[g1938t]

I donated a time share to charitable orginaztion, they sent me a form 8283 showing the value of the time share at $19,860.when I do my taxes for 2009 do I have to take the full $19,860 for 20009, or cand I spread it over 4 or 5 years?

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Depends on your income level!

If your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) exceeds $39,720 AND the charity is considered to be a "50% charity", you will deduct the entire $19,860, because the charity donation does NOT exceed 50% of your AGI.

If the donation DOES exceed 50% of your AGI, you can claim ONLY that amount that represents 50% of your AGI for the tax year in question.

EXAMPLE: your AGI is $20,000; the most you can deduct is $10,000 for charity donations.

Whatever is left carries for to the next tax year, where the same rule applies. The remaining amount gets carried forward until used up, or until the taxpayer dies, whichever occurs first.

I have a client who donated several residential lots to her church in 1997. The lots were appraised in aggregate to be worth about $400,000. This lady has been claiming the maximum charity donation on her tax returns ever since, and will probably continue to do so until she reaches 90 (if she lasts that long).