Leave a Legacy

Planning now to leave a legacy gift to the New England Forestry Foundation offers you a very flexible and simple way to combine philanthropy with estate planning.  In fact, a legacy gift to the New England Forestry Foundation may help you conserve more than you thought possible while providing you or someone you designate with favorable financial benefits.

Legacy gifts to the New England Forestry Foundation may take several forms:

Cash  

A gift of cash may be made to New England Forestry Foundation. 

Securities

A gift of appreciated stock or other securities is an easy tax efficient way to make a legacy gift.

Tangible Personal Property  

Gifts of personal property that can be sold by NEFF such as antiques, automobiles and other tangible personal property can support a legacy of conservation.

Real Estate

There are many popular ways for donors to use real estate to support a legacy of conservation with the New England Forestry Foundation.

• Donations of Real Estate  Gifting your forestland to NEFF with a restriction providing that NEFF must continue to manage these forestlands as working forests assures your legacy of conservation.  
• Donations of Real Estate (“Trade Lands”)   Gifting vacation homes or commercial lands to NEFF for resale will provide a legacy of conservation.  NEFF encourages donors to consider a legacy gift of trade lands to the New England Forestry Foundation. 
• Bargain Sales   When NEFF has the financial resources, selling your productive forestland to NEFF at a price well below the market value can provide a lasting conservation legacy and provide you with immediate tax benefits.

Trusts

As part of planning your legacy, several trust options exist that could fulfill your legacy wishes and help NEFF.

• Charitable Remainder Trusts   You might transfer assets to a trust and instruct the trustees to make distributions to you or another primary beneficiary.  When you or the primary beneficiary can no longer receive distributions the trust assets go to NEFF.
• Charitable Lead Trusts   You might transfer assets to a trust that gives income to NEFF for a number of years at which time the principal in the trust passes to a beneficiary designated by you, often family members.

Insurance Policies and Bequests 

Additional legacy options exist that will allow you to support the conservation efforts of NEFF.

• Insurance   Individuals wishing to make a gift to support the work of NEFF may include NEFF as a beneficiary on an existing life insurance policy.
• Bequests   Donors may wish to make bequests to NEFF as part of their legacy planning. 

In addition to the above, there are other mechanisms of charitable giving that may be appropriate for individual donors, including the formation of private foundations or the use of community foundations to make charitable donations.  Because each method of giving has its own specific tax benefits, donors should tailor their gift to the method or methods that best suit their personal situations.  An individual should consult with his or her attorney and tax advisors prior to a legacy gift to the New England Forestry Foundation.

For further information on the ways of giving to support the New England Forestry Foundation and forest stewardship and sustainable forest management in New England, please contact:  

Executive Director
New England Forestry Foundation
P.O. Box 1346
Littleton, MA 01460
Tel. (978) 952-6856