With rising rent costs and housing instability affecting countless New Yorkers, planned giving, gifts arranged now to be given in the future, plays a meaningful role in supporting the vital housing work of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York.

Why Planned Giving Matters

Supporters can leave a lasting legacy through tools such as bequests, life-income gifts, or charitable beneficiary designations of IRAs and retirement plans. These instruments offer tax-smart advantages to the donor and ensure sustained funding for the agency’s long-term priorities and housing initiatives.

How Housing Programs Operate

Catholic Charities of New York delivers a rich spectrum of housing services:

• Emergency shelter and access to temporary accommodations serve those experiencing homelessness every year.
• Their eviction-prevention assistance helps over 12,000 families annually, including legal advocacy, rent negotiation, mediation, and subsidies to prevent displacement.
• Permanent affordable housing, developed through their Catholic Homes New York initiative, offers low-income apartments for families and seniors.  Since the 1970s, over 2,000 units have been built or preserved; currently a pipeline of new developments is underway.
• Supportive housing through Beacon of Hope serves people with serious mental illness across a continuum of settings from supervised group homes to independent units, paired with case management and recovery services.
• Housing Support Services in developments such as Betances Houses (Bronx), Grand Street Guild (Lower East Side), and others provide day-to-day community support to residents who live in Catholic-affiliated affordable housing.

The Impact of Planned Gifts on Housing Work

Planned gifts from wills or IRA beneficiary designations allow Catholic Charities of New York to allocate future resources strategically, especially for housing initiatives with long lead times:

• They underwrite capital-intensive development and preservation efforts by Catholic Homes New York, helping to secure land, fund predevelopment costs, or sustain construction for affordable housing projects.
• Gifts provide stability to resource-intensive programs like supportive housing and eviction prevention, where demand can fluctuate and funding needs are ongoing.
• Donors know their legacy supports holistic approaches, combining housing with case management, legal services, and community engagement for deeper impact.

A Donor-Friendly Approach

Catholic Charities offers guidance and an online tool, like their Life Stage Gift Planner™, legacy honoring programs, and free will-writing resources, like FreeWill and MyCatholicWill, to help potential donors explore bequests, beneficiary gifts, or annuities tailored to both personal and charitable goals.  

Please visit CatholicCharitiesNY.giftplans.org to learn more.

Looking Ahead

With more New Yorkers facing housing insecurity than ever, planned gifts help Catholic Charities of New York:

• Sustain and expand eviction-prevention casework, saving more families from homelessness.
• Develop and preserve affordable apartments in high-need neighborhoods.
• Continue supportive and community housing services that give residents skills, resources, and stability.

Interested in learning more or getting involved?

Please visit CatholicCharitiesNY.giftplans.org or contact Emily Chau, Director of Planned Giving, at Emily.Chau@CatholicCharitiesNY.org or (646) 794‑2018 for personalized support.

Planned giving is a meaningful way for donors to make a lasting impact. By including Catholic Charities of New York in their financial or estate plans, they help provide shelters, housing, support services, and most importantly, dignity and stability for New Yorkers in need.