Your Used Car: Better To Give Than Sell? With increasing frequency, radio announcements, classified ads, and television promotions are mentioning used car dona tions as a giving alternative that can result in a handsome, income tax write-off while also providing a simple way for both individuals and businesses to dispose of un wanted vehicles. A sample, unscientific e-mail poll at the office found that, of the 32 people responding, only one had donated a personal vehi cle to a local charity within the last five years. “Are you nuts? Do people re ally do that? was one of the re sponse I received. “I can’t afford to donate a car, even if it is used!” But if a tax credit is what is motivating your good will, do the math before signing over your title else you reap no financial benefit. My friend gave away a lower value car once thinking he would be able to get a tax credit or re- Plug Energy Leaks, Let Sunshine In Shannon Villa Pa. Credit Union League “Were you born in a bam? Close that door.” Ah, the sounds of cool weather and the impending winter sea son. And, as a child, I heard this particular sound from my mom frequently. More than 18 winters of hear ing Mom’s energy conservation battle cry has left an indelible im pression on her children and her grandchildren. Hips cocked to the right, hands balled in a tight fist on said hips, my sassy 5-year-old niece barked a very similar order to her 7-year-old brother last weekend. “Were you bom in a bam?” By now, we all know what that means. With home heating costs ex pected to skyrocket this winter and energy usage on the in crease, such sage advice can go a long way toward stretching your energy dollar. According to the Department of Energy, consum I JESUS IS THE REASON FOR, THE SEASON | I | I & I I & et I From a, i | at Lapp % I MAY GOD BLESS YOU WITH | | A JOYOUS CHRISTMAS AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR I W Thank you for your patronage during the past year. f We look forward to serving you in 2001 . J I LAPP'S BARN EQUIPMENT mum™ | ik 5935 Old Philadelphia Pike Gap, PA 17527 Radio Dec. 24 & Dec. 25 ££ & (717) 442-8134 Dispatched 31°& Jan 1 JS* Call or Write for our FREE Catalog fund. But since he did not have enough deductions overall to warrant itemization on his taxes, he did not get the direct tax ben efit he expected. It sounded like a good idea, but since he did not do his homework, it didn’t work the way he expected. When you donate your car, you are entitled to a charitable deduction equal to the fair mar ket value of the car. This is usually established according to the National Automotive Dealers Association “blue book” listing for used cars. In some cases, the value of the vehicle will exceed the amount you could get if sold. But, if your car is in terrible con dition and is worth less that its “blue book” value, you will have to use its true market value, not the “blue book” value. There are several things you must do when donating a car to prove your right to a deduction when preparing your tax return. Be sure to take the necessary steps to substantiate your deduc- ers should expect to pay some 26 to 43 percent more this winter to heat their homes. Many natural gas and home heating oil companies allow cus tomers to lock in a lower rate be fore cold weather hits. But, fuel prices for customers where rates are not frozen have increased substantially. The cause is basic Economics 101 demand is greater than supply. What’s the average consumer to do to hold down costs to a more reasonable level while re taining comfort? The answer can be summed up in two words energy efficiency. It produces three benefits at once cuts en ergy costs and air pollution while increasing home comfort. ■ The Department of Energy of fers consumers tips to cut energy bills this winter: • Heating expenses account for the biggest chunk of winter energy bills. Make sure your fur nace receives a professional “tune-up” each year. tion. First, you must obtain writ ten acknowledgment from the charitable organization that you made the donation, describing the car, and that the charity pro vided no services to you in ex change. Second, if the value of the vehicle is over $5OO, you must attach Form 8283 to your tax return showing when and how you acquired the car and its original cost. If the value exceeds $5,000, special rules requiring an appraisal apply. Before you donate your vehi cle, the Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.org) suggests you do some homework: • Ask for a copy of the organi zation’s Internal Revenue Serv ice (IRS) determination letter. It will verify that the soliciting group is tax exempt as a charity under section 501(cX3) of the In ternal Tax Code. Don’t assume that a charitable-sounding or ganization requesting donations is eligible to receive tax deducti ble gifts. • Clean or replace air filters once a month to help your unit run more efficiently. • Cut related annual energy expenditures up to 30 percent. As heating and cooling equip ment, appliances, computers and office equipment, windows, light ing fixtures, etc. break down or no longer meet your needs, re place them with products bear ing the Department of Energy’s Energy Star label (symbol for en ergy efficiency) (www.energy star.gov). • Your home is probably leak ing energy dollars. Make sure attic and/or ceilings are well in sulated. Seal joints in attic air ducts and make sure they are well insulated too. The North America Insulation Manufactur er’s Association Web site (www.naima.org) has insulation details. • Plug other energy “leak.” Seed leaks between moving parts (between door and its frame) with weather-stripping. Fill leaks • Ask the organization for copies of its latest annual report and IRS Form 990. Those docu ments specify how they spent their funds in the past fiscal year. Check to make sure that the charity is registered to solicit with your state government’s charity registration office. Also, contact your Better Business Bu reau for information it may have on file. • Find out what happens to the donated cars. Some charities may state that donated cars will be used to help carry out the group’s program service activi ties (such as providing transpor tation for needy families). How ever, if the charity is involved in major promotions for such con tributions, chances are that the volume donated will result in most cars not being used but, in stead, sold to raise funds for the organization. • Cars can be sold directly by the charity or through an outside seller, such as an auctioneer or between nonmoving parts (be tween window frame and wall with caulking) and look for win dows, glass doors, and skylight bearing the Energy Star label, and check out the www.efficient windows.org Web site. • Plug surprising “leaks” from standby power. Did you know that your idle TVs, VCRs, cable boxes, CD players, cassette decks, cordless phones, burglar alarms, and microwaves contin ue to consume energy when switched off to keep display clocks Ift and memory chips and remote controls working? That costs consumers $3 billion annu ally in energy costs, according to the Department of Energy. • Activate “sleep” features on computers and office equipment that power down when the equipment is on but not in use for a while. Turn off equipment during long periods of nonuse to cut costs and improve longevity. • Let the sun help heat our home by keeping blinds of sun- Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 23, 2000-817 used car dealer. If an outside seller is involved, the charity might receive a flat fee (for ex ample, $lOO per vehicle), a per centage of the actual sales price, or a combination of both. In some cases, less than 20 percent of the actual sale may go to the charity. Ask the charity for a re ceipt that verifies a car donation was made. For cars that need to be towed in, the charity may need to mail receipts and titles to the donor. This is all the more reason to in vestigate the charity before mak ing the donation. It is up to the donor, not the charity, to place an accurate value on the car do nation. If the donated value, as claimed, exceeds $5OO, the indi vidual or business contributor will need to complete IRS Form 8283 as an attachment to his tax return. If the claimed value is over $5,000, the donor will need to obtain a qualified written ap praisal of the car. night. • Upgrade your oil heat sys tem. New oil heat systems are generally more efficient than older units and typically reduce heating oil consumption by IS to 25 percent. • To see what energy up grades would have the greatest payoff, log onto the interactive Home Energy Checkup on the Alliance to Save Energy’s Web site www.ase.org/checkup/home. Oh, and don’t forget to shut the door. exposed windows open in the daytime and closed at LIBERTY FIRE COMPANY New Holland FARM TOY & TRUCK SHOW SAT., JANUARY 6, 2001 Toy Show Opens 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Admission $3.00 Senior Citizens $.200 Children 12 and Under Free Floor Rights - $lO.OO For information and table rentals contact Irvin Martin, Show Manager 1035 W. Main St., New Holland, PA 17557 Phone: (717) 656-6621 12 miles east of Lancaster, PA on Rt. 23 12 miles from the turnpike - exits 22 or 23 Food served by the Ladies Auxiliary $l.OO OFF ADMISSION WITH THIS AD
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