2011 DAF Report Preview (Part I)

Every year, National Philanthropic Trust conducts an analytical survey of donor-advised fund programs. The full report of our findings will be published and available at nptrust.org by the middle of fall. That said, our data is 98% collected and we have some preliminary findings to share.

The overall message seems to be that donor-advised funds rebounded sharply in Fiscal Year 2010. We project an increase of more than 10% in charitable assets. Also, we project a 20% increase in contributions to donor-advised fund programs. The number of donor-advised fund accounts seems to be holding steady and grants from donor-advised funds are showing a slight decline (around 2.5%).  
 
NPT’s annual survey is the most comprehensive and detailed analysis of the donor-advised fund market. This year, it includes data from 467 of the nation’s largest donor-advised fund programs. This group consists of the 30 largest national programs, 260 of the largest community foundations and 177 of the largest faith-based, university and special focus programs. Our primary source of information is IRS Form 990, the annual tax return filed by public charities.

Follow this space for updated findings as we continue to harden our numbers over the next few weeks.