The IRS has put out a couple of notices over the past couple of weeks about charitable donations, so there must be something brewing about these and how they affect your tax picture. The most obvious change is that starting with tax year 2026 there can be a deduction available for these donations without having to itemize your deductions. This then is a good time to think about these transactions while there is still time to potentially put them to use next tax season.

The first big note then is just being aware that such donations can benefit you to the tune of $1,000 for a single taxpayer and $2,000 for a married couple. If you have been taking the standard deduction for years, you may not be in the habit of saving receipts for charitable donations, so you should start doing that, for even if it’s a smaller amount, it will still help lower your tax obligation.

There are some things to remember when it comes to this, though, and one of the biggest may be knowing what qualifies as a charitable contribution. All donations to legitimate charitable organizations are pretty much good to go. Please note, though, that there are places to send your money that do not qualify. The most obvious are these are many political donations and campaigns set up on sites like GoFundMe, which may be for charitable causes, but the money is not going to actual charitable organizations, they are not legitimate to claim on a tax return.

For those that are legitimate, keep proof of all donations you make during the year and be sure that you have written acknowledgement for any donation larger than $250.

If this is something that may play a big part in your tax return, please be sure to look into the information that the IRS is releasing and do not hesitate to reach out to us if you it still does not answer your questions.  These and all tips from the IRS are available on irs.gov/newsroom/irs-tax-tips.

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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And there it went – the first half of the year.

For many, it seems like summer has just started since the kids only finished school what feels like days ago. And wait, the start of the summer can’t mean that the year is half over, that doesn’t happen until the end of summer, right?

I don’t want to come in with strict calendar logic and ruin anyone’s holiday daydreaming. In fact, I hope that you only have many good beach and ice cream days upcoming. Things are what they are, though.

And of course, it is then my job to make the time of year mean something to your larger financial picture. But again, I will try to not make this a tale of good times ending.

January 1 comes with so much mental push to do something new and I can’t pretend that July 1 will provide the same impetus. And how is this for a positive spin, maybe it doesn’t even have to!

If you are in the same spot of life as you were to start the year, I will allow you a pass. If whatever you had going on Jan. 1 looks like it’s going to be much the same until Dec. 31, then hey, good job and carry on.

But if something has changed in your life, let’s make sure that everything is in place so that it won’t cause a problem. This can from something as simple as having a new address. If some people now have one address for you and some have another, that can cause some potential issues next tax season when the IRS is trying to put together everything that happened in your financial picture. So just make sure everyone has your most current information.

And now that it is the summer, it is marriage season, and proper authorities are going to need to track if that also leads to a move or possibly even a name change. Your tax filing status is also going to change, and checking in with your withholding is a good idea to make sure you’re not having too much or not enough withheld from your paychecks.

Maybe you’ve changed jobs since the start of the year or picked up some extra part-time work. When doing this, did you take the time to see how much you would likely owe in taxes at the end of the year? Did you make the necessary adjustments across jobs to be sure this will look like you want it to look at the end of the year?

When some of these big changes happen, these aren’t the types of questions you think of first, and they shouldn’t be, for they are not the biggest parts of such life moves. Now that we are halfway through the year, though, it’s time to give it a little deeper look and make sure that things are changed while there is still time for them to make an impact.

And from there, please, enjoy the season!

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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