There’s still time to donate your car and qualify for a 2008 tax deduction, but the clock is ticking. The deadline? Midnight, December 31. At that moment, the door closes on tax deductions for the year’s car donations.
December is crush time for donors and charities alike. This month, car donors are hurrying to get their vehicles in on time to qualify for their 2008 tax deductions. And charities? “We get as many cars donated in the last seven days of the year as we take in over a normal month during the rest of the year,” says Tim Finnigan, a car donation fund-raising consultant and owner of Charity Development, LLC (http://www.charitydevelopment.com).
The holiday rush hits charities in a good way, as patrons send in their checks and make last-minute donations with an eye to supporting their causes and reducing their tax burdens. Vehicle donations include every kind of vehicle, from cars that don’t run to high-end sportscars, to RVs, boats, motorcycles and jet-skis. If it’s on wheels and has a motor, chances are it can be donated and it can also pull in a tax deduction.
Though the official deadline is not until the end of the year, Finnigan suggests that donors get busy on their donations as soon as possible. “If you’re thinking of donating a vehicle, it’s best to proceed on it quickly,” he says. Don’t procrastinate.
His firm, Charity Development, as well as others, prepares ahead for the end-of-the-year rush. “We’ve got tow trucks, smog techs and office staff all at peak levels for the season. We’re geared up for procrastinators,”
The field of fundraising through vehicle donations is highly specialized, he says, and it’s one that can be deeply confusing to donors. As part of his educational efforts, he links clients to guidelines by the Internal Revenue Service (http://www.charitydevelopment.com/
