By including GCDS in your will, you can arrange for the school to receive almost any kind of asset, such as the remainder of your ERA, Keogh, tax-sheltered annuity, qualified pension or profit-sharing plan, cash, or securities. Ask your attorney about your bequest options. To designate Country Day as a beneficiary: The Greenwich Country Day School, 401 Old Church Road, Greenwich, CT, USA.

Benefits

A bequest is deductible for federal estate tax purposes, and there is no limit on the amount of the estate tax charitable deduction. In addition, bequests are generally not subject to state inheritance or estate taxes.

How to make a bequest

A bequest to The Greenwich Country Day School can be made by creating a new will, adding a codicil to your present will, or including GCDS in your revocable trust.

A charitable remainder trust (CRT) is a powerful way to make a gift to GCDS while providing income for yourself and/or another beneficiary for life or a term of years.

It can be funded with a variety of assets: cash, publicly traded stocks and bonds, real estate, and, in some instances, tangible personal property, such as works of art.

There are two forms of charitable remainder trust:

• A charitable remainder annuity trust (CRAT) pays income as a fixed dollar amount that remains constant for the term of the trust.
• A charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) pays a variable income (typically between 5-10% per year) based on a fixed percentage of the trust assets as revalued once a year. One advantage of a unitrust is your assets can increase as the trust principal grows over time. Also, you may make additional contributions at any time.

Benefits

• Annual income to yourself and/or other beneficiaries.
• An immediate charitable income tax deduction.
• Elimination of capital gains tax on appreciated assets.
• Estate tax savings.

How it works

• When establishing a charitable remainder trust, the donated assets—which can include cash, publicly traded stocks and bonds, real estate, and, in some cases, tangible personal property such as works of art—are irrevocably transferred to a trustee, such as a bank trust department.
• The trustee invests the assets and pays out to the donor’s named beneficiaries a fixed percentage of the trust’s value. The trust is revalued annually and payments are made quarterly, semi-annually, or annually out of the trust’s income, or trust principal if the income is not adequate, at an annual minimum of 5% of the trust’s value.
  
• At the end of the trust term, the remainder goes to Country Day. If you wish, you can designate the future use of your gift at The Greenwich Country Day School.

A charitable lead trust (CLT) provides immediate support to GCDS, while enabling the future transfer of assets to your heirs at a reduced gift and estate tax cost.

During a specified number of years, an annuity or fixed percentage of the trust assets is paid to GCDS. At the end of the trust term, the assets are passed to the beneficiaries you name.

Benefits

• An immediate charitable income tax deduction.
• Any appreciation in the assets during the term of the trust will be transferred to your beneficiaries without additional gift or estate tax.
• The income earned by the trust is excluded from your gross income and is not taxable to you.
• The beneficiaries of the trust (for example, family members) will receive all of the trust’s assets at the end of the trust term.

How it works

• When establishing a charitable remainder trust, the donated assets—usually cash or securities—are irrevocably transferred to a trustee, such as a bank trust department.
  
• The trust is usually established for a fixed number of years during which the trustee invests the assets.
  
• Each year the trustee distributes a fixed percentage of the trust’s assets as revalued annually to The Greenwich Country Day School. These payments are made for the charitable purpose you designate and are made out of the trust income, or trust principal if the trust income is not adequate. If the trust income exceeds the charitable payment in a year, the trust pays income tax on the excess.
• When the trust term ends, the trust distributes all of its accumulated assets to family members or other beneficiaries named by you.

Gifts of property are deductible at full fair market value with an appraisal being made by a third party.

A simple way to include the school in your estate plan is to name The Greenwich Country Day School as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy.

Gifts of securities are often tax-wise options. You can receive an income tax deduction for the full fair market of the donated securities.

To give securities, download the Security Transfer Form and send it to the GCDS Development Office.