Outright
Cash, Securities, IRA Rollover, Online Giving, Matching gifts, Stock or Bonds, Real Estate and Tangible Personal Property

Meredith College welcomes gifts of all types and will work with you and your financial advisors to maximize the tax benefits for you and the value of your gift to the College.

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Cash
Cash is the simplest way to give to Meredith. You may deduct a cash gift of up to 50% of your adjusted gross income on your federal income tax return. If your gift exceeds 50%, you may deduct the excess over the following five years, up to 50% of adjusted gross income in each carry-over year. A pledge or promissory note is not deductible until it is paid.Example: Elizabeth writes a check for $5,000 to the Meredith Fund in honor of her 25th Reunion. She claims a $5,000 charitable deduction on her federal income tax return. Because she is in the 30% income tax bracket, her deduction saves her $1,500 (.30 x $5,000) in income taxes. Elizabeth's $5,000 gift to the school costs her only $3,500 ($5,000 minus $1,500 in income tax savings).

Securities
If you contribute long-term appreciated securities that have been held for over one year, you enjoy a two-fold tax benefit: first, a charitable deduction for the fair market value of the securities; and second, no capital gains tax on the appreciation (difference between the cost basis and the current fair market value). You can deduct a gift of securities on your federal income tax return of up to 30% of your adjusted gross income. Similar to gifts of cash, there is a five-year carry-over allowance in order to realize the full benefit of the deduction.Example: To establish a scholarship, Kathryn gives securities to Meredith College that she had purchased for $50,000 ten years ago. The securities have appreciated and are now worth $100,000. Kathryn can take a charitable deduction of $100,000. She also avoids the capital gains tax on the $50,000 appreciation. Meredith College can sell the securities tax-free because of its not-for-profit tax exemption and reap the benefits of the full $100,000 of the gift.

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Congress Renews IRA Gift Opportunity
Congress has passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, which extends for 2008 and 2009 an expired provision permitting IRA owners age 70½ and older to make distributions to qualified organizations of up to $100,000 per year.

The rules are the same as for IRA gifts made in 2006 and 2007:

• You must be age 70½ or older and own a traditional or Roth IRA. Other retirement plans, such as pensions, 401(k) plans and others are not eligible.
• Only the IRA trustee can transfer gift amounts to a qualified organization. If IRA owners withdraw funds and then contribute them to charity separately, amounts withdrawn will be included in your gross income.
• No charitable deductions are allowed, but gift amounts will not be included in your income. IRA gifts may satisfy charitable pledges, according to the IRS.
• IRA gifts may not exceed $100,000 and must be made before 2010. Note that up to $100,000 may be distributed for both 2008 and 2009. The “ceilings” on contribution deductions (50% of adjusted gross income for cash, 30% of AGI for capital gain assets), do not apply to IRA gifts.
• IRA gifts cannot be made to charitable remainder trusts or other “life income gift” arrangements. Transfers are not permitted to donor advised funds or “supporting organizations.

For more information please contact Harold West at (919) 760-8372 or westh@meredith.edu.

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Matching Gifts
Often your gift to Meredith College can be multiplied by matching funds from companies and foundations. Check with your company's personnel office or call Meredith to find out if your company matches gifts. Click here to check online.

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Pledges
To make a pledge please contact the director of the The Meredith Fund at meredithfund@meredith.edu or call (919)760-8060.

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Gifts of Stocks or Bonds

Meredith College accepts gifts of securities (stocks and bonds).

The College's policy requires that securities given to Meredith College be sold as soon as possible. At times, a donor may express her wish that the gifted securities be held for a specific period of time. The College may or may not honor this request depending on a decision made by the Vice President of Business and Finance. Any restriction by a donor jeopardizes her/his deductibility unless a Rule 144 stock is involved.

Delivery of Securities

A donor may deliver or transfer a gift of stock in the following manner:

1. Electronic transfer
2. Medallion Signature Guarantee transfer (in person or via mail)

1. Electronic Transfer through the donor's broker is the most efficient and easiest for all concerned. A donor may instruct her/his broker to transfer the security to the College's account. It is extremely important that the donor or the donor's broker notify the Gift Records Coordinator of the impending transfer. A letter of intent then must be sent via mail or fax to our office. Click here for a stock transfer/letter of intent form.

Valuation of Security

A gift is valued on the date of transfer, assuming the security is marketable to the College at that time, which may be:

• The postmark date
• The date of delivery, if done personally
• The date the certificate is registered in the College's name with specific instructions authorized by any of the following; or
• The date the gift enters the College's account.

Gift valuation is based on the average of the high and low price of the security on the date of transfer. For example:

December 1st transfer date 100 shares XYZ Corporation

High of the day - $81.00
Low of the day - $78.00
Average - $79.50
Gift Value - $79.50 x 100 shares = $7,950.00

Meredith College Brokerage Information
Account #: AD 03662
DTC #: 0221

Please contact: Wayne Right or Aimee Sarinas at 1-800-821-0355 

Meredith College
Attn: Advancement Services – Stock Gifts
3800 Hillsborough Street
Raleigh, NC 27607-5298

For more information contact Melanie Crisp-Thorpe
(919) 760.8373 or fax (919) 760.2278
Email: giftrecords

Medallion Signature Guarantee Stock Transfer

When you have the stock certificates in hand:

1. Do not sign the stock certificates.

2. Go to a bank, a brokerage house or other financial institution that has a stock power form. This form needs to be signed and dated in their presence. Do not sign it in advance.

The donor must have a guaranteed stock power for every stock certificate. Each stock power has to be endorsed with the donor's signature, exactly as the name appears on the face of the stock certificate. The bank's licensed agent will provide a Medallion Signature Guarantee* on the stock power.

3. When the Medallion Signature Guarantee on the stock power is completed, prepare a dated authorization or cover letter to Bill Wade, Vice President for Business and Finance, Meredith College, 3800 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27607, copying the Vice President for Institutional Advancement, Lennie Barton.

In this letter, please state the purpose, number of shares and designation. This documents the donor's intent to give the stock to Meredith Collegeand tells the College how the gift should be designated. This can be as simple as a hand written letter. And it should be signed the same way the stock power(s) and certificate(s) are signed.

4. Please send the stock power(s) and the cover letter in one envelope and the unsigned stock certificates in another envelope (not in the same envelope)or deliverto the Business and Finance Vice President's office in Johnson Hall.

If it is mailed, the date of the gift is the date on the envelope. If it is hand delivered, the date it is delivered to campus is the date of the gift. It is essential that the stock power and the certificates are kept separate: they can be mailed on the same day, but in separate envelopes. If mailed, it is recommended that they be posted by certified mail.

*What is a Medallion Signature Guarantee?

In essence, a Medallion Signature guarantee indicates that the financial institution (such as a commercial bank, trust company, securities broker dealer, credit union or savings institution) is a member of a Medallion Signature Guarantee program and is an acceptable signature guarantor. This is not the same as a notarized signature. A notary stamp is not acceptable when transferring the ownership of stock. It protects the donor by making it harder for anyone to take these certificates or by forging the donor's signature.

Corporate/Foundation: For gifts by corporations or foundations, a corporate resolution should also accompany the Medallion signature guarantee.

Trust: For Trusteeships, a copy of the page designating individuals authorized to make transfers should accompany the Medallion signature guarantee.

Real Estate
Gifts of real estate can consist of many types of property: a principal residence or a vacation residence, a farm, a commercial building, subdivision lots or undeveloped land. The gift may be the entire property or a fractional interest in the property. The same benefits that accrue to gifts of appreciated securities apply to gifts of appreciated real estate. Gifts of real estate can be made as outright gifts or as life income gifts, such as a charitable remainder trust. Meredith College will need an environmental survey of the real estate before accepting a gift.Example: Paula, age 72, wants to make a substantial gift to Meredith College and also remove some assets from her taxable estate. She decides to give her home, with the reserved right to use the house for the rest of her life. Her accountant, using a formula prescribed by the IRS, determines the value of her income tax deduction.

Tangible Personal Property
Art, antiques, or any other form of tangible personal property may be given as charitable gifts to the College. Each item must be evaluated by Meredith College to determine whether or not it is related to the school's tax-exempt status and whether the College can reasonably use the gift. Gifts directly related to the College's tax-exempt purpose (e.g. a painting that is useful in art classes) can be deducted at their current market values. Other non-related gifts are limited to a deduction equal to your cost basis, which is generally what you paid for the item.If the College wishes to accept the property and if the property is valued at more than $5,000, you must obtain a professional independent appraisal (not more than 60 days prior to the date of gift) to receive a charitable deduction.Planned Giving Guide Meredith College 3The following information discusses the benefits and various forms of planned charitable gifts.Please consult your own advisors for tax and legal advice.

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