Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I leave a gift to Allegheny in my will?
Naming Allegheny as a beneficiary in a will is one of the most popular planned gifts to the College. For many donors, a bequest offers the opportunity to make a more substantial gift than would be possible during the donor's lifetime. Other donors view a bequest as an opportunity to give a lasting legacy to Allegheny. Bequests are one of the simplest forms of planned giving and have been important in supporting Allegheny's endowment, among other things.

Bequests may include stocks, bonds, real estate or retirement plan assets. Other assets may also be willed to the College. You can give a specific dollar amount or a percentage of your estate. You even can name the College as a residual beneficiary. This means that Allegheny will receive the remainder of your estate after all other bequests and taxes have been satisfied.

If you would like to remember Allegheny through a bequest, it is very important that this estate gift be correctly worded. Please review our suggested sample bequest language, which provides the language to record your wishes in your will.

The Office of Gift Planning is available to work with you and your attorney in planning an estate gift to the College so that your intentions are fully understood and carried out. We would be happy to send you an estate-planning worksheet to assist you and your advisors in developing an appropriate estate plan. Pleaes click on the worksheet link or contact our office at 814-332-5906 or at giftplan@allegheny.edu to request a copy or to request more information about including Allegheny in your will.

• Does Allegheny need to know my bequest intentions?
We recognize that you might want to keep your bequest intentions confidential. If you are willing to inform us, however, we appreciate the information. Including Allegheny in your will makes you eligible to become a member of the William Bentley Legacy Society. Recognizing members of this society is important to Allegheny. Not only does it provide us with an opportunity to express our appreciation, but it also may inspire others to support the College through their estate plans.

Completing the Memorandum of Understanding for the William Bentley Legacy Society will let the College know of your plans. This Memorandum is used for record keeping purposes only and is not binding. If you hav any questions regarding its completion, pleae contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• What is the William Bentley Legacy Society?
The William Bentley Legacy Society is a recognition society for those who have provided for Allegheny College through wills, charitable gift annuities, and charitable trusts. Some members have designated the College as a beneficiary of their life insurance or retirement assets.

Members of the William Bentley Legacy Society are recognized in the College's annual Report of Gifts and other publications (unless they prefer to remain anonymous).

To learn more about the William Bentley Legacy Society, please check its Web site by clicking on the link above or contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• What is a charitable gift annuity?
Charitable gift annuities are types of life-income plans. Life-income plans are arrangements under which you make a gift of cash or property (stocks, bonds, real estate) in exchange for a stream of income for life. In other words, you transfer an asset, but reserve the right to receive payments from the asset.

There are several benefits from this type of arrangement:

   • A stream of income for life, to more than one beneficiary if you wish
   • A charitable income-tax deduction in the year you make the gift, plus a carryover of up to five years of any usused deduction
   • A charitable estate-tax deduction for a portion of the gift
   • A gift that will benefit Allegheny College in the future

Life-income gifts may be made in the form of gift annuities or trusts. A charitable gift annuity is simply a contract between a donor and a charity, such as Allegheny College. In exchange for a gift of a specified amount, we agree to make fixed annual payments for life to one or two beneficiaries.

To learn more about charitable gift annuities, please check our Web site here or contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• How are gift annuity rates determined?
All charities are free to set the rates they offer, as long as the rate comply with any applicable state regulations. Generally, charities choose to follow the schedule of recommended maximum rates published by the American Council on Gift Annuities (ACGA). The ACGA is a non-profit organization that provides education and other services to charities regarding gift annuities and other forms of planned gifts. Allegheny follows the ACGA rates.

The ACGA-recommended rates change from time to time, based on a variety of economic factors. (Any changes would affect only annuities established after the rate change was recommended.)

To learn more about charitable gift annuities, please check our Web site here or contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• How do gifts in trusts work?
Gifts in trust, like charitable gift annuities, are types of life-income plans. Life-income plans are arrangements under which you make a gift of cash or property (stocks, bonds, real estate) in exchange for a stream of income for life. In other words, you transfer an asset, but reserve the right to receive payments from the asset.

There are several benefits from this type of gift arrangement:

   • A stream of income for life, to more than one beneficiary if you wish
   • A charitable income-tax deduction in the year you make the gift, plus a carryover of up to five years of any usused deduction
   • A charitable estate-tax deduction for a portion of the gift
   • A gift that will benefit Allegheny College in the future

Life-income gifts may be made in the form of trusts or gift annuities. In its simplest terms, a trust is an arrangement under which an individual transfers legal title to property to another (the trustee) who manages the property for the benefit of the individuals and/or organization specified in the trust agreement.

Trusts that make lifetime payments to the specified beneficiaries and ultimately benefit a charity are known as charitable remainder trusts. At Allegheny, these trusts may take the form of either a charitable remainder unitrust or a charitable remainder annuity trust.

The principal difference between these trusts is the nature of the payments made to the beneficiaries: Payments from a unitrust vary according to the value of the trust each year. Payments form an annuity trust are fixed when the trust is created and will not vary over the lifetimes of the beneficiaries.

Pointer: If you fund any of these trusts with long-term appreciated securities, you will receive the benefits listed above plus an additional tax benefit: you will avoid capital-gain tax on the appreciation, thus preserving more of your gift to produce the payments.

To learn more about trusts, please check our Web site here or contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• May I name Allegheny as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy?
Yes. An asset that is frequently overlooked is life insurance. If the original need for which a policy was purchased no longer exists (for example, to pay for a child's college education in the event of one's premature death), a gift of this asset can be very rewarding. To qualify for a tax deduction, you would need to name Allegheny College as both the beneficiary and the owner of the policy.

You also may consider using life insurance when you make a gift of another asset (highly appreciated real estate, for example), but wish to replace the value of that asset for your family. By using the actual tax savings generated by your gift to purchase a life insurance policy, you can replace the value of the gift in your estate for the benefit of your family.

To learn more about naming Allegheny as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy, please contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• May I name Allegheny as the beneficiary of a retirement account?
Yes. You may use retirement-plan benefits to make a gift to Allegheny College. And because of the estate and income-tax treatment of retirement-plan benefits, the cost of your gift to your estate and heirs is often relatively small. Retirement-plan benefits include assets held in individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and assets held in accounts under 401(k) plans, profit-sharing plans, Keough plans, and 403(b) plans.

For more information about naming Allegheny as beneficiary of a retirement account, please contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• Can assets other than cash be used to fund a planned gift to Allegheny?
Yes. Donating long-term appreciated assets such as securities or real estate may bring even more benefits to a donor. By giving these assets to Allegheny to establish a planned gift such a charitable gift annuity or charitable remainder trust, a donor can reduce capital-gain-tax liability and still receive a charitable deduction and other tax and income benefits.

For more information about using assets other than cash to fund a planned gift, please contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu.

• Does Allegheny accept gifts of real estate?
Yes. A personal residence, a farm, a vacation home, and commercial and rental property are often the subject of gifts. Life gifts of long-term, appreciated securities, gifts of real estate can be very attractive because of the double tax benefit: an immediate charitable deduction and the avoidance of captial-gain tax.

However, family considerations may not permit the making of an outright gift of your personal residence or farm. In that case, you may want to consider a gift to us of a retained life estate in such property. Even though you will retain the right to possess and enjoy the property for as long as you (and your spouse) live, you'll obtain a current income-tax deduction for the present value of our remainder interest.

Please contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu for more information about gifts of real estate.

• Do planned gifts count toward my class reunion gift?
Some deferred gifts may be eligible to be included in the class reunion gift. In addition to boosting your class gift total, your deferred gift also will qualify you for membership in the William Bentley Legacy Society. For more information, please contact your reunion gift coordinator or Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu for more information about gifts of real estate.

• Will Allegheny work with my financial advisor as I plan a gift to the College?
Yes. Allegheny encourages donors to talk with their advisors about their plans. We are willing to work with you and your advisors to determine the best course of action to achieve your wishes. Melissa Mencotti of the Gift Planning Office at 814-332-5912 or melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu can provide more information about how the College works with financial advisors.

• How do I find out more about estate and gift planning at Allegheny?
The Office of Gift Planning is available to work with you and your financial advisors in planning a gift to the College. Please contact Melissa Mencotti at 814-332-5912 or at melissa.mencotti@allegheny.edu for more information.