The land you’ve cared for all your life could be your legacy in the future. Your gift of real estate to the Islands Trust Conservancy would permanently protect endangered island ecosystems. Give now or later with the gift of real estate during your lifetime, or later through your Will.
By donating property your estate can receive a tax receipt for income tax purposes for the fair market value of the property that can be carried over for five years and eliminate the capital gains tax that would otherwise be owed.
You don’t have to own land worthy of protection to make this kind of gift to the Islands Trust Conservancy – a donation of a condo with instructions to sell and use the proceeds for conservation works too!
These are ways to protect the most spectacular landscapes in the islands with a gift of real estate:
Give Land You Want to Protect
You’ve cared for the land during your lifetime; we will care for it after you’re gone.
Donors have gifted undeveloped natural properties to Islands Trust Conservancy, creating nature reserves and nature sanctuaries scattered throughout the islands. Those donors have entrusted Islands Trust Conservancy with the land they love, and we take our commitment seriously.
We protect each property gifted to us with a conservation covenant through a third party, ensuring that more than one conservation agency will watch over the land in perpetuity. We create unique management plans for each of our properties to make sure the special features protected are managed to be here long into the future.
In short, we love the land the way you do.
Give Any Land
You might not own undeveloped, natural land ideal for a nature reserve, but you can still create a legacy of ecologically protected land with a gift of real estate. Donors can gift homes or condominiums to the Islands Trust Conservancy, permitting us to sell the real estate in order to leverage funds to gain ecologically rich land for protection.
By donating non-ecologically sensitive real estate you will receive a tax receipt for income tax purposes for the fair market value of the property.
Give Now, But Continue to Live in Your Home
Perhaps you want to donate your home, you want tax relief for your donation in your lifetime, yet it’s home and you still want to live there. Here, a “Life Estate” is worth investigating.
A Life Estate allows you to give your home to Islands Trust Conservancy today while retaining the right to live there as long as you wish. You would immediately receive a tax receipt for income tax purposes based on the appraised value of your home minus the present value of the life tenancy you keep by continuing to live there.
Once you were no longer living on the property, the home would transfer to Islands Trust Conservancy. If your property has ecological values we can look into placing conservation covenants or similar protections onto the land. If your property doesn’t have significant ecological values (e.g. homes or largely developed lots) you can give your permission to allow us to sell the property and use the funds to purchase and protect ecologically sensitive land elsewhere in the islands.
We highly recommend that you consult with a lawyer about a Life Estate donation should this resonate with you. If your lawyer is not familiar with the use of Life Estates as a strategic charitable tool, we are happy to provide additional information.