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What are the fees associated with donor-advised funds?

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Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) are a fantastic way to set aside money for charitable causes. However, many people are unaware of the hidden costs associated with using providers like Fidelity, Vanguard, and Schwab for their DAFs. These providers often charge high administrative fees, which means less of your money is going to the causes you care about. For instance, Fidelity charges a minimum of $100 a year or 0.6% of assets for a DAF, whichever is higher. This means a $1,000 account at Fidelity will cost you $100 a year, compared to just $36 a year at Daffy. And the larger your account, the more you're paying in fees. A $100,000 DAF at Fidelity will cost you $600 a year, while that same amount at Daffy will still only cost you $36. But the fees don't stop there. Fidelity also offers expensive investment options in their DAFs, charging an average fee of 0.55% of assets in the account. At Daffy, our standard portfolios start at just 0.05%. This means a DAF account at Fidelity could be costing you more than $1,000 a year. But there's good news. You can pay far less in fees for a DAF and give more of your money to the charities and causes you believe in by simply moving your fund to Daffy. Transferring your DAF is free of charge and incredibly easy to do. Just go to daffy.org, log into your account, select 'add funds' and pick 'DAF transfer' as your option. Then, tell Daffy which provider you're transferring the money from and enter the amount you're transferring. Finally, make a grant to the Daffy charitable fund from your existing DAF platform. While it can take seven to 10 days for the funds to be delivered to us, we will send you an email as soon as we have the funds and deposit them into the portfolio of your choice. Daffy is designed to help you give more. Saving you money on fees is just one of the ways we help you give more to the causes and organizations you care most about. Come join us.

Please note that the information contained on this page is for educational purposes only and should not be considered tax advice. Any calculations are intended to be illustrative and do not reflect all of the potential complexities of individual tax returns. To assess your specific tax situation, please consult with a tax professional.

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