Gift Planning

What is Gift Planning?

Gift Planning can be a variety of charitable giving methods that allow you to express your personal values by integrating your charitable, family, and financial goals. Gift Planning can provide valuable tax benefits, and many gifts are frequently made through bequests to charities that are near and dear to you.

How can I leave a lasting legacy to CAMH?

If you would like more information on how you can leave a lasting legacy to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, please contact CAMH's Gift Planning department at 713 284 8262 or by email at abredbenner@camh.org.

Did you Know?

Even a small amount can have a big impact over time. You can leave money to your family and to your favorite charity. You don't have to choose between the two. In fact, some charitable gifts may actually save your family money by decreasing inheritance taxes. It's easy. A simple directive in your will can bring welcome support to CAMH that will make a lasting difference in many lives. 

Please consult your attorney or financial advisor before making a deferred gift to charity. In the event you already have a will, your attorney can draft a codicil (amendment) to your will to include a charitable bequest to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston.

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We respect your privacy! Information collected regarding Gift Planning is kept strictly confidential. There is never an obligation to complete a gift.

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Moved to Give

Motivated by their love of contemporary art and gratitude for the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH), Brenda and Bill Goldberg have been longtime supporters of CAMH through their philanthropy and volunteerism. Both equally passionate collectors of contemporary art, the Goldbergs met at a charity brunch while in the windy city of Chicago and struck up a conversation about art. They later married and moved to Houston in 1979. They have been married almost 35 years and have shared their passion for contemporary art with their daughter, Melissa. 

It was actually Melissa who introduced them to CAMH in 1998. Visiting CAMH was a mother-daughter pastime for many years and when Melissa interned at the museum, she insisted that Brenda and Bill become more involved. Since then, Brenda and Bill have been gracious supporters of CAMH. “We like the arts and we like the people. We really like the people!” Bill reveals. Bill is a longtime member of CAMH’s Board of Trustees and currently volunteers as the Treasurer and Chair of the Museum’s finance committee. Professionally, he is the Regional Director and Principal – Senior Investment Advisor Group at Bernstein Global Wealth Management, where he works with private clients on their financial goals and wealth management. Brenda is a literary fiction author.

When asked what their favorite pastime is, Bill fervently replied, “ART!” This enthusiasm for art coupled with their commitment to philanthropy is one reason they continue to give back to CAMH. “I know how much organizations depend on donors,” Bill asserts. In this spirit, the Goldbergs have decided to help ensure the future of CAMH and leave their own legacy. They have made a planned gift by purchasing a life insurance policy through the Houston Jewish Community Foundation that will give a percentage annually to the charities of their choice.

As the Goldbergs know, there are many ways to leave a legacy to your favorite charity. A few examples include bequests, personal endowment funds, life insurance policies, charitable lead trusts, and charitable remainder trusts. They believe donors need to think about the future of the organizations they love. “What if something happens to me, who is going to replace me and my giving?” Bill explains. Through gift planning, donors can help ensure the future of their favorite charities, like the Goldbergs have. 

Bill supports other organizations around Houston, including the Houston Jewish Community Foundation, where he created an endowment program while he was chairman there. He is also active in professional organizations as former Chair of the Personal Financial Planning Division of the American Institute of Certified Personal Accountants.

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The Art of Giving … Creating a Lasting Legacy

The Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is a non-collecting institution dedicated to presenting the best and most exciting international, national, and regional art. Through dynamic exhibitions accompanied by scholarly publications and accessible educational programs, the Museum reaches out to local, regional, national, and international audiences of various ages. The planned giving program assists interested individuals in making a meaningful charitable gift. We invite you to join other supporters.

The Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. The Federal Identification Number  is 74-1093771.

Goals & Benefits

Several strategies reduce the amount of tax through charitable contributions.

• Income tax savings are taken on your income tax return, provided you itemize;

• Assets that have grown in value can be used to bypass or reduce capital gains tax;

• You (your estate) can receive an estate tax deduction for making a bequest of qualified

retirement plan accounts and traditional IRAs that would otherwise be taxed as income to your heirs as they receive it and negate the adverse income tax consequences to the individual beneficiaries.

The personal rewards of your charitable contribution may be more difficult to measure but no less momentous. Gift planning permits you to leave an indelible mark on Houston. You can accomplish this in various ways, depending on your circumstances, through wills, trusts, and other estate planning options. You can make a general contribution to the museum’s endowment or designate it for specific education programs, exhibitions, or professional support and services. We invite you to join other donors who have already arranged planned gifts at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston to establish your legacy.

Endowments

When you make a gift to our endowment fund, it can either be outright or deferred (such as through a bequest in a will or trust). Either way, your one gift can turn into a legacy of annual gifts long into the future. An endowment fund is a permanent fund invested to earn income each year, and as the principal grows, so does the income. A portion of the income is rolled back into the endowed fund to help grow the principal and a portion of the income is spent for the purpose stated in the endowment agreement. Approximately 5% of a rolling three year average is available to be spent each year (example: $50,000 cash donation for endowment creates $2,500 in available annual income for the Museum). This policy allows for the continual growth of both principal and income and thus the fund lasts in perpetuity.

Endowments of $50,000 and above may be identified with the donor name and established for a specific purpose defined by the donor such as operations, exhibitions, publications, or education and outreach programs. Endowment funds are a conservative attempt to guarantee the future of our mission and to enhance the quality of our opportunities for service.

Ways to Give

Once you’ve chosen your beneficiaries, the next step is to select the best estate planning arrangements to implement your wishes. Keep in mind the needs of your beneficiaries, the protection of your money, and the impact of estate taxes. Here are some components of an estate plan.

Your will

This disposes of your assets that won’t pass by other means, such as those described below. Also, your will can name a personal representative (executor) to settle your estate. When it comes to good estate planning, this document makes certain nothing is overlooked.

Retirement plans

Benefits from your employer, a rollover IRA, or other retirement plan may comprise a substantial part of your estate. After your lifetime, these benefits will be paid to the beneficiaries you have designated in the plan. A charitable organization can be named as a beneficiary.

Life insurance

The proceeds are payable to the beneficiaries you’ve named under the options you selected in your policies or subsequent endorsements. A charitable organization can be named as a beneficiary.

Trusts

You can create a trust in your will or by an agreement. You can put assets in a “living trust” during your lifetime, perhaps for your own benefit; the disposition of the trust principal and income will be governed by the terms of the trust agreement.

Gifts of appreciated stocks or bonds

You can contribute long-term appreciated securities to us (for instance, stocks or bonds held for over a year) and get a two-fold income tax benefit: a charitable deduction for the full present fair market value, and no capital gains tax on the appreciation.

Assets to Give

Cash

Donors may make planned gifts with cash by making a general bequest, a specific bequest, or a contingent bequest. Examples of each are provided below. The bequest can be made in either a will or a trust.

Life insurance

The proceeds are payable to the beneficiaries you’ve named under the options you selected in your policies or subsequent endorsements. A beneficiary can include a charitable entity.

Retirement plans

After your lifetime, your IRA, 401(K), etc. benefits will be paid to the beneficiaries you have designated in the plan. A beneficiary can include a charitable entity.

Royalties & distribution rights

You can contribute royalties or distribution rights on published works (such as books or films) where there is clear evidence of marketability or assurance of a payment stream.

Stocks or bonds

You can contribute long-term appreciated securities to us (for instance, stocks or bonds held for over a year) and get a two-fold income tax benefit: a charitable deduction for the full present fair market value, and no capital gains tax on the appreciation.

Will Wording & Beneficiary Designations

Sample language to help you define and execute your charitable intentions for making gifts by will, trust, or beneficiary designation to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is provided below. Share this information with your estate planning attorney. The Federal Identification Number for the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is 74-1093771.

Sample General Bequest

I give and devise to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, (FIN 74-1093771), a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of the State of Texas, all (or the

percentage of ______%), of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, both real and personal, to be used at the discretion of its governing board.

Contingent Bequest
Contingency Bequests allow you to leave a portion of your estate to a particular charity if your named beneficiary does not survive you.

Sample contingency bequest language:

If (insert name) does not survive me, then and in that event, I give and bequeath to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, (FIN 74-1093771), a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of the State of Texas, all of the rest, residue and remainder of my estate, both real and personal, to be used at the discretion of its governing board.  

Residuary Bequests
Residuary Bequests are made when you intend to leave the residue portion of your assets after other terms of the will have been satisfied.

Sample residuary bequest language:

"All the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate, both real and personal, I give to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, (FIN 74-1093771) 5216 Montrose Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77006, for its general purposes."  

The Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is unable to accept the following gifts:  

• Gifts of real estate
• Gifts of other property
• Title arrangements
• Buy-sell agreements
• Annuities of life income plans

Gifts of artwork:    

Because the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is a non-collecting institution, gifts of artwork will be sold within two years of receipt. Proceeds may be designated by the donor. 

Thank you for thinking of the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. If you would like more information on how you can leave a lasting legacy to the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, please contact CAMH's Gift Planning department at 713 284 8263 or by email at lconine@camh.org.

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