How to know if a charity can be trusted with your money? This one thing can tell you

Andrew Katzenstein, a tax and estate planning attorney and lecturer at USC Gould School of Law […] recommends clients identify what their interest is, and from there, narrow down what they’d like their gift to do.

Eric Flett, the regional president of wealth management firm MAI Capital, said he tells clients to reflect on what brings them joy: animals, music, education, art, health and welfare, to name a few.

“A lot of us use all these great resources in the Bay Area without realizing that these are probably heavily funded by philanthropic organizations,” he said. So the next time you’re enjoying a hike or a play or a museum exhibit, think about looking into what groups support those endeavors. He recommended both the San Francisco Foundation (sff.org) and the East Bay Community Foundation (ebcf.org) as good places to look for charities that work in your communities.