Real Estate for Charity.

Non-productive real estate can be a significant cash drain, and it usually falls to the finance department to track expenditures related to maintenance and insurance, Selling it is an option, of course, but that can mean accepting a fire-sale price, as well as having to pay closing costs and commissions.

Several companies now offer opportunities to donate real estate for charity, giving the company a significant tax write-off. One company, Real Estate for Charities in Carlsbad, Calif. (www.realestateforcharities.com), takes a "clearinghouse" approach, using consulting, property management and sales service to support financial officers, estate planners and other philanthropic professionals, says its president, Chase V. Magnusson. This umbrella approach is vital, he says, because many charities aren't equipped to deal with real estate and are risk-averse.

Magnusson argues that a straight gift of a property is the least complicated donation method, and provides the company with the full appraised value of the asset at the time the title is transferred to a charity. It also allows the corporation to set the disposal date to its advantage.

Another firm in the business, Icon International of Stamford, Conn. (www.icon-intl.com), has established a program allowing companies to dispose of unwanted real estate and convert that into a donation to Save the Children. In this program, the assets are actually given' to a limited-liability corporation; technically, the company donates its interest in the LLC, not the real estate itself.