Beyond itemizing your charitable donations … consider these tax-advantaged ways you can contribute to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

They make your money go farther! 

DONATIONS OF STOCK AND OTHER APPRECIATED SECURITIES 

Do you have highly appreciated securities that would cost you a lot in capital gains taxes if you sold them? Donate them directly to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame to avoid these tax liabilities and increase your tax benefits. 

Imagine you own 500 shares of Apple stock that’s currently trading at $195/share, which you purchased in December 2001 (the year the iPod was introduced) for just 33 cents/share. If you sold the stock at its current value of $97,500, you would realize a profit of $97,335, since you paid just $165 total when you originally purchased the 500 shares. If you choose to use this Apple stock to benefit the Hall of Fame, it literally pays to consider your options. 

Option 1: Sell the stock and donate the proceeds to the NWHOF

Capital gains taxes vary depending on your total taxable income. If you’re in the mid-range, and you sell the stock, you would owe the federal government 15% in capital gains taxes on the Apple stock’s appreciation-that’s $14,600 in additional federal taxes! If you donated the $82,900 remainder to the Hall of Fame ($97,500 from stocks sold minus $14,600 paid to the IRS in capital gains taxes), you could claim a charitable tax deduction of $82,900 when you itemize your taxes. 

Option 2: Transfer the stock directly to the NWHOF (Much better for you and us!)

You would pay $0 in capital gains tax and claim a much larger charitable tax deduction in the amount of $97,500 if you were to transfer the shares of this same Apple stock directly to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and let us sell it. And, with this method, the Hall of Fame receives $14,600 more than it would have if you had sold the stock yourself and then donated the proceeds. Both parties receive extra benefits!

To transfer stock directly to the NWHOF: 

1.      Identify the shares of common stock, units of mutual funds or other appreciated securities that are worth more today than when you acquired them more than one year ago and determine which ones you’d like to donate.

2.      Download, print and complete the NWHOF’s Gifting Stocks & Other Securities form. Specify which NWHOF fund(s) you want your gift applied to (Endowment Fund, Operating Budget, etc.)

3.      Send the completed form to:

a.      Your broker, and request that they transfer your marketable asset(s) accordingly.

b.      To the NWHOF at executivedirector@nwhof.org, so that we can identify your asset transfer.

4.      When the NWHOF’s broker liquidates your stock or marketable security, you will receive a charitable donation receipt for the full value of the gift on the date the gift is completed, which you can use to claim a charitable tax deduction.

5.      You’ll owe none of the capital gains taxes that would have been due if you sold the securities yourself, because you gifted them directly to the NHWOF—a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.

QUALIFIED CHARITABLE DISTRIBUTIONS FROM IRAs 

Would you like to make your Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) or other withdrawals from your Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) tax-free? 

Normally, distributions from your traditional IRA are taxable when received and the additional income may place you in a higher tax bracket and impact your Medicare premiums and Social Security payments. 

However, in 2024, the IRS allows an IRA owner who is at least 70-1/2 years old to transfer up to $105,000 total from their traditional IRA(s) directly to eligible charities, such as the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, and exclude these withdrawals from income. If you’re part of a married couple and file your tax returns jointly you can each transfer up to $105,000 annually, for a total of $210,000 in donations, reducing your taxable income accordingly. 

These direct-transfer gifts are known as Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs). Because they’re excluded from gross income, no deduction is available for the transfer. If you take the standard deduction and don’t itemize anyway, this is a great way to lower your tax liability! 

Donors who do itemize may find that QCDs provide them with more tax savings than a charitable tax deduction. Using the QCD to reduce your adjusted gross income (AGI) may favorably impact other tax return calculations, such as how much of your Social Security benefits are taxed, and qualify you for other deductions and credits. 

To make a QCD from your traditional IRA direct to the Hall of Fame: 

1.      Download, print and complete the NWHOF’s Gifting Stocks & Other Securities form. Specify which NWHOF fund(s) you want your gift applied to (Endowment Fund, Operating Budget, etc.) Under “Gift Information/Name and Type of Securities”, write QCD from IRA. Be sure to specify which NWHOF fund(s) you want your gift to benefit.

2.      Send the completed form to:

a.      Your IRA administrator, and request that they transfer your QCD accordingly.

b.      To the NWHOF at executivedirector@nwhof.org, so that we can identify your asset transfer.

3.      If the QCD will be in the form of a check, have your IRA administrator make it payable to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and mail it to: 

National Wrestling Hall of Fame
405 W Hall of Fame Avenue
Stillwater, OK 74075

DO NOT receive the RMD or IRA withdrawal yourself and then write a check to the NWHOF; the gift must be made by your IRA administrator directly to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in order to qualify as a QCD and be considered a tax-free withdrawal.

Questions?

Contact Susy Rein at srein@nwhof.org or (847) 951-9690.