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Photo
by James Bleecker
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Why
do people protect their land?
Landowners protect
their land for many different reasons:
- Desire
to protect land’s rural character, and its natural
resources;
- Prevent unwanted uses and incompatible development
when selling a portion of the land;
- Ensure
that family lands remain intact for future
generations;
- Build
consensus about the future of family land from one family generation to the next;
- Reduce
estate taxes and ease the financial burden of
passing property on to heirs;
- Help
balance open space and development in the county;
- Receive
Income
tax benefits; and
- Create
or expand “Neighborhood Conservation Blocks”-protected
lands within one mile of each other that can
conserve wildlife corridors, support important
wildlife habitats, and sustain agriculture and
forestry.
Whatever
the reason, protecting land is truly one of the
finest legacies a person can leave to a community
and future generations. The Columbia Land Conservancy can help you learn about the different
land protection options and their associated tax
benefits.
How
does the Conservancy protect land?
CLC protects land by accepting donations of conservation
easements,
accepting gifts of
land, and establishing
public
conservation areas
through gifts of land. In cases where
a donation is not possible, CLC may purchase land (if
funding is available) to establish public
conservation areas.
In
addition, CLC provides conservation design service such
as technical land planning, design
and conservation assistance to landowners, community
groups and municipalities. In addition, CLC works with government
officials and the public in support of planning and
zoning practices that protect the region’s
irreplaceable open space resources.
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What
is the difference between public and private land
protection?
At the request of private landowners, CLC helps identify
and achieve the landowner's conservation goals by protecting their
land with a conservation
easement—ensuring that their
conservation vision will be upheld forever. Land
protected with a conservation easement is permanently
protected and remains on the tax rolls in private
ownership. The landowner can sell, lease,
bequeath, gift or mortgage the land.
CLC’s
public land protection efforts focus on helping local
municipalities, community groups and interested
individuals establish public conservation areas
throughout the county. CLC's
public conservation areas are owned or managed by the
Conservancy for habitat protection, educational
programs, non-motorized public recreation,
and general enjoyment.
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What
is a Public Conservation Area?
Public conservation areas are properties that are open
to the public for non-motorized recreation, while protecting
some of the county's most unique wildlife habitats.
These are places where people can walk their dogs, hike,
bird-watch, cross-country ski, snowshoe, fish, and
explore nature at its best. CLC's public conservation
areas are open year-round, free of charge, from dawn to
dusk.
Throughout
the county, CLC owns and/or manages several properties
as public conservation areas. These properties help
address the
growing need for public open space where people can enjoy the
natural beauty of the county. CLC hosts hundreds of free
educational programs throughout the
year on public conservation areas as a service to the
community. Click here
for more information about CLC's public conservation
areas.
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What
is a Conservation Easement?
A conservation easement is a legal agreement, written in
the form of a deed, which allows landowners to
permanently protect
their land. The landowner extinguishes the
majority, or entirety, of the property's
non-agricultural or forestry development rights through the
conveyance of a conservation easement to a qualified
nonprofit land trust, such as CLC, or to a governmental
entity.
The
conservation easement runs with the property and the
land trust or governmental entity agrees to uphold the
terms of the conservation easement in perpetuity.
Conservation
easements are tailored to meet landowner's conservation
goals, minimize land fragmentation, and protect
important natural resources.
Donors
of conservation easements retain title to their
property, and can sell or pass the property on to heirs. With
the majority of the Conservancy's conservation
easements, the
landowner can still farm or conduct conservation
forestry on the land, and is not in any way required to
allow public access. A limited amount of development may
be allowed, provided that it is located to minimize any
negative impact on the land resources being protected.
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What
are the potential tax benefits of land conservation?
A donation of a conservation
easement,
land or an
interest in land can provide significant tax advantages.
In general, donations that meet federal and state guidelines can be
treated as charitable gifts and deducted from federal
and New York State income taxes. Every
situation is unique, however, and therefore landowners should
check with their financial advisors for more
information.
Land conservation can
also be a useful estate
planning tool, significantly reducing estate taxes and
easing the financial burden of passing property on to
heirs. By donating land in fee to CLC, the value of the
land will be removed from the estate, reducing future
estate taxes. Therefore, the landowner will no longer have to pay
property taxes on the land. Conservation easements generally
restrict the amount and type of development that may
occur, thus reducing the value of the property and
potentially the
estate taxes.
The
value of the easement donation is determined by
calculating the difference in the value of the land
without the easement and the value of the land after the
easement has been donated. In
order to qualify for a charitable deduction, the
easement value must be determined by a New York State certified
appraiser. The appraisal must be conducted within
the same tax year of, but no more than 60 days prior to,
the donation of the easement.
Conservation
easements and donations of land can be arranged during
your lifetime, or post-mortem via a Will. Estate beneficiaries and/or the executor
may elect to place land under conservation easement after
death, but before filing an estate tax return, thus
reducing estate taxes. Click here
for more information about the tax benefits of land
conservation.
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Can
I donate land to the Conservancy but continue to live on
the property during my lifetime?
Yes. Some people wish to donate
their land to CLC, while retaining life-use of the
property. Donating a "remainder interest" and retaining a
reserved life estate allows you to continue living on
the land and ensure a conservation legacy.
In
this arrangement, the property is donated during your
lifetime, but you reserve the right to continue to live on
and use the property during your lifetime. After your
lifetime, CLC will gain full title to the property in
accordance with your wishes.
By
donating a remainder interest, you may be eligible for
an income tax deduction when the gift is made. The
deduction is based on the fair market value of the
donated property less the expected value of the reserved
life estate. Click here
for more information about donating land to the
Conservancy.
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