Qualified Charitable Distributions
It is estimated that almost 90% of taxpayers will claim the expanded standard deduction when paying their 2018 taxes. That means that while you might be very generous in your charitable giving during the year, you won't get any specific tax deduction for your generosity. However, if you are over the age of 70-1/2, there is a way to reduce your taxable income, and therefore the taxes you pay, by taking advantage of the Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from an IRA account. By having your IRA custodian make the check payable to the charity and sent directly to them, the distribution is not included in your taxable income for the year, and it also counts towards your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the year.
NOTE: The SECURE Act of 2019 changes the amount of the distribution that is tax free by requiring tax-deferred deductions to an IRA made after age 70-1/2 (new with this act) to be subtracted from the amount of the QCD to arrive at the net tax-free amount. The entire QCD can still be applied towards the RMD. See this article for a more detailed explanation.
NOTE: You must actually be over the age of 70-1/2 at the time of the distribution for it to qualify as a QCD, unlike other RMD withdrawals that can be taken any time in the calendar year that you turn 70-1/2. Also, if you have an IRA checkbook account, writing a check to an eligible charitable organization before the end of the year will not meet the QCD requirements. It must be cashed and debited from the IRA account by the custodian before the end of the year. Finally, to qualify as a QCD, there cannot be any benefit back to you from the funds that go from your IRA to the charity. Paying dues required for membership would be a benefit back to you and as such would not qualify as a QCD.
Even better than getting the effect of a deduction, reducing your Adjusted Gross Income can place you in a lower tax bracket, reduce or eliminate the taxation of your Social Security benefits and help you remain eligible for deductions and credits that might be lost if you had to declare the QCD amount as income.
For a more detailed explanation of a QCD, check out this article. We are not tax experts, so be sure to consult with your tax accountant; here's a detailed article on the IRS requirements.
Stout Bowman regularly posts important and interesting information on our blog. Current topics include credit/debit/loans, estate planning, insurance, investing, Medicare, retirement, Social Security and taxes, as well as general information that we think you might find of interest. 
We have been publishing an email newsletter for our clients and friends since 2016. Links to all of the newsletters can be found on our newsletter page, with the most recent listed first. We try to keep our emails short, so there are typically only three articles in each one, most of which link to other articles in the financial and mainstream press. 
We also have a page on our site for the latest news about our company, notice of any upcoming events, and a market commentary to discuss what our advisors and other financial industry experts conclude about the previous investment performance and what we might expect the markets and the economy will do in the coming months. 
Many news organizations offer what is called a Rich Site Summary (RSS) feed, a listing of the latest changes to their site's content. We have subscribed to several of these news feeds and present a list of their latest ten articles on a page on this website to save our clients the hassle of going to multiple websites just to see what is available. Currently, we subscribe to 
At Stout Bowman every investment client is first a financial planning client; it's important to go through that process before we make any professional investment recommendations. Therefore, we strive to make financial planning understandable and comfortable every step of the way. One way to do that is to provide our clients access to financial education resources. To that end, we have subscribed to educational websites to receive their news feeds and present a list of their latest ten articles on a page on this website. Currently, we subscribe to