This chart summarizes key differences between establishing a fund at the Community Foundation , giving a gift directly to a charity and forming a private foundation.

	Community Foundation Fund	Direct Gift to Charity	Private  Foundation
Donor can control investment of assets	no	no	yes
Donor can control giving priorities	Limited (2)	yes (1)	yes
How likely to be perpetual	high	low (3)	high
By virtue of gift, donor may control who serves on governing board	no (4)	no (4)	yes
Requires donor time and effort, plus expense of staff and management	no (5)	no	yes
Minimum payout required	no	no	yes
Must pay 1-2% tax on investment income and realized capital gains	no	no	yes
Tax deduction for gifts of cash (% of adjusted gross income that may be deducted)	50% (6)	50%	30% (6)
Tax deduction for gifts of stock or real property (% of adjusted gross income that may be deducted)	30% (6)	30% (6)	20% (6) (7)
Valuation of gifts of property other than publicly traded stock	Fair market value	Fair market value	Cost basis
Separate tax return required and open to public inspection	no	no	yes

1. Charity and donor can agree on how contribution is spent.
2. A restricted gift can be confined to the stated purpose, but the donor relinquishes control of the investments and its disposition. A donor advised fund permits the donor to make recommendations subject to the ultimate control of the community foundation.
3. Except when you create an endowment
4. Any citizen may be elected or appointed to the board of any public charity. The donor gift does not guarantee such an outcome except in the case of supporting organizations.
5. Community foundations offer assess a management or administrative fee.
6. Excess in any year's donations can be carried forward for five years.
7. Except for gifts of publicly traded stock, the deductible value of lifetime gifts of closely held stock or real property is limited to tax basis, which is generally cost.