We hope these tips will make the giving season a little less stressful:
Tip #1: Charity scams can be very convincing.
- Always remove yourself from the immediate solicitation scenario to give yourself time to check it out.
- Don’t give out credit card or personal information in response to phone, e-mail or door-to-door fundraising.
- If you want to give online, locate the charity’s web site yourself rather than linking through an e-mail.
- Watch out for charity names that are “sound-alikes” to other well-established charities.
- Click here for more advice from the Federal Trade Commission on what to look for and ways to protect yourself.
Tip #2: Your donation may or may not be tax deductible.
- Check out the IRS.gov site.
- Use the IRS’s online search tool for tax exempt organizations EO Select Check.
Tip #3: Identify a giving budget.
- Form an idea of your goals (local vs widespread, crisis-driven vs sustaining, one-time vs. ongoing, which causes) and establish your household budget for giving.
- Allow some portion for ad-hoc fundraising support solicitations from friends and family.