It's been a year since an earthquake turned much of Haiti's capital to ruins and Americans generously gave nearly $2 billion to charities to help provide relief to the island nation. Yet, according to a report by Charity Navigator, nearly two-thirds of the money donated for relief efforts remains unspent.
While some say the charities should have spent more by now to do more, others say relief organizations have acted properly by not rushing to dole out cash (see an NPR report on aid groups' critics and defenders). Regardless of where you stand on the matter, it's a reminder to keep tabs on how the charities you give to use your gifts -- and to always check out groups before you donate to them.
Charity Navigator is a great source of information about how charities spend their money. You also can check out charities at the Better Business Bureau's Web site.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Also use our checklist for evaluating a charity's spending and finances to see whether you should take your donation elsewhere.
-
What Is a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)?Tax Breaks A QCD can lower your tax bill while meeting your charitable giving goals in retirement. Here’s how.
-
Embracing Generative AI for Financial SuccessGenerative AI has the potential to reshape how we approach learning about and managing our personal finances.
-
Skip the Sales Taxtaxes Save money back-to-school shopping in 17 states with sales tax holidays this summer.
-
What to Do If Someone Files a Tax Return in Your NameScams Take these steps if you think you're a victim of tax fraud.
-
2014 Sales Tax Holidays for Back-to-School ShoppingTax Breaks You can shop tax-free for clothing, computers, school supplies and more on certain days in these 16 states.
-
How I Dodged a Phony IRS Tax Scam
Scams Here's what I did to avoid becoming a victim when someone called and tried to rip me off.
-
Traveling? Better Budget for Taxes
Travel You’ll pay plenty for hotels, rental cars and restaurant meals.
-
IRS Warns of E-mail Tax Scam
Scams Watch out for bogus e-mails claiming there's a problem with your 2013 tax return.
-
IRS Has $760 Million in Unclaimed Refunds
taxes Here's how to find out if you're owed money and how to claim it.
-
How to Avoid Tax Scams
Scams Take these steps to lower your risk of becoming a victim of fraud or identity theft during tax season.
