Legacy and Bequests
Leave a lasting impact with a legacy gift to the Lake County Land Trust
Many Lake County Land Trust (LCLT) supporters have chosen to support our mission through planned giving – including LCLT in your will or trust, or making another kind of legacy gift. Their foresight and yours, should you chose to join them, ensures the strength and the sustainability of the Lake County Land Trust.
Your planned gift to LCLT will ensure that conservation efforts continue to preserve and enhance vital biodiversity, improve the health of our ancient lake, allow wildlife to flourish, and encourage sustainable economic growth.
Whether you are taking those first important steps toward planning your estate or are in the process of updating your estate plan, please consider including the Lake County Land Trust in your plans.
If you would like more information about Legacy giving opportunities, please contact the Lake County Land Trust by emailing LCLT@lakecountylandtrust.org, calling (707) 262-0707 or contacting board president, Val Nixon at 4val944@gmail.com.
Bequests
The most common way people remember LCLT in a will or living trust is through a charitable bequest. You do not have to rewrite your current documents. You can add an amendment, called a codicil, to your will or living trust. Another way to do this is with a Beneficiary Designation Form.
The main benefits of a bequest are:
-
Receive an estate tax charitable deduction
-
Reduce the burden of taxes on your family
-
Leave a lasting legacy to charity
Three ways you can make a bequest:
-
Specific bequest: make a gift of a specific asset. This is to be fulfilled first, before cash or residual bequests.
-
Cash bequest: make a gift of a specific dollar amount or percentage of your estate. This type of gift gets fulfilled second, after gifts of specific assets.
-
Residual bequest: make a gift of the balance or residue of your estate, or a percentage thereof. Fulfilled last, after specific and/ or cash bequests, taxes, debts, and settlement costs have been satisfied.
Bequest language examples
Start with the Name, Address and Tax ID number of the Lake County Land Trust
Lake County Land Trust
P.O. Box 1017 Lakeport, CA 95453
Tax ID #: 68-0332712
Specific gift: " I give _____________(describe asset, including location of asset) to Lake County Land Trust of Lakeport, CA, for it's general purposes (or specify the LCLT program that you wish to support)."
Cash gift: “I give, devise and bequeath to Lake County Land Trust (tax I.D. #68-0332712), located in Lakeport, California, the sum of ________________________________ dollars ($ _______________) for the benefit of its general purposes (or specify the LCLT program you wish to support).”
Residual gift: "I give the remainder (or state the percentage of the remainder) of my estate to the Lake County Land Trust of Lakeport, CA for the benefit of its general purposes (or name specific LCLT program you wish to support).
LCLT recommends consulting with an attorney or Estate Planner to determine if any of the ideas listed here are good options for you.
Estate Planning Tools
Charitable Gift Annuities (CGAs) and Charitable Remainder Trusts (CRTs) to LCLT provide a gift to LCLT while at the same time providing you with an income for life, along with other benefits and favorable tax treatments. A CGA is a simple contract between you and the charity of your choice. A portion of the income that you receive for life is free of tax. This type of gift works best for those 70 and over, as the older the person making the gift, the higher the income they receive. A minimum amount of $25,000 is required to fund a CGA.
CRTs are similar to CGAs but can be more complex. Estate planning attorneys are great sources of expertise on how to set these up.
Lynne & Bernie Butcher relaxing on their Tallman Hotel veranda.
"Beyond the immediate family, there are lots of worthy causes that could be put into an estate planning document.
Our thinking was that it would be best to make a significant long-term impact on one of our priorities as opposed to making a
marginal short-term impact on many. And the Land Trust jumped out to us because it’s a well-run, responsible organization
and the strategic properties purchased by the Trust are preserved in perpetuity." —Bernie Butcher