Legacy Giving

Ways to Leave Your Legacy with Houston Grand Opera

Bequests

A bequest is the transfer of cash, securities, or other property through a will or living trust. Bequests can be a specific amount, percentage of your estate, percentage of your residual estate, or specific property. You can decide if you want to support Houston Grand Opera as a whole or support a specific area or program. A bequest is private, and you may change it at any time. Giving by bequest costs nothing now, yet it may give you a great deal of satisfaction to know that your future gift will live on.

Retirement Assets

You can name Houston Grand Opera Endowment as the primary or contingent beneficiary on the beneficiary designation form for your retirement plan. This may be the most tax-efficient way to give a gift to Houston Grand Opera; many retirement assets may be taxable for income and estate tax prior to being paid to an individual beneficiary.

Life Insurance

Consider giving your life insurance policy new life with a charitable purpose. Naming Houston Grand Opera Endowment the beneficiary or transferring ownership of your life insurance policy provides you the satisfaction of making a generous donation and leveraging the value of your policy. Options include:

• • • Naming Houston Grand Opera Endowment as the beneficiary of an existing policy
    • Transferring ownership of an existing policy
    • Purchasing a new policy naming Houston Grand Opera Endowment as the owner and beneficiary and donating premium payments

Charitable Remainder Trust

A Charitable Remainder Trust allows you to make a gift to the Houston Grand Opera Endowment while retaining the benefit from your assets. Cash, securities, or other property are irrevocably placed in a trust that provides an income to you or one or more beneficiaries for life or a set period of time. When the trust ends, the assets of the trust are passed to the HGO Endowment. Significant tax benefits may be available through a charitable deduction.

Charitable Lead Trust

A Charitable Lead Trust is an excellent way to transfer assets to heirs at a reduced transfer tax rate. With this type of trust, the Houston Grand Opera Endowment is the recipient of the income stream from the trust for a specified term after which the trust assets pass to the remainder beneficiary, most often the heirs.