Most people don’t make cash charitable contributions because they are tax deductible. They still could cost you 70 cents in the dollar. Yes, there is a push to maximize deductions for most middle income taxpayers in 2017>>>charitable deductions, prepay property taxes, etc.
In some cases, it is not the loss of itemization (I’ll still qualify) but the reduction in deductions for property and state income taxes that will cause a huge tax bite and lower my charitable contributions in 2018.
The increase in the standard deduction is pretty meaningless for Mrs. CTL and myself, we have no dependents. But we’ll lose the deduction for more than $40,000 in state and local taxes we have now, added to other changes our tax bill on the same income (and as a self employed professional I can control my taxable earnings) will increase more than $20,000. That is $20,000 that will not be given to tzedakah in 2018. We have reached the stage in life that we give away almost all of our expendable income. As a family law/trust attorney, I was able to set up and fund trusts for my progeny and old age and it is the community who benefits from my current work.
I have mentioned before that an average 4 BR colonial on 3/4 acre minimum zoning in our middle class residential town has an average tax bill of $13K. Since passage of the tax bill, asking prices for such houses have declined approx 6% (Mrs. CTL is a realtor and these figures are from the CT MLS for current listings in our town). Few people usually list their homes for sale this time of year, but new listings are up as well.