Whippany—The Board of Trustees of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater MetroWest NJ (JCF) recently approved lowering the initial minimum deposit amount for a new Donor Advised Fund (DAF) from $10,000 to $5,000, and reducing the annual fee from $350 to $175 through December 31, 2018. (Increased assets will be subjected to standard fees.) Donations into a DAF are immediately tax deductible.
JCF is the largest community foundation in New Jersey, managing more than $385 million in assets. JCF is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ and serves as its planned giving and endowment department.
With a Donor Advised Fund, JCF manages the assets while the donor(s), or someone they designate, recommends disbursements from their fund to qualified charities of all kinds: Jewish and secular, large and small, local and national and so on. A donor can create a DAF with cash or marketable securities, and choose to give the fund a family name (such as the Cohen Family Fund) or a generic name if they wish to remain anonymous (such as the ABC Fund). DAFs can encourage families to discuss their philanthropy while providing an immediate tax deduction to the donor, yet the DAF does not require the separate tax filings, board meetings or other administrative requirements that a private foundation would.
In addition, appreciated securities (held for more than one year) given to a DAF receive the most favorable tax treatment and any funds held in the account at JCF grow tax-free. Grant recommendations from the fund can be made easily on JCF’s secure online platform, or via email or fax.
The JCF Board approved these new requirements in order to make the advantages of a DAF—immediate tax deduction, professional fund management and grant distribution, and the opportunity to involve family members in philanthropic decisions—accessible to more individuals. For more information on Donor Advised Funds or to open one, contact JCF Executive Director Stanley Stone at 908-288-2401 or email [email protected].
