Selling vs. donating a car....

You might want to check the IRS website for what you can claim if you donate it. I'd guess is based on bluebook value, but I'm not sure if it'd be high or low. I believe that it would only help towards offsetting taxes you owe but you don't actually get a credit. It's worth checking in to.

If you decide to sell it, you don't have to claim anything you get for the car on your taxes.

Do you normally take the standard deduction on your taxes?  If you do, then donating and then taking hte deduction might not get you much.  I think, but you may want to check with an accountant, the only way this type of deduction helps you is if you itemize.  I would check too if you have to pay taxes on the sale - you may have to pay state sales tax - just make sure you charge the buyer so you are not out the money.

Regarding selling, I would post it on Craigs List or check Craigs List if anyone is looking for "just transportation".  Check the Blue Book value (http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars/default.aspx) to find the value.  Make sure you find the private sale value, not the dealership value.  I did a sample of a 14 year old Taurus in fair condition (they don't price poor) and it came up with $700.  You can enter features, mileage, etc. to get a more accurate value.

ETA:  Before you sell it, if you are buying a new car see if the dealership has a deal.  Sometimes they will automatically give you $1500 for any car you bring in regardless of condition.  It's usually a promotional thing, but worth a shot.

What's the standard?  I've never had to pay income taxes in April, if that's what you mean, I always get money back (but probably not this time b/c of that rebate).

Based on what I know of this car if someone wanted to buy it today I'd say $500.  My mom wanted me to give her $600 eventually but right away we put $1200 into it so she said to forget about it, they just wanted it gone b/c they were paying insurance on having it parked in the garage (it was for my bro and he bought his own Jetta wagon instead).  I checked the Blue Book but it was like thousands of dollars, that cannot be right.  At least not for a car this old that has lived it's entire life in Michigan (snow, wet, salt).  I'm not sure of the mileage, but I don't think it's that bad considering the car's age.  We haven't used it for any road trips b/c it's so big.

It's a Chevy Blazer (4 door) and I want a Subaru Outback or a Forrester if it's 2007 (hate the new ones).  I'm not sure how dealerships work but I assume that wouldn't work for me since one is foreign?  I'm not interested in any other Chevy.  There is a dealer in town who has a bunch of lots with different brands of cars (Fox) and I think they have Subarus, but I think all of their lots are foreign/imports.  Or can the Chevy dealer give me cash?

I just figured either we'd donate it or maybe some high school boy would want it for driving around town.

A standard deduction is the flat rate deduction the government gives you automatically.  You get X number of dollars per person/dependent.  I think it is something like $3500 per person but don't quote me.  So if it is you and DH, you automatically get at $7000 deduction on your taxes.  Some people have more than the standard deduction, i.e. property taxes if you own a home, capital losses, mortgage interest, etc.  If these deductions are higher than the standard deduction, you can "itemize" and take more than the standard.  You are probably taking the standard and not itemizing. 

Basically, if you were to donate the vehicle the only time the deduction would help is if your itemized deductions are greater than your standard (probably not), so to be honest it wouldn't help.  You are probably better off financially selling it to someone locally.  If you want to give me the specs on the vehicle I can look it up for you in terms of value. 

When dealing with the used car department at a dealership, they take anything.  You can look on autotrader.com to find the vehicle in your area that you want and contact the dealership directly.  I did a quick search on the Outback on Autotrader and found 72 around my area (eastern michigan).

 Lies if you are not itemizing deductions on your income tax it isn't likely to do anything for you - Craig's list isn't a bad idea or cars.com which is simple to list it on.  As long as it runs it is useful to someone. I'll try and think of the main charity that takes cars and get back to you if I remember.

Please don't forget to check eBay for your new car.  i know it can feel freaky but it opens up your options and excellent deals are available.  If the car isn't local you can get it independently inspected by a AAA or other auto club for like $100.  We have gotten two very good deals on excellent cars by using eBay

Also, wanted to add that the stimulus check was a rebate on your 2007 taxes, not your 2008 so I am pretty sure it will NOT impact your 2008 tax returns.  They were giving money back to us that they already took in 2007 - it is not considered income either.

mrstjohnson

Also, wanted to add that the stimulus check was a rebate on your 2007 taxes, not your 2008 so I am pretty sure it will NOT impact your 2008 tax returns.  They were giving money back to us that they already took in 2007 - it is not considered income either.

Dang that thing STILL confuses me!  So, come April, I WILL still be getting money back?  I guess I assumed that since they gave me $1200 and that's about what I usually get, I wouldn't get any back.

Anyway....I feel I should donate the car since I didn't really pay for it myself, but....it would be nice to get a few hundred bucks!  Maybe if a person or situation comes my way I will donate it (like to a person I am connected with, not to an organization).

Liesje

Dang that thing STILL confuses me!  So, come April, I WILL still be getting money back?  I guess I assumed that since they gave me $1200 and that's about what I usually get, I wouldn't get any back.

The check you got this summer should not impact your 2008 tax return.  The check was a rebate on the income taxes you paid in 2007.  Think about it like this, they took too much out in 2007 so they were giving it back to you.  Like another refund.

About 8 years ago we got checks from the government too; however, those were prepayments on that year's refunds so it hurt people come tax time (i.e. they had already received them earlier in the year).  Bottom line, you won't have to worry about it when you are doing your taxes and should get the same amount back you usually do (or around the same).

If you don't think you are going to get much back on the vehicle anyway, then I would maybe just donate it straight to a church or something.  Maybe your mom knows of a needy family through her work...someone who needs basic transportation to get to/from work.  I think you will have to officially "sell it" in order to transfer the title, but you could sell it for $1.

Not to complicate things, but if you could find out that it would be worth a couple thousand if donated to a charity, it might be worthwhile to transfer title to someone you know who could use the write-off. That way the charity benefits and someone gets a break on their taxes. Otherwise I'd probably sell it someone for a few hundred dollars.

The one good thing about donating, especially if the  car is in pretty bad condition or not running at all, is that they will come and tow it right out of your driveway ... free.

Joyce