Of course, you can opt for the path of least resistance and just refuse any non-cash gifts. But you run a real risk of alienating potential donors and excluding supporters of your organization’s mission who have significant holdings of valuable real assets. Simply throwing open the door to any and all donations, on the other hand, can quickly turn into a logistical nightmare.
Caveat recipiēns (let the recipient beware)
Non-cash gifts can bring both unanticipated costs and risks to your organization. It’s not hard to imagine gratefully accepting a beautiful lakeside home only to find out when you turn around to sell the property that it’s situated adjacent to an old toxic dumping site. Even situations far less extreme, still pose potential challenges.
Unlike cash (or even securities), real assets may require costly upkeep or maintenance that must be carefully factored into any decision regarding whether or not to accept them as a gift. Your organization may have neither the in-house resources nor the expertise necessary to liquidate or preserve the ongoing value of certain assets.
What constitutes a real asset?
The term ‘real assets’ encompasses any non-financial appreciated tangible assets such as:
- Real estate (homes, apartment buildings, commercial property, land, etc.)
- Art
- Vehicles
- Business interests
- Book collections
- Jewelry
- Oil, gas or mineral rights
- Timber holdings
Additionally, both the asset gifted as well as the source of the gift may run counter to your organization’s charitable mission. While a $1 million gift would be a welcome windfall for a community healthcare advocacy nonprofit, what happens if that gift comes in the form of 10,000 shares of a cigarette manufacturer stock? What do you do if the individual offering a generous gift to your foundation has ties to an unpopular organization or possesses a controversial political opinion?
Even gifts that don’t raise any obvious red flags (including some cash gifts) may prove problematic when they’re accompanied by excessive restrictions. Some donors may wish to stipulate that in-kind gifts not be liquidated or mandate exactly how cash gifts can or cannot be spent. It’s an understandable desire, but your nonprofit needs to ensure that the demands associated with a gift won’t in any way impede the mission or needs of the organization.
Holding onto gifted real assets of significant value (e.g., a $1 million piece of real estate) may also necessitate a reallocation of portfolio assets to maintain target allocations. In addition, these types of assets often require extensive investment expertise to identify and monitor appropriate performance benchmarks.
Despite all these potential challenges, turning down a large gift or bequest—especially when the organization would benefit from the infusion of funds—may be one of the hardest decisions any nonprofit must face. To aid in the decision making process, you need a clearly-defined and well-articulated construct that eliminates any subjective desire and guides gift acceptance decisions.
Creating a Gift Acceptance Policy
Typically, a gift acceptance policy is a straightforward 2-3 page document that delineates your organization’s policies and procedures as related to the acceptance of charitable gifts (including in-kind gifts and gifts of real assets). Ideally, the policy should outline requirements and restrictions for accepting gifts, while affording a certain degree of flexibility for special circumstances. It should be clearly conveyed both externally to prospective donors and internally to all staff members.
Creation of a gift acceptance policy should be a deeply collaborative effort involving key planned giving and program administration professionals, finance and investment committee members, legal counsel, and Board members. Along with a reiteration of your nonprofit’s mission and the underlying intent of the gift acceptance policy to help further that mission, the document will typically contain three key sections:
- Restrictions on gifts—this is a high-level summary statement articulating the prohibition of any gifts that may run counter to the organization’s mission, jeopardize its 501(c)(3) status, prove too difficult to dispose of / administer, or potentially tarnish the nonprofit’s public image.
- Gifts generally accepted without review—for most organizations, gifts that are accepted without review typically include cash and publicly-traded securities. Depending on the size and internal resources of your nonprofit, you may choose to include other gift types.
- Gifts requiring review prior to acceptance—this will generally be the most detailed section of your policy, including a list of all other types of gifts that MAY be accepted if they meet certain criteria. This is where (among other assets) you may choose to explain your policies regarding closely-held securities, real estate, life insurance, oil/gas/mineral interests, automobiles, boats, works of art, charitable lead trusts, charitable remainder trusts, and charitable gift annuities. Make sure to include specifics of your acceptance criteria for each asset type. For example, under real estate you may mandate that the property:
- Be deemed ‘marketable,’ with no restrictions, easements, covenants, or other limitations;
- Have no excessive carrying costs (e.g., mortgages, notes, taxes, or insurance); and
- Passes an environmental audit.
The document should clearly advise donors to seek legal/tax counsel before making any gift, and similarly inform them that under certain circumstances your organization may also engage counsel to advise on a proposed gift. It should identify which party (donor or recipient nonprofit) assumes the cost and responsibility for any asset appraisals or valuations for gifts.
Your nonprofit’s gift acceptance policy is a great way to mitigate potential donor gift restrictions by formalizing your policies and procedures regarding the disposition of gifts (e.g., all gifts of securities will be immediately liquidated upon receipt). It also provides you with an opportunity to articulate guidelines for tiered recognition levels and/or minimum gifting requirements for establishing a named fund.
A partner to guide you
At Truist, we work with a wide range of nonprofit Boards to help explore gift acceptance best practices, and identify policies that closely align with the organization’s unique needs and mission. Additionally, we also advise our clients on the impact those policies may have on the organization’s investment portfolio.
Because each individual nonprofit has a unique mission and goals, the provisions of your gift acceptance policy also needs to be distinct. Once you establish your policy, periodically review it (at least annually) to ensure it remains aligned with your mission, risk profile, and development strategy.
About Truist’s Foundations and Endowments Specialty Practice
Truist has more than a century of experience working with not-for-profit organizations. Fiduciary stewardship is the heart of our culture. We’re not just a provider, but an invested partner—sharing responsibility for prudent management of not-for-profit assets. Our client commitment, not-for-profit experience, and fiduciary culture are significant advantages for our clients and set us apart. The Foundations and Endowments Specialty Practice works exclusively with not-for- profit organizations. Our institutional teams include professionals with extensive not-for-profit expertise. These professionals are actively engaged in the not-for profit community and are able to share best practices that are meaningful to their clients. Team members offer guidance and advice tailored to the various subsets of the not-for-profit community, including trade associations and membership organizations. Our Practice delivers comprehensive investment advisory, administration, planned giving, custody, trust and fiduciary services to trade associations, educational institutions, foundations, endowments and other not-for profit clients across the country.
Looking for help in creating or revising your organization’s gift acceptance policy?
Contact your Truist relationship manager or investment advisor or call us at 866-223-1499.