Tax Deduction Information

The Back Porch Thrift Store of UCM qualifies under the IRS code as a 501(c)3 organization, and as such, all donations received qualify as tax deductions for the donor.  Before you donate, please remember that based upon IRS Publication 561, all non-profit organizations are prohibited from assigning values to material donations.  That means it is the donor's responsibilitiy to determine the item's fair market vallue.  The information we have provided below is designed to provide some guidelines to assist you in making that determination.

Here are some tips to help make your item valuation and tax presparation easier:

• Always consult a tax consultant with any questions you may have
• If you believe your donation is worth more than $500, you must submit IRS Form 8283 with your tax filing
• If you believe your donation is worth in excess of $5,000, the IRS requires a professional appraisal
• Only tax payers who itemize (long form) can deduct charitable donations.  You cannot deduct charitable donations using the short form.
• Save all paperwork
• Use websites such as those we have listed below to provide guidelines for individual item valuations.

Salvation Army
Bankrate.com
TurboTax "ItsDeductible Online" - FREE

For further clarification, please consult the IRS Publication 561 Determining the Value of Donated Property.    When filing your annual taxes (and if you itemized deductions) you will need IRS Form 8283, Noncash Charitable Contributions.

At UCM, we hope that people who donate give as much thought as to where they donate their furniture, clothing and household goods as they do when they donate their money.  Donors should give to charities they know and trust and who make the best use of their donations.  All donations to our Back Porch Thrift Store are used to generate funds which are used in funding our programs and services to the loca community.