpful when deciding to contribute a gift of appreciated stock or other securities, or you can do so by scanning the code below to visit the CSU Planned Giving website.
BENEFICIARY DESIGNATIONS
Beneficiary designations are an easy, no-cost legacy giving option. You can simply list the Cleveland State University Foundation as a partial or full beneficiary on the designated forms for your bank account, IRA, 401K, annuity or life insurance policy. Then, please contact the CSU Foundation to inform us of your gift and how you intend it to be used. In addition, the taxes your heirs would likely incur if they inherited your retirement savings would be avoided if the assets are instead gifted to CSU.
CHARITABLE BEQUESTS
A charitable bequest made in your will is an easy method to provide support to CSU while leaving you free to use your assets during your lifetime. Once you create your bequest, please contact the CSU Foundation to inform us of your intention and how you wish your gift to be designated. Your charitable bequest may be:
• A specific dollar amount or asset
• A percentage of your estate
• A full or partial remainder of your estate
• A gift contingent on another beneficiary’s ability to accept
LIFE INSURANCE
Significant tax benefits may be available by gifting unneeded life insurance policies to CSU, either by naming CSU as a beneficiary of a policy or transferring ownership of a policy to CSU.
• Naming CSU as a beneficiary of a life insurance policy provides you with a charitable income tax deduction for your estate.
• If you gift a paid-up policy to CSU, you will receive a charitable tax deduction for the cash value of the policy. Otherwise, donors generally receive a deduction equal to the amount of premiums paid, known as basis. If you have owned the policy for many years, this could result in significant tax savings.
• You can make annual gifts to CSU to support premium payments which would be tax-deductible for you and would ensure CSU receives the full policy value upon your death. Donors may also continue paying the premiums and receive additional tax benefits.
LIFE INCOME GIFTS
Realize significant tax advantages and maintain a dependable income for you or your loved ones while supporting CSU.
A Charitable Gift Annuity can guarantee fixed payments throughout your lifetime, with the remaining value transferring to the CSU Foundation; you cannot outlive your payments. Payments can also be deferred up to at least one year to receive a higher payment rate. The CSU Foundation will provide you with payout rates calculated on your age and the applicable federal interest rate. You receive an income tax deduction for part of the funding amount and capital gains benefits when you transfer stock to fund your CGA. Payments are also tax-advantaged. Ideal for those who have
A Charitable Trust benefits you or your beneficiaries and CSU.
• Charitable Lead Trusts distribute payments to CSU, and at the end of the term, the remaining assets are distributed to you or your family. This type of gift can reduce or eliminate gift or estate taxes.
• Charitable Remainder Trusts distribute payments to your beneficiaries, and at the end of the term, the remaining assets are distributed to CSU. Annual payments can be a fixed amount (Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust – CRAT) or based on a percentage of the trust corpus (Charitable Remainder Unitrust – CRUT). The trust term can be for your life or a set number of years. This plan is ideal for someone with cash or appreciated property worth at least $100,000 who desires income tax and
GIFTS OF REAL ESTATE
Consider supporting CSU with a gift of real estate, ideal for those who do not plan to pass on property to their heirs.
• Bequest: Leave a property or the proceeds of its sale to CSU in your will or trust.
• Life Estate: Receive an income tax deduction today by gifting your home or property to CSU tomorrow. To make this gift, you surrender the equity in your property and transfer the deed to CSU. You will receive a current charitable income tax deduction for the present value of the remainder interest (as long as there are no restrictions on that interest) and can live or use the property as long as you pay costs associated with maintenance, insurance and taxes. When you vacate the property, you or your estate receives an additional tax deduction. CSU can retain the property or sell and direct the net proceeds according to your intentions. You can also make a gift of property even if it carries a mortgage.
• Bargain Sale: Sell an appreciated property to CSU at a price less than fair market value; in turn, receive cash to reinvest for future income and an income tax deduction for your gift (the difference between the fair market value and purchase price). You will also avoid capital gains tax on your charitable gift.
TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY
Consider donating valuable assets to CSU such as artwork, historical artifacts, and books that you no longer want or need and receive an income tax deduction the year of the donation. Acceptance of the gift is determined by the appropriate program director or dean at CSU, and gifts valued at $5,000 or more must be accompanied by an appraisal from a qualified appraiser.
IN GRATITUDE
Donors who make planned gifts to Cleveland State University are recognized for their generosity through membership in the Legacy Society. Through the Legacy Society, CSU acknowledges and expresses gratitude for the generosity of individuals who have chosen to leave a lasting impact on the university through their estate plan.
Planned gifts are diverse and support CSU in numerous ways. These include providing financial stability and a strong future outlook, institutional growth and development, program enhancement, scholarship opportunities, student services, state-ofthe-art facilities and infrastructure, and ground-breaking research.
Planned Giving donors leave their legacy to CSU while helping our students begin theirs. Get started with your estate plan by contacting us at the information below.
Constance M. Karapelou, BA ’87, MA ’02 Senior Director, Gift and Estate Planning
Cleveland State University 216.875.9838
c.karapelou@csuohio.edu
