Benefits of Community Foundation v/s Private Foundation – Community Foundation of Greene County

Benefits of Community Foundation vs. Private Foundation

Giving Options
Items to Consider	Endowed Fund at CFGC (Donor Designated/Donor Advised)	Direct Gift to Single Charity	Private Foundation
Involvement and Control	You give to a public charity – e.g., a community foundation. You designate a charity to received annual grants; or for a donor advised fund, you recommend grants to qualified nonprofit groups each year, subject to approval by the public charity board of directors.	You give a gift directly to a nonprofit organization. Control is limited to the initial gift decision.	You establish a foundation and appoint a board which controls investments and grantmaking.
Tax Status	Public Charity.	N/A.	Private Charity.
Tax Deductions	Up to 50% on cash; Up to 30% on appreciated stock, real estate and/or closely held stock.	Vary depending on the status of the recipient organizations.	Up to 30% on cash; Up to 20% on appreciated stock, real estate and/or closely held stock.
Grantmaking Support	In the case of a community foundation gift, professional staff is available to help identify and assess grantees, provide input on community needs, and verify nonprofit status.	Your decision is based on your own research and intuition.	You must arrange and support your own grantmaking and monitoring structure.
Start-up Costs	N/A.	N/A.	At least several thousand dollars for legal and accounting expenses and filing fees.
Effective Gift Size	$5,000 to establish designated or donor advised funds; $25,000 for scholarships. Funds can be started with any amount and grown over 5 years to the minimum to endow the fund.	Any gift size is appropriate.	Typically millions of dollars.
Administration Requirements	Administration is provided and an annual fee is charged on the average value of the fund. Community foundation handles tax reporting.	You are responsible for tax reporting and recordkeeping.	Several thousand dollars for legal and accounting expenses and filing fees. Annual 990PF tax form must be filed.