Support PCLT

The Portland Community Land Trust is funded through membership donations, individual donations, transaction fees, foundation grants, in-kind donations of professional services, lease fees, and public operating support. As more homes come into trust every year, PCLT becomes increasingly self-sufficient through lease fee income, which will eventually grow to cover PCLT’s core operating costs.

We recognize and thank our major institutional and corporate funders, including:

• City of Portland – Bureau of Housing of Community Development
• City of Portland – Portland Development Commission
• The Enterprise Foundation
• Meyer Memorial Trust
• Washington Mutual
• Umpqua Bank
• Bank of America
• Albina Community Bank
• Institute for Community Economics

We also thank Multnomah County for making land available for PCLT homes.

We also rely heavily on the support and generosity of Portland Community Land Trust members. Membership dues are on a sliding scale starting at $10. Generous donations from members of the community enable PCLT to accomplish our mission, provide our services, and build the broad community support we need to be successful. To join PCLT, call us at 503-493-0293—we’ll send you our membership brochure.

Portland Community Land Trust is an excellent charitable investment, because every dollar donated has a permanent positive impact on our community. PCLT is a federally tax-exempt charitable organization under Section 501c(3) of the IRS tax code. Gifts, donations and bequests may entitle donors to income tax deductions and other tax advantages. Below, we describe a few of the many optional forms of giving to Portland Community Land Trust.

If you have any questions regarding the following options, we recommend that you discuss them with your accountant or attorney or contact our office to see which would be the best way for you to support our mission of creating and preserving permanently affordable housing for homebuyers of modest means in Portland.

Philanthropic Options

Individual Gifts

Individuals and families may make tax-deductible gifts of any asset (cash, stock, real estate, life insurance policy, vehicles, collections, artwork or any other property of value) to any qualified charitable organization.

Gifts of securities can be the most economical, productive, and satisfying way for high net-worth donors to support a favorite cause. The tax advantages of securities gifts may include deductions from the donor’s adjusted gross income as well as deductions of the fully appreciated value of the security without the donor’s having to pay the capital gains tax. The cost of the gift to the donor is the original purchase price of the stock, less the capital gains tax, and less the amount saved in income taxes from that itemization. The value of the gift to the charity, on the other hand, is the fully appreciated value of the stock—often a major gift for that charity.

Planned Giving

By leaving a gift to PCLT through a will or estate plan, donors can ensure that their gift continues to benefit the community long after they are no longer here. There are several options for donors who want to ensure that PCLT will continue to have the strong financial support we need to continue our work.

Charitable bequests are gifts to PCLT via a will or trust. This is a wonderful way to support a favorite cause and to reduce overall estate taxes. People in Oregon and Southwest Washington are very generous, donating more than $14 million to charities each year—but less than ten percent of donated funds comes from wills or estates.

Charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, and charitable lead trusts each have their own tax advantages as well—tax deductions and reductions in capital gains taxes owed—while enabling the donor to receive an income for life from the trust. Again, we recommend donors confer with their attorneys or accountants about the specific tax benefits of these types of gifts.