Last-Minute Donation Rush Underway

Residents scurry to get last-minute donations done for 2011 tax breaks

Time is running out on 2011, and that means time is also running out if you want your charitable donations to count as tax breaks for this calendar year.

Whether it is bags of clothing, furniture or even cars, the lines are long at places like The Salvation Army in Fairfax County and at Goodwill in Arlington, Va.

Officials with Goodwill say there was a steady stream of vehicles all day long on Thursday.  They expect Saturday, to be the busiest day of the year.

Some making donations are there to make sure they get tax breaks for 2011.  Others are there with a desire to help the less fortunate.  Then there are also some who just simply need to do a little bit of house cleaning to start 2012 off fresh.

Another type of charitable donation that sees a big spike this time of year is car donations.  National Charity Services does the marketing and towing for Goodwill, Salvation Army, Red Cross, and dozens of other small charitable groups.  Officials with National Charity Services say this week alone they will receive about 270 donated vehicles.  That has their employees working 16- and sometimes 18-hour days just to get it all done.

For those who would still like to donate and would like to check out a charity before they do so, the Better Business Bureau is the place to go.  There you will find a list of charities, and ratings for those charities, along with any complaints that have been filed against them.  Visit http://www.bbb.org/us/charity/ to check out charity organizations.

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