Gifts of Mineral Interests
A gift of mineral interests (oil, gas, gold, silver or other precious metals) is an excellent way to make a gift to Western Seminary.
Gifts of Mineral Rights
Mineral Interest
Benefits of gifts of mineral interests
- Receive a charitable income tax deduction
- Avoid income tax on royalties
- Receive lifetime payments
How gifts of mineral interests work
- Gift of all or a portion of your land - If you own land with mineral rights, a gift of all or part of your land can produce a direct tax benefit to you and help our work. You will receive a charitable income tax deduction in the year you make your gift.
- Gift of royalties - If the income from your oil or mineral rights is pushing you into the upper tax brackets with higher rates and fewer deductions, consider a gift of your royalties. By giving us a portion or all of your royalties, you can lower your income and taxes while achieving your charitable goals.
- Charitable life estate - If you want to make a gift to us while continuing to use your home or farm during your life, consider a charitable life estate. You will receive an income tax deduction for your gift to us. Check with us on the rights and responsibilities that go along with this agreement.
- Charitable remainder trust - To maintain the most income while also maximizing charitable intent and charitable deductions, place your land into a charitable remainder unitrust. You will receive payments for your life or a term of up to 20 years and an income tax charitable deduction. Our mission will benefit from the remaining value.
More on gifts of mineral interests
Gifts of mineral interests are valuable property rights. You can use your mineral rights to fund a variety of different planned gifts.
Contact us
If you have any questions about gifts of mineral interests, please contact us. We would be happy to assist you and answer any questions that you have.
Example Stories
Gifts of Mineral Interests
Walter and May recently retired and moved south to a new retirement community. They still own their 250-acre ranch. Because the ranch has very valuable subsurface mineral rights, Walter and May have been approached several times about entering into a mineral lease that would allow for the production of oil and gas.
Walter: We were surprised that so many companies showed interest in our land. We were really surprised with the value of the ranch. We thought the ranch was worth around $500,000, but when we had it appraised, we were told it was worth $5 million because of the mineral rights.
May: We considered signing a mineral lease but had concerns about how the extra income from the royalties would affect our taxes.
Walter and May contacted us to inquire about making a charitable gift of their land. They learned that they could transfer the property to fund a special type of charitable remainder unitrust and control the income they received each year.May: We considered signing a mineral lease but had concerns about how the extra income from the royalties would affect our taxes.
May: I was thrilled to learn that we would receive a very large charitable deduction. In addition, the transfer would be tax-free and the income from the trust would be taxed in a more favorable way.
Walter: We decided to transfer the ranch to a trust. The trust entered into a mineral lease and the trust earns royalties from the lease each year. The trust pays us all of the income and will for the rest of our lives. After that, the remaining assets of the trust will go to fund the causes most important to us.
Walter: We decided to transfer the ranch to a trust. The trust entered into a mineral lease and the trust earns royalties from the lease each year. The trust pays us all of the income and will for the rest of our lives. After that, the remaining assets of the trust will go to fund the causes most important to us.
Is a gift of mineral interests right for you?
Mineral interests can make a wonderful gift to charity. If you own mineral interests and are interested in charitable planning options, please contact us. We would be pleased to discuss how you might be able to use your mineral interests to make a gift to our organization.*Please note: The names and image above are representative of a typical donor and may or may not be an actual donor to our organization. Since your benefits may be different, you may want to click here to view an example of your benefits.