Donating a Car

I donated a car to a local shelter. I did that bc is heard large organizations often sell them but worse is some hire people to handle selling the cars and that party gets a big cut of the sale price. I got a nice letter from the recipient and bc I know this organization, believe it went to the individual. I estimated its value at tax time, deducted it and so far, knock wood, no issue with the IRS. I was honest with my deduction and am glad I did it.

Hi,
I donated my 1996 Toyota Corolla a few years ago. I got an $800 tax receipt from Cars for Kids charity. Without the receipt, I would have only received the standard deduction of $500. They send a tow truck to your house to pick up the car. Make sure you remove the license plates first!!!

I don't know about a shelter, but I donated a SUV we were not using to NPR this year and they made it very easy for me. I called in with infor from the title. (I got the number off of the web site.) I then mailed the title to them. As soon as they got the title, they sent someone out to tow the car. It all happened in a matter of days. I did not have the car jumped, in fact one tire had gone flat and they took it. After they sold it at auction they sent me a letter stating how much it sold for. Since it was more then $500, I was asked if I wanted a form for a tax deduction and if I did I would have to give my social security number. They sold it for much more than I was expecting and I will take the tax deduction.

The National Kidney Foundation.
http://www.kidney.org/
We had no problem with them about it when we donated our car to them.
Yes you get a tax deduction because it is a "donation."
Be sure to keep your paperwork/receipt on it.

We've donated cars several times to Goodwill. They will have you fill out all the paperwork, and have a company come out and pick it up. They later mail you a tax receipt saying how much they got for it. (The cars usually go to auction.) Unfortunately, the tax write-off wasn't that beneficial.... and now, we haven't been itemizing, so that wouldn't help at all.

However, this summer, we ended up "scrapping" 3 cars in the span of about 3 weeks... and another one 2 months later... (long story... bad run of car situations with my son... and we buy VERY old cars).... anyway, we found a local company that would PAY us for the car, and tow it for free! The price is based on the scrap value... and they were paying us about 9c/ lb (weight is listed on your title). We usually got $300 or more for each car... ($450 for our Explorer.)

Google "buy junk cars tow free" and see if you find anything.

We do have a women's shelter who will accept cars as a donation her in LV. I believe it is Safe Next. They have a couple of mechanics who pick them up and do any repairs to them and then they go to the women. It is worth asking. I would look up the kelly blue book and print the value of the car along with the shelter's receipt for your tax deduction.

How very generous of you!

We donated a car in the past, and like others have said, it was a very easy process. (I think it was that Kars for Kids program, but it's been a few years.) They picked it up and towed it (even though was drivable) and handled all the paperwork. We basically just had to be available to hand it over and sign a paper. I believe they do auction cars off as well and just use the funds for their program, not actually give the car to a specific family or anything like that.

One thing to note is that I think the tax laws around what you can deduct changed several years ago. We could deduct whatever value we deemed the car worth, as a couple other responders noted. I could be wrong, but I don't think you can do that now. I believe the organization has to tell you what they actually received for the car, and that's what you deduct. Clearly will be a lot less. Just wanted to mention that in case your decision is being made in part by what you can deduct. What they will actually sell it for will likely be much less than your estimate or blue book value!

Hi.

I just might have your solution. I recently Have been seperated from my husb amdanand and need car/van/suv to get around town. I have 3 daughters, 9,10 and 12. He left us 3 weeks ago with no money etc. There many reasons that I can think as to why my girls and I would go crazy with happiness. Please call me at ###-###-####. Looking for all the help we can get. if its meant to be God will see it through. Amen.

Sincerely, H. and the girls

Hi, I haven't donated a car before, but here is an organization like the one you described. They will pick up your car, they fix it up if it needs it, then they donate it to single mothers who need reliable transportation for their kids and to get to work. :) Just click on the "Donation Guidelines" link to learn more and who to contact.
http://www.willowcreek.org/cars

I hope it's not too late! I would suggest the Salvation Army! They picked up the last two junk cars we had, and I know that the money is going to a good cause, and not a profit for some big administrator's annual salary. PLEASE check out the following link! For both, we received a nice deduction. Be sure to do it this year, because it may not be a deduction next year, with the new Income Tax Laws.
https://snt125.mail.live.com/default.aspx?moptout=true#n=...
I have never figured out how to "send flowers". Two ways to respond: Click on "answer" or on the question asked.

A long time ago my DH worked for a non-profit that accepted car donations. The first thing to know is if you donate to an organization like Good Will, Vets of America, Center for the Blind.... or any other large charity your car will NOT go to someone in need. If it is working and running they will sell it, either directly to a used car lot or at auction and if it is not in resale condition they will scrap it.
You will get a receipt and can deduct whatever the car went for.... obviously only worth it if you itemize your deductions in the first place.

These larger organizations though will typically come to your home and tow the car whether it runs or not - so there is no need for you to get it running in order to donate it.

You could consider calling smaller non-profits like a women's shelter and see if they would have need for a donated car. The problem with a car that old is that they may be required to put money into it. It will likely need a new battery (unless you are willing to put money into it to replace it) and even though you think it is in driving shape - standing around for a year can easily degrade the car's condition and it may need more work. You won't believe how many people donated cars to DH's work that swore up and down the car was good.... but it would have needed hundreds of $$ of work to fix it up for sale.
In that case you can still donate it to Good Will or so, they will still make money off of it even if it goes to auction or the junkyard...
Good luck!

I've donated a car. Can't remember to whom. Even tho it was running they picked it up with a tow. Then they sold it thru an auction company. They sent me a letter giving the year, make and model of the car. I could then give it any value I wanted for taxes. I used Blue Book value.

I donated a non-running van to St Vincent de Paul. They came with a wrecker and picked it up. They don't fix the cars - they auction them off and you get a deduction for the amount they sell it for - they send you a copy of the auction receipt. I got a $300 deduction fora 15-year-old van with a fried electrical system .