Landowner options for land conservation

The outright donation of land

NEFF is one of very few land conservation organizations that actively manages its properties to yield the continuous flow of wood products and environmental benefits. Most of these properties are Memorial Forests named to perpetually honor the donor or their family. NEFF considers its woodlands to be part of its endowment portfolio, which provide income from wood products to support its conservation work. The straightforward gift of a land parcel is the simplest way to transfer ownership. Making a gift is as easy as drafting a deed. This technique offers the maximum tax advantages to the donor because the charitable-gift deduction is generally based on the full fair market value of the property. An appraisal obtained by the donor substantiates this value for IRS deduction purposes.

Donation of conservation easement

A conservation easement is a legal agreement between a landowner (the grantor) and a conservation organization or public agency (the grantee or holder). The agreement separates the rights to exercise more intensive uses -- such as construction, subdivision, and mining -- from other rights of ownership. These “development rights” are then transferred to the grantee through the conservation easement deed. The grantee agrees to hold, but not use, the development rights and to ensure that they are not used by anyone else; effectively, the development rights are extinguished. Conservation easements are granted in perpetuity and apply to the land regardless of who may own it in the future.

Donation of an easement brings a package of benefits that potentially includes a federal income tax deduction, reductions in both federal and state estate taxes, a state income tax credit, and occasionally a property tax savings. Provided that the land has natural conservation value, there are virtually no geographic constraints on donated easements.

For more information about conservation easements see our Questions and Answers for Landowners page

Planned Giving

Planned Giving is a unique way to turn your assets into conserved land. There are several ways that you can take a charitable tax deduction while supporting NEFF.

Land Donation: The most common gift is the donation of land. The amount of your tax deduction is based on the appraised value of the property. Land donated through a will is not treated as part of the taxable estate. There are other tax vehicles available for donating land, please see the Leaving a Legacy section of Support Our Work.

Life Estate: A landowner may wish to make a donation of land while retaining the right to use the land until death. The act of donating land now to take effect after death of the owner is called the gift of a "remainder interest" and the retained right of use is called a "life estate." The important difference between a conservation easement and a remainder interest lies in the ownership. While a landowner retains ownership when donating a conservation easement, ownership is relinquished upon death with the gift of a remainder interest. In the latter case, family land can be saved but not for future ownership by family members.