OT - Donating a car

[DuckRyder]

Does any one have any experience with donating a car?

Tax break?

[Mancar1]

Gave one to a local group, and used the receipt as a write-off. Been several years back.

[nadams]

It works the same as any charitable donation for tax purposes. Check with an accountant about how much it actually reduces your tax bill, I think I remember the charitable deduction being reduced but I may be wrong. In he past five years we have volunteered quite a bit for the NW Burn Foundation and claimed mileage and donatations but it was never what the outlay was. You will get more cash in hand selling the car but if that is not the consideration then donate it. With the current economic times these organizations need the help. Hope my incoherent rambling helps.

[flyboy2610]

With the current economic times these organizations need the help.

Another way to help some of these organizations is to purchase from the. eBay has several that have stores on their site. I keep an eye on this one:
http://stores.ebay.com/RAWHIDE-SALES?_rdc=1
I like how they go through and thoroughly inspect each item and then list it's good and bad points. When I get ready to buy a boat in a few years, I will definitely keep them in mind.

[70 ranger]

I donated a 94 mpv awd to the local community college. They basically apraised it and gave me a receipt for the donation. At tax time I submitted it like any other receipt and received about 1/3 of what the car was worth. It was a P.O.S. that I didn't want to have to sell, so this worked great!

[68F100Merlin]

I donated a car to the Georgia Kidney Foundation. They sent a flat bed out and they drove the car up on the ramp. Yes it was still drivable. I got the donation receipt from the driver and I gave him the title. A few weeks later I got official transfer title from the GKF. Several months later I got a call from Georgia State Police from another county wanting to know why my car was abandone on the side of the road. ????? I explained I had donated the car had the proper paperwork and that I no longer concidered the car mine. I was told it was going to be towed.
A few weeks later I got a call from the impoundment lot telling me I owed $$ for towing and storage! After a feww calls from the storage lot they said if I sent them a letter telling them it was OK for them to sell it I would not have to pay the fees to get the car back. I told them I didn't want the car back, I did not feel the car belonged to me and because of that I did not feel I had the authority to give them permission to sell it.
Long story short I kept to my guns that the car no longer belonger to me. Anf they finally gave up and went away. I'm just wondering if the car had been involved in a accident would I have been held liable? I will never know.
I do suggest you pick your charity well and get all the proper paperwork transfering the vehicle just to protect your 6!

[sargentrs]

I donated one to a friend in need and took a $500 charitable deduction on my taxes. At least it didn't come back on me. But stand up in an audit.....? Audit risk is extremely low on your average income taxpayers. I see you're in Georgia. No Longer Bound is a reputable organization that asks for donated cars, boats, rv's, etc. to help benefit homeless and recovering alcoholic/drug users. Gives them a vehicle so they can land a job, home, etc. They're a registered charity through, I think, Free Chapel church. I'm sure they give receipts for fair book value.

[robroy]

Good evening Robert,

I've donated several funky old cars to Kars4Kids over the years. I chose them only because I'd received something in the mail before from them, so I was aware they existed. My main concern wasn't to donate anything of value to a worthy cause; it was to get rid of old junk cars.

The cars didn't need to be running in order to be donated; they seemed OK with any sort of damage. And it wasn't a big ordeal at all--they showed up and hauled the cars off, and that was that.

If I remember correctly, I wasn't able to benefit with a tax break from the donations, because that were part of the Schedule A, and I took the standard deduction those years. There might have been some other reason I didn't take the deductions though.

Robroy

[DuckRyder]

Thank You to Everyone that replied.

No Longer Bound came and picked the car up, we felt like they were a good cause and hope that the car will help someone to learn a trade and then go on to help someone in the community.

http://www.nolongerbound.com/program/re ... n-program/