Non-Profits, scams?

[iminhell1]

I'm just looking for others views on this one.

https://projects.propublica.org/nonp...349301163/full
(you can look up tax records for any "non-profit" on that site)



I was digging into the executive.
Retired lawyer. Also president of a metals recycling company.

On the surface it sounds like the place hands out a lot of money for charity. But where is the rest going?
How can a place that's an hours from me and has been for 10 years, and I've never heard of them? But they spend $10,756,645 on advertising?

I go to the company website and it makes them sound like some well run charity ... but like all of them they are really vague about what happens to your donated vehicle. ... my assumption is that his metals company buys it and chops it up. so if i'd see the tax filing for the metals company it'd look like they donated the $32 Million to charity, or whatever number it is; tax shelter.



granted I've got a tinfoil hat on here. But I'd like someone to look with open eyes and help me rationalize what's going on here. This is just personal research I do. I'm always curious where money goes, what are all the leaks in the boat.

[iminhell1]

So I found this --> https://nonprofitquarterly.org/natio...-dealing-mess/

October 14, 2015; Minneapolis Star Tribune

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson just issued a report that finds that the largest car donation enterprise in the country is little more than a self-dealing, profit-making enterprise. Car Donation Foundation, which has a presence in 40 states, is accused of passing along only 20 percent of what it raises to the charity it claims to support, the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Meanwhile, she says, the foundation passed along nearly $36 million to two for-profit corporations owned by William Bigley and Randy Heiligman, who founded and manage the charity. The two firms in question are National Fundraising Management Inc. and Metro Metals Corp., which the Car Donation Foundation uses as its scrapyard and auction house.

Seems that I'm not grasping at straws at all. That's a relief.

Unfortunately, nothing has changed since the article in 2015.

[zx10guy]

I use this website when evaluating if I want to give to a specific charity:

https://www.charitynavigator.org/

Fortunately the two charities I donate to on a regular basis have 4 star ratings:

Cancer Research Institute which donates/spends 85.3% of all raised funds on their specific mission.

K9s For Warriors which donates/spends 80.5% of all raised funds on their specific mission.

[2000cs]

You can look up any 501(c)(3) on Guidestar, actually any IRS 990 filer which includes several other non-charity not-for-profit organizations.

Yes there are a lot of scams, and yes several not-for-profits (especially foundations) are questionable. One thing I look at is how many executives and board members there are, if they are related to each other, and their comp. But I also look to see how much money goes to the stated purpose and how much is used for travel and other costs which might be questionable, especially if it is a family foundation.

I can understand a lot of advertising for a charity like the OP posted - how else are they going to get vehicles donated?

[iminhell1]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

I can understand a lot of advertising for a charity like the OP posted - how else are they going to get vehicles donated?

But consider this,

Wounded Warrior Project spent $5,954,007 on advertising in 2016,
https://projects.propublica.org/nonp...349300516/full

I think virtually everyone has heard of them or seen at least one advertisement for them.


How many have you seen for Wheels for Wishes or Car Donation Foundation, ever?
That right there sheds a lot of light IMO.

[2000cs]

Originally Posted by iminhell1

But consider this,

Wounded Warrior Project spent $5,954,007 on advertising in 2016,
https://projects.propublica.org/nonp...349300516/full

I think virtually everyone has heard of them or seen at least one advertisement for them.


How many have you seen for Wheels for Wishes or Car Donation Foundation, ever?
That right there sheds a lot of light IMO.

I agree. Without knowing where and how they spend that advertising I would be suspicious as well. If they use a brand like Kars for Kids I would understand, but they should identify that in the 990 somewhere (probably not a required disclosure, however). So then on their web site etc.

[iminhell1]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

I agree. Without knowing where and how they spend that advertising I would be suspicious as well. If they use a brand like Kars for Kids I would understand, but they should identify that in the 990 somewhere (probably not a required disclosure, however). So then on their web site etc.

I forgot about them. But quickly looking them up, LOL, no better it seems.
$16,341,181 in advertising costs.

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/kars4kids-jingle-leaves/



I think what I'm really finding here is the best business to get into is, advertising. LOL

[zx10guy]

Originally Posted by iminhell1

I forgot about them. But quickly looking them up, LOL, no better it seems.
$16,341,181 in advertising costs.

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/kars4kids-jingle-leaves/



I think what I'm really finding here is the best business to get into is, advertising. LOL

Looked them up on Charity Navigator and they gave them 2 stars out of 4. The financial break down Charity Navigator showed for them has the charity giving only 53.3% of what the collect to the charity they represent. While their admin expenses seem to be low at 8.3%, their fundraising costs are way high at 38.3%.

[2000cs]

Originally Posted by zx10guy

Looked them up on Charity Navigator and they gave them 2 stars out of 4. The financial break down Charity Navigator showed for them has the charity giving only 53.3% of what the collect to the charity they represent. While their admin expenses seem to be low at 8.3%, their fundraising costs are way high at 38.3%.

Not defending them but that may be an attribute of their business model (the donate a car gig). I would guess the contributions are mostly vehicles which are perhaps overvalued for the tax receipt relative to what they actually get at auction or scrap for the charity. That would create a large gap between what they collect in donations (donation value) versus what they give (auction/scrap value). If that is a correct assumption it should show up in all of the other car donation charities (and art and other non-cash donations). Probably true of Goodwill as well for the same reason.

[CTinline-six]

Seems a bit on the shady side to me. After reading about how some of those cancer foundations operate, I don't donate to non-profits anymore. If I donate money, it's to help someone locally in my community directly. None of this
"give us $50 and 20 cents of that might actually make it to the cause" bullshit.

[leopard print]

I didn’t look at the financials, but advertising figures can be a little misleading. Many non-profits can get what is called in-kind advertising. Basically, free advertising from partner companies. Still, non-profits have to record a revenue and expense for the value of such services if they meet certain criteria, impacting the financials. It doesn’t necessarily mean that money exchanged hands.

I used to work for a cancer foundation that holds a large telecast every other year that is broadcasted on most major networks (even HBO and YouTube). Some of the networks gave the foundation free commercial slots to promote the telecasts. Those slots, depending on time of day, can get very expensive. We would have to record the dollar value of that advertising.

Dollar for dollar, the foundation used around 85% of funds generated for the actual program.