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Life Income Gifts

Discover which gift works best for you.

Life income agreements allow you to retain an income interest during your lifetime or for a term of years.

The ELCA Foundation administers a variety of life income agreements that are in compliance with federal laws and state regulations that govern the issuance and administration of these agreements.

	Charitable Gift Annuity	Deferred Charitable Gift Annuity	Charitable Remainder Unitrust	Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust
Minimum gift	$10,000	$10,000	$100,000	$100,000
Minimum age	65	55, with first payment at 65 or older	35	35
Number of individual income beneficiaries	1 or 2	1 or 2	Up to 8	Up to 8
It works best for income beneficiaries	65 or older	ages 55 to 65	45 or older	65 or older
Best kinds of gifts	cash or appreciated securities	cash or appreciated securities	cash, appreciated securities, or real estate	cash or appreciated securities
Annuity/Payment rate	Fixed payments based on age of annuitant(s).	Fixed payments based on length of deferral and age at which annuity payments begin.	Minimum 5%, determined by agreement between the donor and the ELCA Foundation.	Minimum 5%, determined by agreement between the donor and the ELCA Foundation.
Income tax deduction	Based on size of gift, life expectancy of annuitant(s), annuity rate, monthly AFR from the IRS	Based on size of gift, life expectancy of annuitant(s), annuity rate, monthly AFR from the IRS	Based on size of gift, life expectancy of trust, unitrust percentage rate, monthly AFR from the IRS	Based on size of gift, life expectancy of trust, unitrust percentage rate, monthly AFR from the IRS
Advantages	Some portion of annuity payment may be tax-free for life expectancy of annuitant(s). With gifts of appreciated securities, a possible partial bypass of the capital gain with the remaining capital gain pro-rated over the life expectancy of annuitant(s).	Annuity payment is larger than for an immediate charitable gift annuity. Annuity payments could begin when in lower income tax bracket. A portion of annuity may be tax-free for life expectancy of annuitant(s).	Unitrust rates, income, and investments can be individually structured to meet the goals of the donor and the income beneficiaries. Ability to include additional income beneficiaries (family) for term of years, in addition to lifetime income for donors. Additional gifts of cash or securities may be made to the trust at any time.	Provides a fixed payment to the income beneficiaries. Payment not affected by fluctuation in investments.

The examples and information on this page are for illustrative and educational purposes only and should not be considered tax or legal advice. Please consult with your tax or legal advisor before proceeding with your estate plan. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, via the ELCA Foundation, currently does not offer charitable gift annuities to any persons in the states of Alabama and Hawaii.