The South Kingstown Land Trust

Donation of Land

An outright gift of land for conservation is one of the most generous legacies a landowner can make to future generations. Throughout Rhode Island there are parks, shorelines, forestlands, and scenic open spaces that the public enjoys because of the long-term vision of conservation-minded landowners.

Donating land can have many benefits for a landowner. It can be a relatively simple and quick transaction that:

assures the permanent protection of a family property
provides a charitable income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the land
avoids capital gains taxes on appreciated land, which otherwise would be due at the time of a sale
removes the property from the donor's taxable estate, and
releases the donor from the expense and the responsibility of managing the land.

In cases where land provides important public benefit, it is possible that a land trust can convey the gifted property to government agencies, to ensure that the public will own and enjoy the property for the long term.