So, I may or may not have mentioned a while back here and in chat that my poor '88 Mustang crapped out about 2 months ago. Since then I’ve bought a nice new car and am ready to just forget about my old one. The clutch on it burned out, and the mechanic said it’d probably cost $450 to fix. The car is Kelly Blue Booked at about $1000 and I really don’t feel like putting in the time and effort to pay for the repairs and then sell it, so I’m just going to donate it to charity for the Tax Write off. My tax situation would probably mean I won’t see any of that rebate but the car is in both mine and my mom’s name, so she could donate it and get a significant return from the write-off. (Any Tax pros want to explain this I’d be happy to hear it, but I’m just going to trust the advice I got from a friend of the family).
This brings me to the point. Who should I donate the car to, it mainly needs to be a place that offers free towing, but I’ve found a ton of websites with possibilities. I’m not a very philanthopic individual, so I’m kinda at a loss at picking which charity to help out. I’m turning to you guys for suggestions and maybe similar stories to share. I’d obviously like it to go some place where it’d be used and appreciated somehow, and preferably something that isn’t too frivolous. My personal opinion leans towards a domestic charity. A second consideration is going to be a charity that isn’t going to end up making this more effort than its worth, I’m hoping for one phone call and then be done with it.
So, has anyone done this recently and have a good/bad experience to report? Any charities you would like to plug? And if anyone has any alternaives or warnings I’d be happy to listen. I’m pretty dense when it comes to Tax laws, and have never done anything like this before so really any thoughts are welcome.
The National Kidney Foundation will take your car off of your hands happily. As far as I know, they tow for free as well. We’ve donated two cars to them. Here’s a link. Hope this is somewhat helpful.
I’m the owner of a ‘69 Cadillac, bought it new ! I hope my family buries me in it! I have driven it every day. It’s like an old friend. If you love your car, don’t give it up ,no matter what!! You’ll regret lettin’ it go.
I’ve had several wives, I watched all of their cars go to the junk yard. Fix your car, love it, take care of it!
We donated a car to the National Kidney Foundation some years back. I heard about the program on a Monday, called them Tuesday, and they sent a tow truck out for the car on Wednesday. It was incredibly easy, the people there were very pleasant, and although we didn’t make enough at the time (nor was the car worth enough) for the tax write-off to be an issue, I knew that we were contributing to a worthwhile organization.
Here’s a link directly to the page on the Kidney Foundation’s site: Kidney Cars
83% of donations to the Kidney Foundation go for services and research (54%) or education (29%). That’s pretty respectable for an organization of its size.
You can also donate it to a local volunteer fire company. They will happily take it off your hands and use it for training.
Yes, they will set it on fire, put out the fire and then proceed to rip the doors off and then peel off the roof.
Just another option to consider.
I donated mine to a charity called The Good News Garage. No link, but it is a subsidiary of the Lutherian church, you can try calling a local chapter and see if you have a program like this in your area. They take donated cars, tow them for free, fix them up and sell them at a drastically discounted price to low income families, so they can have a car to get to work. Great program. I didn’t itemize, so I didn’t get any monitary benefit, but I felt good.
Depends on where you are, but most local charities need cars to drive food etc around. Just call one; if they don’t, I bet they’ll be able to direct you to one that does.
Thanks for the responses so far guys, I appreciate it. I still haven’t decided which charity to contact yet, but I’m hoping to get the situation resolved by early this coming week.
I’m thinking I’d like a US (domestic), secular charity. Beyond that I’m still pretty wide open. My family was touched by Cancer so if the American Cancer Society (or whatever its really called) accepts them it might be a nice choice.
Anyways, if anyone has a thought or suggestion please share it. If you have a charity you like to commit time to, tell me why you appreciate that charity and maybe I’ll empathize and choose that one. Thanks for the help guys.
I’d vote for a local battered women’s shelter, if there’s one in your area. I’ve never had to donate a car, but I donate all my old computers to mine, and give what time I can. I figure anything to help out the women who have the courage to finally leave is a good thing.
My personal favorite is the “Make-A-Wish Foundation” which grants the wishes of terminally ill kids. When a friend had an office down the hall from them, we used to slip one dollar bills under their door as we passed.
They do amazing things. One thing I have personal knowledge of- a lady at my church had a granddaughter who was dying of cancer. Her wish was to visit the set of the “X-Files” to watch it being filmed. There were problems getting it set up, maybe because it was filmed in Canada at the time. I wrote to the show and to Chris Carter, explaining the problems the foundation was having in setting the wish up.
Well, the show came through like a champ. Not only did Annie and her family get flown up to the set, but she got to meet and hang out with the stars for a couple of days, take lots of pictures & video, etc. Then, just before the “X-Files” movie was going to come out, she took a turn for the worse, and it was feared that she wouldn’t live to see it. So the producers arranged for a private advance screening for her! Weeks before release! Good thing they did, because she died soon after.
Anyway, the point is that “Make-A-Wish” brings about great things, and I think you should contact them about donating your car. Thanks for letting me hijack briefly.
Just another plug for the firefighters.
You get the tax write-off, and even if the car is not running, they will take it anyway. Some charities only take working cars.
Thanks!
We just donated our 11 year old van to the Volunteers of America. One phone call and they came and towed it, took the signed title, left a receipt, and promised to mail the paperwork within two weeks. Extremely convenient.
I donated my old truck to the Vocational/technical school here in huntsville and got a nice write off.
I decied that was a good place because I was at tech school for a lot of high school and I know the kids need cars to practice on when they fix it up they Auction it off to help pay for dues and sending kids to competitions for scolarships.
Since you did ask for advice from tax pros- A word about deductibily:
Quote from IRS Publication 562
"Example. You donate your car to a local high school for use by students studying automobile repair. Your credit union told you that the “blue book” value of the car is $1,600. However, your car needs extensive repairs and, after some checking, you find that you could sell it for $750. You can deduct $750, the true fair market value of the car, as a charitable contribution. "
This publication also explains the documentation you will need for the donation. If you choose a reputable charity that handles these sorts of donations frequently that shouldn’t be a problem. The like to the site if you want more information http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/prod/forms_pubs/pubs/p526toc.htm
The important part is under contributions of property.
I really hope this link works! This is my first one.
