Are donations beneficial as tax write offs?

Question

I've been donating clothing, household items, and money for as long as I can remember. I never took the time to fill out the forms to write these dontions off. Is it worth it? I heard you only get $1 on every $9 that you donate. Is it more beneficial if you're self employed, or doesn't that matter? Either way I'll continue to donate...just something I alway wondered about...

Answer 1

Being self employed or not doesn't matter.  You only get a tax benefit if you itemize, and then the amount of the benefit depends on your tax bracket - it's the donation amount times the tax bracket.  So in a 15 percent bracket, if you donate $100, your tax savings is $15.

Answer 2

No records, no donations.

If you donate clothing, etc you need to keep track of what you donated, how much and the condition.  You can deduct what you paid, rather what it's worth at the time of the donation.  

Answer 3

You get nothing if you take the standard deduction.  If you itemize, instead of taking the standard deduction, then your taxable income is reduced by the value of the donations.  The amount that you save varies depending on your income and various other factors, but the typical range is from $1 in tax per $10 donated to $1 in tax per $3 donated.