ny people consider the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to be their own personal nemesis, given the ever-increasing cut of income that's taken every year, the are some car donation charities FAQs it is to everyone's benefit you should be aware of, as a taxpayer. To that end, the IRS has gone to great length to make their policies easily available in many different ways, some of which are generally more effective than others.

Regardless of how one gets their information about car donation, charities FAQs have been a matter of public discussion ever since the somewhat shady nature of vehicle donation was made apparent in the early 'aughts. When the General Accounting Office (GAO) issued their groundbreaking report to the US Senate in late 2003 (as a result of public outcry and pressure from states), not even the IRS or Congressional Finance Committees seemed to know the rules and regulations regarding car donation charities.

FAQs have since been adjusted according to the new rules that made it far harder when for-profit companies tried to use legitimate charitable operations to line their own pockets. Now that many of these loopholes have been addressed, your odds of making a charitable automobile donation that you can feel good about are better than ever.

Among the most often asked car donation charities FAQs is how one goes about selecting a good, worthwhile charity. They may contact such a charity immediately, or look up a vehicle donation service that serves the charities they support. The IRS would generally prefer you donate directly to keep potentially obfuscating the amounts actually going to the charities in question.

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Vehicle donations aren`t restricted to just regular automobiles. Charities may also take trucks, vans, RVs, boats, trailers, planes and motorcycles. Vehicle donation reporting has apparently been driven almost exclusively by the curiosity of a particular journalist. A few vehicle donation articles have been prompted by a press release by a politician, again to our knowledge never having been instigated by a complaint by donor or charity, but possibly by that particular politician's interest in his or her own press coverage. Vehicle donation is an excellent way to give something back. Underprivileged and needy children in your community and all across the country will benefit greatly when you donate a car .

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Of course, the IRS would also like to file the correct paperwork, since even a friendlier IRS still has a slavish devotion to filling out standardized forms. In the case of auto donations greater than $500, a donor is required to file a Form 8283, section A. This can be downloaded from the IRS website and should be signed by both the donor and the charity in question. Many charities will happily supply you with such a form - it is in your best interest to find out if this will be taken care of for you before you sit down to do your taxes at the end of the year.

Another important vehicle donation charities FAQ is that if the donation is worth over $5,000 (whether the vehicle is to used by the charity or sold), section B of Form 8283 must be filed and attached to your deductions form. You will also need to supply an independent appraisal with your return for such high-end donations. This can be arranged by the charity in question or yourself. The cost of such an appraisal may or may not be considered part of the donation - check with your CPA to make sure what the current regulations are given your exact circumstances.

When dealing with car donation and charities, FAQs pertaining to how you will go about itemizing your deductions govern how such a donation will actually benefit you and the charity in question. For instance, it is wise to consider the extra effort (or money in the case of paying a professional tax preparer) is involved in switching to itemized deductions. Some people are actually better served buy taking the standardized deduction. You should balance these potential expenses against the actual amount your tax burden will actually be decreased. In most tax brackets, this represents about a third of the value of your car donation. Charities and FAQs pertaining to car donation should clearly point out that deductions are from one's net income rather than the amount of tax owed.

When considering the actual tax benefit of your car donation, charities FAQ usually do a good job of pointing out the limitations of the value you can claim as a deduction, as well as their own status as an IRS sanctioned non-profit organization. There are cases of charities having a limited or dubious mission. You may find your deduction challenged, as it is going to a less-than-charitable organization. Do your own homework and verify the validity of any charity you choose to donate to.

And remember, all the car donation charities FAQs in the world won't protect you if you take an active role in defrauding the federal government. Honesty is the best policy in all dealings with the IRS.

Schools, especially, work all through the school year on fundraiser who many different charities, often through their clubs, athletic clubs and Boy and Girl Scout troops. If your school group or organization feels that they’ve exhausted all their ideas and can’t think of a unique fundraiser for their next project, consider a car donation fundraiser.

Organizing a car donation fundraiser is simple and there is little expense to the group as there are no supplies or inventories needed to get started. Unlike selling cookies where a group often has to purchase a set amount of boxes with the hope of selling them all, a car donation fundraiser can begin immediately with no funds. To get started your group can make up a simple flyer and run off as many copies as they feel they can distribute. The flyer’s goal should be to announce that they are holding a car donation fundraiser during the month of, for example, February, and that anyone who has a used car they would be able to donate should contact the person who is in charge of the fundraiser.

Whoever is in charge of the fundraiser will simply keep a list of names, phone numbers and addresses of the people who have called in and in turn give them the name of the organization that will accept their donated car. Ideally, the group running the fundraiser should choose a charity that accepts donated vehicles this way all donations will be donated to the same charity. The flyer can also state what charity the car donation fundraiser will be assisting.

When it’s time to find an organization who works with car donations and many worthwhile charities who accept donations, call charitydispatch.com. Charitydispatch.com specializes in managing vehicle donation programs. When you call charitydispatch.com you will be greeted by a live operator, one of many who stand by 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You will be guided through the procedure of donating your vehicle by staff members who have been trained so that your donation process is efficient and easy. Charitydispatch.com operators simply need the title information and VIN numbers for the cars your organization has ready for donation. At the time of your phone call, your fundraising group can tell charitydispatch.com who they wold like to donate their used vehicles to. A list of charities that charitydispatch.com works with is available at their website.

Once they have your information and address for pick-up, the towing company will call within twenty-four hours to arrange for pick-up. Pick-up of donated vehicles is always free and arranged at your convenience. Once your vehicle is sold, your organization will receive a letter from the charity they chose letting them know how much their donated vehicles sold for.

Though in the past it was common for car owners to donate their old car when buying new, today more and more car owners are choosing to donate their old cars to charity. As opposed to haggling with a dealership for a good ‘trade in’ value toward the new car, a car donation is an easy and quick process. Today more and more people are interested in reaching out and helping others and donating a car is an easy way for the car owner to feel that they have done their part in helping others. On the practical side, sometimes the auto donation exceeds the benefit of the sale of their used vehicle and so it’s a win win situation for everyone.

Hundreds of charities today are eagerly accepting car donations as a way to support the important and much needed work they do. These charities lean on car donations as a way to help adults and children who are less fortunate. Unfortunately, with the economy in dire straits, many charities have seen donations drop. If you’re considering donating your car to charity, know that you are giving worthy organizations desperately needed support.

Though you have probably seen many ads that talk about the benefit of donating your car to charity, if you have called only to be left hanging on the line by a recorded voice, call charitydispatch.com to donate your vehicle quickly and easily. When you call charitydispatch.com you will be greeted by a live operator. We have live operators standing by, waiting for your call 24 hours a day seven days a week. Not only will you not be left hanging, but you will be guided through the procedure of donating a vehicle by one of our trained staff members. Our staff will make donating your car a quick, easy and enjoyable experience and you will have the satisfaction of knowing that your car donation will be helping someone who desperately needs it.

Donations include cars, trucks, vans, boats, motorcycles and even airplanes, whether they are in running condition or not. Pick up of your donated vehicle is always free.

For even more convenience, you can save time by filling out an online vehicle donation form. Once you have filled out a simple one page online form, you will receive an email confirming that your online vehicle donation form has been received by charitydispatch.com. This email will also give you the direct number to the towing company so that you can make arrangements to get your donated vehicle picked up. Usually within one business day the towing company will call to arrange free p9ick-up of your donated vehicle at a day and time that is convenient for you.

Charitydispatch.com works with charities nationwide such as the American Red Cross, Feel Better Kids and Goodwill Industries. These charities depend on donations from people to fund the many services that they offer to the communities they work in. Your donated vehicle can make a difference in how much these charities can do to help improve the lives of the people who desperately need them.

Donate Your Vehicle to Charity and Determine Its Fair Market Value

the laws were changed in 2005 to reduce the incidence of perfectly legal "tax fraud," there are still several situations where you may claim the "fair market value" of your car, truck, boat, RV or trailer when you donate any to a legitimate charitable non-profit organization (NPO). However, the rules governing what is "fair market value" have also changed.

Until it was clarified, many people (and paid tax professionals) thought this meant taking the "fair" amount from the Kelley Blue Book (or a similar estimation service), regardless of the actual condition of the vehicle. The IRS had different ideas about just what that was when they wrote the statute, but the wording was less than clear. The fair market value clause cost the IRS an estimated $640 million in 2000.

Also, consider what shape the vehicles donated by middle-class Americans are actually in when their owners finally consider donation. Such vehicles are very often in less than "poor" shape. Many third-party, for-profit companies that acted as agents for charities were taking cars whether they ran or not (and advertising as such). The owner got to avoid a fee at the scrap yard, let someone else pick the car up for free and claim the fair market value as a tax deduction.

However, taking into account the actual fair market value of your vehicle is where the IRS noted the discrepancy in question. Not only were the agents skimming as much as 70% of the sale price of each vehicle right off the top in legitimate (though sometimes dramatically padded) "service fees," but the difference in real worth became apparent at the point of sale. Since most of those cars ended up on the wholesale market, the price difference was even more acute.

Even the "poor" rating in the Blue Book requires the vehicle be in 'running' condition. It is clear there was a major difference between what these vehicles would fetch if someone put a classified ad in the paper and their fair market value, as someone who'd taken economics classes would understand the term. The laws were changed in 2005 to require a receipt of any gift valued over $250 as well as a written satement of what the car actually sold for (over $500) or what use it was put to. Therefore, if the car is sold as its first use after donation, you will only be able to claim the amount of the sale price that was actually given to the charity.

However, if the vehicle is used, as is, you may deduct the real fair market value - the price you can actually get for the vehicle if you were to go ahead and sell the car yourself. If the car is actually used as a car by a needy individual, your deduction can increase as much as 10-fold versis sold on the wholesale market.

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FYI Fair Market Value- In general terms:

Generally, if you claim more than $500 as deduction, you can deduct the smaller amount -- the gross proceeds from the sale of the car by the organization, or the car's fair market value. Now different rules will apply if you claim a deduction of $500 or less. Generally, the less liquid and more unique a piece of property is, the harder it is to accurately determine its fair market value. For example, farm land is generally treated as a commodity and its fair market value can be determined with relative ease by comparing the sale prices of neighbouring properties. Generally, for a vehicle that has been purchased within the last three months, the agreed value will be the purchase price.

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If at any point in the first two years after you donate a car to charity, the car is subsequently sold, the charity will have to send you another receipt (actually a Form 8282) letting you know what happened to the vehicle. You don't have to change anything on your taxes, whether you've filed them yet or not. If it was legitimately used for any length of time, you may claim the fair market value of the car when you donated it.

In fact, to back up your claims and justify the fair market value of your car that you've chosen, it is often a good idea to take pictures of the vehicle, inside and out. If the vehicle is valued at over $5,000 you'll need a independent appraisal (in writing) to confirm your fair market value calculations.

If the vehicle is to be fixed up and sold, you may also claim the actual fair market value of your car, as it was when you owned it, only if the vehicle is repaired to such an extent that it may be sold for more money. You are still allowed to claim as much as you could have gotten if you'd placed a classified ad.

Though the concept of fair market value does still allow you to claim values that assume perfect selling conditions. However, in the real world, many people price old cars in order to make them sell as quicklyas possible, so consider what you could actually gotten for it if you tried. You can assume a small advertising budget.