Donor tools

Is this asset a good gift?

Two questions tell you whether giving an asset is likely to beat selling it and giving the cash.

Have you owned it for more than a year?

A year and a day is what turns a gain from short-term into long-term, and only a long-term gain earns the full deduction.

What usually passes both

Anything you have held over a year that is worth more than you paid. Endaoment takes all of these.

Stock and ETFs
Held over a year and up on what you paid. The most common good gift there is.
Crypto
Same test, same answer. A year and a day, and worth more than it cost.
Real estate and private stock
Harder to move, and the gain is usually the largest. Our people handle these by hand.
Art and collectibles
These follow their own rules. If the piece is sold rather than used, the deduction is usually what you paid.

You deduct what it is worth now
Not what you paid, on stock, crypto and most appreciated holdings. On one that has doubled, that is twice the deduction.
You skip the gain
Selling first means capital gains tax, 15% for most people and 20% over roughly $500,000 of income. Giving the asset means neither of you pays it.
The nonprofit gets all of it
Endaoment is the 501(c)(3) sponsor and sells the asset without the tax, so what arrives is the full amount.

Bought at $10,000, worth $50,000 today: selling it first costs $6,000 to $8,000 in tax, and giving it earns a $50,000 deduction with none.

Everyone's situation is different, and this is a guide rather than tax advice. Talk to your own advisor before acting on it.