It's much easier to donate your car than to sell it yourself, and for older vehicles, your tax savings can be about the same as trade-in value.  Cars are needed that are in reasonably good driving condition, or that can be made safely drivable for under $300. 

Family Services Center provides donated vehicles to less fortunate families for job transportation.  Since, we provide the donated vehicles for significantly below fair market value, you will be able to deduct 100% of your car's Private Seller market value, per IRS rules.  

If you donate the car to a charity that sells it, you may only deduct the actual amount they receive from the sale, which will typically be less than the Private Seller value.  If they sell it at auction, your deduction will be even less, i.e., about one-third to one-half of the deduction that you could take, if you donate to us.  

• All donations are fully tax-deductible.  Family Services Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization qualified to receive deductible charitable contributions, including vehicles. (more tax information)

• Donor's tax savings can be as much as dealer trade-in value, particularly for older cars.  

• No cost to donor - All paperwork is paid for and processed by us, and we always transfer ownership from the donor to us, prior to transferring it to the recipient.

• Since the donated cars are provided to working poor families to help them get on their feet, the maximum value of each donation goes into the community. (more on car donations)

• Family Services Center assists families in the Huntsville/Madison County, AL area.

Donation Process

It’s very easy to donate - just call Family Services Center at 551-1610, and we will schedule a convenient time to accept your donation and provide you with an IRS 1098-C Form for tax purposes.  The only paperwork we need is the vehicle's title (free of liens). 

Since charities are not allowed to set donation values, you must determine your vehicle's valuation, which is very easy to do by using price guide websites such as kbb.com and nadaguides.com. You are entitled to deduct the Private Seller value listed in the price guides, adjusted for your vehicle's condition and mileage. (more tax information)

Please consider donating a car through us to a local family.  The desire of many less fortunate families is to own a car, so they can become self-sufficient.  In areas without adequate public transportation, car ownership is a major factor in people’s ability to get and keep jobs.  Many parents going to work also need transportation to access child care which further complicates their work commute, and usually rules out public transportation.  The transportation barrier is magnified for low-income Americans living in rural areas without public transportation.  Without a vehicle, many jobs in our area are simply inaccessible.

Caring Cars provides vehicles to low-income families in the Huntsville and Madison County area for job transportation.  Recipient families are carefully selected and referred by Family Services Center and other agency caseworkers based on need.  (Click here or call 551-1610 for eligibility and application information.)  This program is for families who cannot afford to buy a serviceable car or cannot qualify for a traditional car loan.  Each family receiving a car is charged a small down payment and small monthly payments at 0% interest to cover program costs.  All cars are priced at significantly below market value (usually half or less of retail book value). 

Rarely, a donated vehicle will be sold on the open market if it is not suitable to be provided to a needy family.  The proceeds from these sales help cover program costs like car repairs, so we can assist more families.  We also accept boats and motorhomes/RV's which will be sold to fund repairs and program operating costs. 

Here are some links to news reports on our Caring Cars program:

Huntsville Times
Decatur Daily

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