Your Partner in Philanthropic Giving

We can accept the full range of assets including cash, publicly-traded or closely-held securities, limited liability companies and limited partnership interests, as well as real estate. A fund at the Foundation can also be the beneficiary of bequests, charitable remainder and charitable lead trusts, retirement accounts and insurance policies.

After the fund is established, a member of the Foundation’s Donor Engagement team will be assigned to work with your client to fine-tune their charitable goals and make their philanthropy as meaningful as possible.

Your clients establish their fund by completing a fund agreement and providing an initial irrevocable contribution of $10,000 or more. Your client may make additional gifts to their fund in any amount and at any time.

The Foundation’s current minimum grant distribution is $250. Your clients may request grant distributions from their fund in any amount over $250 at any time. Grant requests can be made by email, by phone, or online.

We create and send quarterly statements reflecting activity in all funds.

A fund at the Foundation is less costly to establish than a private foundation, in terms of both time and money. Our staff can help your clients establish a fund in a matter of days and then handle all the administrative details and reporting. Establishing a private foundation can take months or longer, and the private foundation then becomes responsible for substantial legal, accounting, and operational matters.

A private foundation is usually endowed by a single family or corporation and controlled by that family or corporation. In contrast, a community foundation derives its support from a broad spectrum of the general public and is controlled by a board of community leaders. Because it is publicly supported and controlled, a community foundation is accorded certain advantages over private foundations by the IRS, including the following:

• Higher deduction limits for donors.
• No excise tax imposed.
• No minimum payout requirement.
• No separate tax reporting on individual funds.

While donor-advised funds available through some of the major commercial institutions offer the same tax deductibility as a fund at Triangle Community Foundation, donor-advised funds housed at the Foundation are relationship and service-based. With our expertise, we make donors aware of local needs and local opportunities, enabling us to create giving strategies that reflect the donors’ interests. Donors to the Foundation become part of a “community of donors” focused on strengthening our region.

In contrast, commercial donor-advised funds are transaction-based. The commercial institution cannot provide guidance or insight into the community, its needs, or nonprofit leaders. Nor do the fees charged against these commercial funds support philanthropy in the region. Fees charged by us are recycled back into the community in programming and cultivation of philanthropy.

Finally, the Foundation can accept the full range of gift opportunities, while gifts to create funds at commercial institutions tend to be limited to cash and publicly-traded securities.

Sample language can be found on this webpage.