Tangible Personal Property Note: Historically, rules pertaining to the charitable deduction for works of art have changed from year to year. Please check the current year's deduction before making any decisions. When the donor is the creator of a work of art, the donor's tax deduction is limited to the cost of creating that item. Rare books, art, antiques, precious stones, gems, and coin or stamp collections, as well as equipment or other items which can be put to use immediately—such as computer equipment—are considered tangible personal property. These donated items must have been held for over a year. There are two main categories of tangible personal property: items related to the University's purpose, and items not related to the University's purpose. Gifts of related-use items allow the donor an income tax charitable deduction of the appraised value of the gift on the date of the gift (up to 30% of the donor's adjusted gross income with the five-year carry-over provision). Gifts of unrelated items allow the donor a deduction only of the item's cost basis. Every potential gift item of tangible personal property is evaluated on an item-by-item basis by Gift & Estate Planning to determine if it is related-use property. Please consider a gift of cash or securities to provide for the maintenance of special collections. Types of Giving | Featured Donors | Professional Advisory Reference | Heritage Society | Get In Touch! | Home