If you want your devotion to animals
to continue after you are gone, then
please consider including Atlanta Pet
Rescue & Adoption in your will.
Writing your will to include a gift
to support the rescue efforts at our
shelter is a perfect way to assure
that your love of animals lives on.
Keep in mind that such donations are
not only extremely helpful to our
mission, but they are also tax deductible
and therefore potentially a financial
benefit to your estate. This information
is not intended to serve as legal
or tax advice. You should consider
using a lawyer when planning for your
will or estate.
When a bequest is made to Atlanta
Pet Rescue, we set up a memorial in
your name. This memorial will be included
on our web site and will list any
additional donors that choose to honor
your love and devotion of animals
by contributing to your memorial.
Click here to see some current and past memorials.
If you would like to include Atlanta
Pet Rescue in your will, it is quick
and easy to do. You can simply copy
the following paragraphs to use in
your will, or if you have already
written your will, you can use the
second section below to amend your
existing will.
Include Atlanta Pet Rescue and Adoption,
Inc. in your will:
"I bequeath to Atlanta Pet Rescue
and Adoption, Inc., 4250 Woodland
Brook Drive SE, Atlanta, Georgia 30339,
the sum of ___ dollars."
Amend your will to include Atlanta
Pet Rescue and Adoption, Inc.:
"I hereby amend my last will
and testament executed on ___day of
___ in the year ___. I direct that
all provisions of that will remain
in effect, and in addition, I bequeath
to Atlanta Pet Rescue and Adoption,
Inc., 4250 Woodland Brook Drive SE,
Atlanta, Georgia 30339, the sum of
___ dollars." (A codicil changing
your residuary estate will require
you to make other adjustments. Your
attorney will advise you.)
Communicate your desire for your
family and friends to honor your memory
with a donation to your Atlanta Pet
Rescue memorial by requesting your
family include the following in your
obituary: "It was the wish of
the deceased that donations be sent
to (his or her) Atlanta Pet Rescue
& Adoption Memorial in lieu
of flowers."
What is Planned Giving?
Planned giving is the best way to assure
that your love of animals lives on after you are gone. To make your charitable giving dollar really count, you can choose to fund the future of Atlanta Pet Rescue with your estate planning. Making a gift to our no-kill shelter is one of the most effective ways to ensure that your legacy lives on in our mission to save homeless pets' lives.
Atlanta Pet Rescue invites you to join other supporters who have already acted to ensure the future of our no-kill shelter by including Atlanta Pet Rescue in their estate plans.
Here are some examples of ways you can help:
~ Name Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption, Inc. as beneficiary of a retirement plan
~ Name Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption, Inc. as beneficiary of an insurance policy
Either of the above two options may benefit your heirs through avoidance of substantial income and estate taxes. Here is more information on these two examples...
Retirement Plans
Retirement plan assets are one of the best assets to use for charitable gifts. You can create a legacy by naming Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption, Inc. as beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of an IRA, 401(k), 403(b), or other qualified retirement plan. After your lifetime, all or a portion of the unused balance in your account is transferred to us as a charitable gift.
When a retirement account is left to a charity such as Atlanta Pet Rescue, the non-profit organization does not pay the income tax otherwise due if left to a friend or non-spouse family member. All you have to do is complete a change of beneficiary form, which may be obtained from your plan administrator.
Insurance Policies
If you no longer need life insurance that was purchased years ago to provide for children or other family members, please consider donating the policy, or even a percentage of your life insurance policy, to Atlanta Pet Rescue. How could this benefit your estate? You may claim a charitable deduction for approximately the policy's cash surrender value.
You can also create a legacy by naming Atlanta Pet Rescue as the beneficiary or contingent beneficiary of your life insurance policy. All you need to do is to complete a change of beneficiary form with the insurance company and you can change your mind at any time by updating this form.
What Can I Do While I Am Still Here?
Charitable Remainder Annuities and Unitrusts
Charitable Remainder Annuities and Trusts allow you to set up a trust that will ultimately benefit Atlanta Pet Rescue, while providing you with current income. To do this, you make an irrevocable (tax-deductible) donation of $100,000 or more in your name. With a charitable remainder unitrust, your payment rate is fixed at 5% or more, but the amount fluctuates based on the value of the trust each year. With a charitable remainder annuity trust your payment amount is fixed at 5% or more and does not fluctuate through time. In both cases, you have assured a future for Atlanta Pet Rescue in a trust under your name.
Life Income Plans
Life income plans may provide significant income tax savings and favorable capital gains tax treatment on gifts of appreciated property. Life income plans allow you to support our no-kill shelter while at the same time receiving an income for the remainder of your life.
Real Estate as a Gift
You can give your residence, vacation home, acreage, farm, or unimproved parcel of land and still retain use of it so that you and your family can continue to use it for the rest of your lives while obtaining significant tax and estate planning benefits. A residence may have appreciated so significantly in value that its sale by you would generate a substantial income tax burden. By making a gift of a full or partial interest in real estate to Atlanta Pet Rescue, you will avoid tax on the long-term capital gain and generate an income tax charitable deduction for the full fair market value of the property.
Charitable Gift Annuities
A charitable gift annuity allows you to benefit from an income tax deduction and also may provide capital gains and estate tax benefits. A charitable gift annuity must be at least $5,000 per person. In exchange for this gift, Atlanta Pet Rescue provides guaranteed, fixed payments to you for the rest of your life. Upon your death, the remainder of the gift will support the work of Atlanta Pet Rescue.
If you would like more information, or would like to let us know that you have already included Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption in your estate planning, please contact Betsey Blimline at fundraiser@atlantapetrescue.org.
To learn more about creative ways to give, please contact:
Debbie is shown here with her beloved Mister Toot, who she adopted from
Atlanta Pet Rescue in April 2001.
Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption, Inc. is a 501c3, non-profit organization as determined by the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service. Our federal tax ID number is 58-2587069.
Atlanta Pet Rescue is a separate entity from Met Life. The opinions expressed are those of Atlanta Pet Rescue & Adoption, Inc., and do not necessarily represent MetLife's position or opinions on these issues.
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MetLife) New York, NY 10166.
