By donating to a charity you will be helping out someone who is desperately in need of that help and who will greatly appreciate your contribution. But donating can help you save money too. How can you do this?
Tax deductions for donations:
You are eligible to reduce the amount of income that is subject to taxation by donating either money or any other items to charity. To get this deduction you have to donate to a charity that is qualified by the IRS. You can make the claim after you make the donation. If you donate goods, you can claim on the market value of the goods. The IRS has a guideline to determine market value of commonly donated goods.
Donations need to be made to non profit organizations to enable you to get tax deductions. Donations made to labor unions, individuals, foreign governments are not eligible for tax deductions.
Care should be taken when making donations as there are many scams where people take the money and it never goes to the intended charity. If you are considering donating to a charity make inquiries about their authenticity before you make any donations.