Planned Giving

Create Your Legacy

Thank you for your interest in planned giving. You may have heard the term “Planned Giving” but aren’t sure what it really means. Simply defined, planned giving is planning to make a difference, both for yourself and a cause you believe in, through a charitable gift. Planned giving is often described as “leaving a legacy” because many gifts are created to make an impact for future generations.

The most frequently-made planned gifts are bequests to charitable organizations, made through your will. Other types of planned gifts are described throughout this website. Making a planned gift usually requires the assistance of an advisor such as an attorney, financial planner, or CPA to help structure the gift.

There are some unique financial tools you can use to plan your gift so that it also returns benefits to you.

Did you know that:

• You don't have to use cash to make your gift — donate appreciated securities instead. The deduction is the same as for a cash gift, and you pay no capital gains tax on the transfer.
• Give an asset that may help us more than it's helping you — such as a life insurance policy whose coverage your family no longer needs, or real estate like a second home or a parcel of undeveloped land, or even a collection of books or artwork that you no longer have room to display.
• You can make a gift that costs you nothing during your lifetime — name Hospice of Santa Cruz County as a beneficiary of your will or revocable trust, or of your retirement plan.
• You can make Hospice of Santa Cruz County a partner in your giving — you can deed us your home but continue to live there or you can sell us property at a charitable discount.