Leave a Legacy

A planned gift to Casa Serena will create a sustainable future for women’s recovery from addiction in Santa Barbara. Here are some of the most commonly used vehicles for making a planned gift. We recommend that you consult your attorney, tax advisor and financial planner for assistance.

Bequests

The easiest way to provide a planned gift to support Casa Serena is to include a bequest in your will or trust. You can do this by either drafting a new will or adding a codicil to an existing will.

• Through a bequest, you can make a substantial gift to the Casa Serena, without depleting current assets.
• You can designate your gift to support a particular program.
• You can establish a named endowment fund in your own name or to honor someone of your choosing.

Charitable Remainder Trusts

Unitrusts pay a variable rate of return based on the principal of the trust as valued annually. A payout rate is determined on the date the gift is made. If the assets are wisely invested and principal value of the trust goes up, the payout amount goes up too (and vice versa). You can make additional contributions to a unitrust in later years. If you fund a unitrust with appreciated assets, you avoid immediate capital gains taxes, even though you are retaining the income for life. You receive a charitable deduction in the year you create the unitrust. The amount of the deduction is based on several factors including the chosen payout rate and the ages of the income recipients.

Charitable Remainder Annuity Trusts

Annuity trusts pay a fixed dollar amount to the designated income recipients based on a percentage of the initial contribution, chosen on the date the trust is established. Once the payout is established it remains the same each year. Appreciated assets contributed to an annuity trust avoid immediate capital gains taxes. As with unitrusts, you receive a charitable deduction in the year you create the trust.

Upon the death of the income recipients designated in both the above trusts, the remainder of the principal goes to Casa Serena, and can be used as the donor designates to create a named endowment fund in the donor’s honor or fund a particular program at Casa Serena.

Charitable Lead Trusts

In a charitable lead trust, the income is paid to the Casa Serena. At a predetermined time, the trust principal remainder is returned either to the grantor or to some other beneficiary. This trust is a creative way to provide a gift right now to Casa Serena, and still use your assets for your future family needs.

Life Insurance

If you have a paid-up or partially paid-up life insurance policy that you no longer need, you can give it to Casa Serena and receive an immediate income tax deduction for the cash value of the policy. Or, you can purchase a new life insurance policy with Casa Serena as the owner and beneficiary. In this case, all future premiums are tax-deductible as a charitable contribution.

Important Notice:

An attorney’s professional training is required for the preparation of wills and trusts . These examples are printed as a public service to provide accurate information of a general nature only. For specific circumstances, professional legal and tax advice should always be sought.

For Help Making a Deferred Gift

Contact:
Craig Belknap. Executive Director
(805)564-8701