What is a Beneficiary?

A beneficiary designation is the description of the person, persons or charity you want to receive a specific asset upon your death. A beneficiary designation gift is a simple and affordable way to make a gift to support the CDC Foundation. You can designate us as a beneficiary of a retirement, investment or bank account, or your life insurance policy. An easy way to leave a legacy is by designating the CDC Foundation as a beneficiary of part or all of your retirement plan or your IRA. Normally the assets held in an IRA or retirement plan will be subject to both income tax and estate taxes, but if you name the CDC Foundation as a beneficiary of a percentage (or all) of your plan, that portion will pass to the CDC Foundation free of income or estate taxes.

Payable on Death (POD)

Payable on death designations allow beneficiaries such as the CDC Foundation to receive a decedent's assets without going through the probate process. This means that the funds in the account will be paid directly to the beneficiary without the need to pass through an estate. This designation can be applied to checking and savings accounts, security deposits, savings bonds and other deposit certificates. Accounts with named payable on death beneficiaries can be accessed when the named beneficiary provides the bank with a certified copy of the death certificate and proper identification. The named beneficiary is not entitled to any of the money during the lifetime of the account holder.

Transfer on Death Brokerage Account

You can designate your brokerage or investment account to be transferrable on death (TOD) to the CDC Foundation when you die, to pay the assets of that account over to additional charities. It is not necessary for the TOD. designation to transfer all of the account solely to the CDC Foundation. You can designate a certain percentage of the account to pass.

If you already have or are planning to include CDC Foundation in your estate plans through a will, a trust or a designated beneficiary, we encourage you to let us know.