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April 2018 Newsletter

Newsletter Archives

Planned Giving Mentor

S. Renee Brida, JD Senior Associate and Attorney

Professional Partnerships: Hospice Philanthropy Group L.L.C.

 

Quote for the day: Philanthropy is not about money...It is about feeling the pain of others and caring enough about their need to help....Timothy Pina

Quickie quiz:....What percentage of women fear they will run out of money by age 80 in their retirement years.....21%, 33%, 42%, 51%, 58% (answer below)

Senior Spirit.....Click the Senior Spirit link (below left) for a copy of the latest articles from Certified Senior Advisors

Past issues of the Newsletter are available in the Newsletter Archives

To subscribe to this newsletter E-mail and put Subscribe in the subject line. _______________________________________________________________________

Fundraising under the new 2018 income and estate tax laws....is the name of a White Paper I created at the request of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP). It provides a specific overview of those aspects of the new Tax and Jobs Act. This specifically effect, our work in raising capital for the mission of your charity.

After a summary of the law, the paper lists what fundraisers should do to explain the impact of this new law and specific gift strategies your program should include. Eleven (11) specific examples are cited as opportunities for donor support. This paper builds upon the excellent work of others in the fundraising field who analyzed the important changes in the Tax and Jobs Act.

I appreciate the editing of Wayne Olson of Wayne Olson Consulting LLC. One important note about this paper, it was created before the ACGA announcement on the July 1st rate increases for gift annuities.

Download White Paper here

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Marketing Idea #1....Legacy Society recognition....How do you recognize your new legacy society members. Do you just list their names in your annual report? Download the two page recognition for the newest members of the McLeod Foundation, Florence, SC and use it as an example of how legacy society is recognized. Also see how the the annual report is complemented by their Legacy Society web pages.

 

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Marketing Idea #2....Canvasser's Card for planned gifts.....Do have volunteers involved in your legacy gift program? If so do you provide training and support by using a canvasser card to remind them about how to approach their assignments?

In reviewing some old files I uncovered the canvasser's card for the Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation "Forever" campaign. Four key points were covered for the Planned Giving Presentation: 1) Keep the message simple. 2) Listen and Learn. 3) Ask for the Gift. 4) Thank them. All good points to consider for your card.

Important to note the card contained responses to several common objections which we still hear today.

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Do you know the average age of an estate plan?.... "It is about the same age as the eldest child identified in it." Really?

A recent monthly newsletter I received on Inheritance Planning Insights from an attorney office contained the above quote. I guess my estate plan is 51 years old? I doubt it.

Also interesting there was no mention of charitable bequests in the article. There are several way to gain donor attention but charities should consider carefully how they position the motivation for planning estate gifts. Under the new " Tax and Jobs Act" the estate exemption has been dramatically increased but good estate planning is built on donors determining "what to give, who to give it to, and when to give it."

Read the complete article.

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Gift annuity rate update and laminated gift annuity rate charts.....If you would like a laminated rate chart for the most recent ACGA July 1,2018 rates simply request one using the following E-mail request and put Laminated Rate Chart in the subject line.

Be sure your signature line has your full address.

As of this writing the rates have been announced and the charts are available soon.

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Website observations and helpful hints.....Have you reviewed your development, giving or planned giving web site recently? I spend hours reviewing websites and have a few helpful suggestions based on going down many blind links.

1. Review your website links at least once a month or or frequetly after a website update. Make sure new content has been loaded correctly and has not effected other content or links.

A visit to a recent Circle of Remembrance page for a montly giving club, I found the the link led to a blank page.

2. My number one complaint for giving web sites is there are no staff contact list with names, Email addresses and phone numbers. Development is a relationship business and a contact listed as foundation@abccharity.org is never sufficient.

You will need to update your list frequently if you have staff turnover. Excellent staff sites include a picture with the complete address, phone and Email contact information. This is especially important if you have multiple facilities or multiple websites for your programs.

3. Remove old content, especially for an event, shortly after it has been completed and you have announced your success. It does not look good when last years golf tournament is still visible six months after the event. If you are going to do the event again simply put a reminder of the new date on the site and a note to check back later.

4. Review you website using different browsers. Some browsers may list you content differently.

5. If you have a Legacy Society web page include the names of your current members or the most recent members. This is good page to include links to pictures of members and a short bio about why and how they joined.

6. Do not forget to add information on Donor Advised Funds and a DAF Direct link. Learn more here and how to put a DAF WIDGET on your web site.

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Position opening....Orange County Community Foundation - Director of Gift Planning.....Working directly with the Vice President, Philanthropic Planning and External Relations, the Director of Gift Planning is responsible for developing and executing strategies to cultivate donors and build strong relationships with professional financial advisers and their clients.

Orange County Community Foundation works with generous individuals, families and businesses to improve life for the people who call Orange County home. It is located in Newport Beach and is the 8th largest community foundation nationally.

Full position announcement

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Quiz Answer....42% of women fear they'll run out of money by age 80. Are they right?

A study by Merrill Lynch and Age Wave has found that 42% of women are concerned that they will outlive their nest egg when they reach the age of 80, according to this article on personal finance website Motley Fool.

These poll participants' fears are not unfounded, as they have failed to save at least $738,000, the amount they would need to have a comfortable retirement, the study says. Older female workers who don't have sizeable savings should opt to work longer to give themselves more time to save, allow their savings to grow more and boost their Social Security retirement benefits.

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News and Notes....

JUST A FEW HAVE ONE? Only 23% of American workers (in both the public and the private sector) have a defined benefit pension plan (source: National Compensation Survey for 2017).

NOTHER BILL TO PAY - A 65-year old couple retiring in 2018 will need an estimated $280,000 (present value amount stated in 2018 dollars) to pay out-of-pocket health care costs during the couple’s retirement years. The $280,000 figure assumes the couple qualifies for Medicare but does not require nursing home care. This annual forecast has risen from $225,000 in 2008 (source: Fidelity).

RETIRE HERE - Social Security benefits are taxed by just 13 US states, i.e., 37 states do not count monthly Social Security benefits as taxable income at the state level (source: Internal Revenue Service).

JUST NOT ENOUGH - Almost 2 out of every 3 American workers (65%) believe that even if they continue to work until age 65 that they will not accumulate enough savings “to meet their retirement needs” (source: Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies).

OWE NOTHING - 64% of the 120 million households in the USA are homeowners, a total of 77 million households. 34% of the 77 million homeowners (26 million households) are mortgage debt-free (source: ATTOM).

RAPID CITY OR JACKSONVILLE? - The top 3 states for retirement in 2018 are Florida, Colorado and South Dakota. This subjective evaluation was based upon 41 metrics that assessed affordability, health care, quality of life, crime, weather and the state’s tax environment source: WalletHub).

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Kudos Corner - Celebrating gifts of all types and sizes

In this section I periodically highlight some recent gift expectancies and gift program elements I think will be helpful and informative, not all gifts are included.

(Check back next issue for list of achievements)

 

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James E. Connell and Associates is a national consulting service which has been devoted to increasing

resources for charities using the power of charitable estate and gift planning techniques for over 40 years.

Pinehurst office: PO Box 3335, Pinehurst, NC 28374
Phone: 910-295-6800

Northeast office: 20982 Bayside Avenue, Rock Hall, MD 21661

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