A retained life estate is a gift arrangement between you and Bentley. You deed your home to the university in exchange for an agreement that gives you the right to live in your home for as long as you choose, even for the rest of your life.

When your retained life estate arrangement ends, your home would become our property to use or sell. Typically, we would sell your home and use the proceeds for a gift purpose that we would have agreed upon with you at the time the retained life estate was established.

Give your home, or vacation property

Most donors who create retained life estate arrangements gift their primary home. It is also possible to create a retained life estate with a second home say a vacation property.

Your responsibilities

If you enter into a retained life estate agreement, you would be responsible for all regular expenses on your property while you live in it, such as routine maintenance and improvements, property taxes, utility bills and insurance.

Tax benefits

You will receive an income tax charitable deduction in the year of your gift. The amount of the deduction will depend on the value of your home and land, as well as how long your plan will last. If you itemize instead of taking the standard deduction you could save significant income taxes. If you cannot use your entire deduction in the year of your gift, you may carry forward all unused deduction for up to five additional years if you are eligible to itemize in each of those years.

By removing your home from your estate, you may also reduce estate taxes and probate costs when your estate is settled if your estate exceeds the then applicable estate tax exemption.

How long can my plan last?

You would most likely want to retain the right to live in your home for the rest of your life, or for the lives of you and your spouse. Other possible lengths of time include more than two lives, a specific number of years, or a combination of lives and years.

Ending your plan early

If you decide you no longer want to live in your home for any reason, say if you want to move to a different community or move closer to your children, you can end your retained life estate early either by giving your remaining interest to Bentley or by selling your property in cooperation with us.

Special considerations

Each real estate gift presents a variety of issues to be considered before a decision whether to accept is made. As a starting point, Bentley first conducts a Preliminary Assessment to determine if the proposed property is something we wish to further review. If so, consideration of accepting the property moves to the due diligence process. Key steps in the due diligence process include, but are not limited to: inspecting the site and reviewing all pertinent documents; requesting a market appraisal to establish that the property can be sold within a reasonable time and for a price expected by the donor and Bentley; and learning about property taxes and carrying costs.  

Should Bentley be willing to accept a donation of real estate, the donor must cover the costs of their own qualified appraisal (this is different from the market appraisal referred to above) for tax purposes as well as bear the expense of carrying costs. Bentley is generally interested in properties that will have a free and clear net value to the University of at least $100,000.

Once Bentley has agreed to accept the property, the donor or a Bentley representative will arrange for the deed and title work, ensuring that it is performed by those most familiar with the local laws and real estate customs. Bentley will assist by providing draft language for the agreements between the university and the donor. The donor is responsible for substantiating the charitable deduction for the IRS.  

Irrevocable gift

A retained life estate is an irrevocable arrangement. Once you deed your home to Bentley, you cannot change your mind and get your ownership back. This requirement assures that the value of your home will go to support Bentley.