Donating Stocks to a Nonprofit: The Perfect Holiday Gift

Written by:

Lillie Therieau

Dec 07, 2020

You know how sometimes you just want to tell people what to get you for the holidays, so you don’t end up with the same matching reindeer pajama set that you did last year? That’s kind of what this blog post is…

We’re doing the slightly embarrassing work of asking you, our community and supporters, for our ideal holiday gift. It’s the kind of gift you daydream about. (If you’re an arts nonprofit anyways!) It fits in any size box, can be used to help us fund any number of incredible programs, and might be kind of a gift to you as well!

You guessed it — the mystery gift is donating some of your stocks to IPaintMyMind!

Stock donations are an underrecognized form of giving and can be an incredible resource for nonprofits like us. Plus, you might get a pretty sizeable tax benefit if you have owned the stock for over one year!

Donating Stocks Is Crazy Easy — Seriously!

Donating shares of stocks, mutual funds, or exchange traded funds is easy. All you have to do is contact the investment company where you have an account and inquire about the process they have in place for sending securities to IPMM’s account at Raymond James. We have an account set up specifically to receive these donations of stock and other investments, which also makes it easy for you to note on your tax record.

We would recommend that you work with your financial team to decide which investments make the most sense to donate. You want to look at stocks or other investments that you have owned over a year and which have appreciated in value.

When you donate a share of a stock that has appreciated, you can avoid paying significant capital gains taxes. Generally, you have to pay taxes on the growth of any stock, but by donating, you get to pay only on the original value of the share AND you get a tax deduction for the full value of the stock at the time of your donation.

So, let’s get this straight — you save tons of money on taxes, and are able to give us a fantastic gift that will keep on giving.

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Why Stocks Are The Perfect Gift

IPMM’s stock portfolio allows us to have assets in the long-term. Think of it as our insurance policy, or a way of ensuring our Rainy Day change jar stays full. The COVID-19 crisis is a great example of the sudden hairpin twists and turns that can throw a wrench into our best laid budget and funding plans.

It can be super hard to save and prepare for the future when you are a small nonprofit. Every dollar matters, and things can change at the drop of a hat. By donating some of your investments to IPMM, you are helping us secure our longevity as an organization. You’re helping to make sure that CPS schools and community spaces benefit from our arts programming long into the future!

How To Start The Process

To start the process of donating your stocks or other investments, contact your investment company. You’ll want to ask them about their process for sending securities to our account at Raymond James, as each company is a bit different.

Next, you’ll specify which securities you want to donate. You might want to make this decision with your financial team, or after some personal research. It can also be a great time to optimize your portfolio by rebalancing. Maybe you want to donate concentrated areas of your portfolio, freeing you up for a more diverse range of investments, and allowing us to put your philanthropic donation to good use.

After you decide what to donate, provide your investment company with our information.

Name & Address of Receiving Institution:

Raymond James Financial Services, 880 Carillon Parkway, St. Petersburg, FL 33716, (727) 567-1000

Account Registration at Receiving Firm: IPaintMyMind

Account Type at Receiving Firm: Non-Profit Corporate

Account Number at Receiving Firm: Contact Matt Atchison at 402-505-7700 for the account number

Contact Person/Phone/Email at Receiving Firm: Matt Atchison / 402-505-7700 / matthew.atchison@raymondjames.com

And that’s seriously it. They’ll send it to us, and we’ll reach out to you to let you know that we received the donation, as well as to thank you for your lasting gift! Your investment company will let you know how to tackle the write-off on your taxes, but as a spoiler, it involves a single form.

Yep, just one.

What We Promise To Do With Your Gift

If you are familiar with our impact model or our mission, you might know a bit about how we think and operate. Your gift will go directly back into funding arts programming for underserved schools and community hubs. We’ll use it to bring our Shared Walls program to even more schools in the 2021/22 school year and to keep paying our artists fairly and up front! We’ll also use your gift to help us expand our programming into new dimensions necessitated by the continually unfolding COVID-19 pandemic.

This holiday season is different. People are struggling, and we’re definitely not immune. Give us the gift of resilience and flexibility by donating stocks or other investments to IPaintMyMind.

Reach out to us here, and check out our Donation page here of you’d rather just donate $100!!

And thanks!!!!