Planned Gift ideas:

·         Bequests and Living Trusts:Naming Habitat for Humanity South Sarasota County as a beneficiary in your Will or Living Trust is uncomplicated. They are flexible and unrestricted.  Below is example language you can use to include Habitat in your will or trust. Assets bequeathed or in a trust for charity are removed from testator’s taxable estate.  “I give, devise and bequeath (written amount or percentage of the estate or description of specific property) of my estate to the Habitat South Sarasota County Federal I.D. #65-0326534, a non-profit corporation of in the State of Florida, for its unrestricted charitable use and purpose.” The fund created shall be known as the (insert name of fund). 

 ·         Charitable Gift Annuities:These are income producing gifts. They are a combination of a gift to charity and an annuity. Donors make a gift of cash or securities to Habitat South Sarasota County and in return receive a fixed annual income for life. This combination of tax free income with an initial charitable deduction is an attractive contract. The donor may defer this income until their retirement age when the return will be higher due to their increased age. You can also do a Deferred Gift Annuity that is given in the future at a selected time.   

·         Charitable Remainder Unitrust:These are also income producing gifts (a special trust) that pays income to the family. Donors pull together appreciated securities, bonds, real property or cash (assets that will be liquid later) to create a Unitrust. The Unitrust then converts any low yielding investments to higher rates of return and defer the taxes on any capital gains and gives you a charitable tax deduction. It will then pay income for life or for a term of years that do not exceed 20 years. The minimum contribution is usually $100,000 but it reduces the size of your taxable estate. You also can make additional gift later into your Unitrust. 

·         Transfer of Wealth to Charities (Lead Trusts)These are transfers of residence or vacation homes to Habitat, but you retain the use of the property for life or a term of years. They eliminate the need for quick sales or settlement obligations. A percentage of the value of the trust is distributed each year to selected charity (Habitat) for a chosen number of years and after that term ends, the principle is distributed to your family. There are also Annuity Lead Trust available. 

·         IRAs and Retirement Plans:You can designate these to Habitat as your testamentary beneficiary and have an instant Legacy in you or your family’s name and reduce your tax obligations.  

·         Donations in “Memory Of”:Create a special way to honor your loved ones that you can designate to the project that best pays tribute to their memory.

For questions on how to donate, please call Maryann Terry, Development Director at 941-493-6606 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it