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# tzedaka
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    witty-engineer-80805

    06/11/2023, 3:55 AM
    Curious what tips people have for keeping track of maaser in ways that are not tedious. (Other than a DAF.) My basic approach is to subtract my monthly donations from maaser, move the rest into a bucket, and then move it out of that bucket when I give it. But that's a bit tedious.
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    abundant-psychiatrist-22252

    06/11/2023, 8:00 PM
    Regarding giving chomesh (20%), I've read that it's preferred to give 10% twice, as opposed to giving 20% once. How does that work with an example of $100? Is it 10% of 100 ($10) then 10% of the remainder ($9) for a total of $19, or is it 20% of the original $100?
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    clean-father-30172

    08/29/2023, 1:01 AM
    For a long time I had a separate account for Tzedaka which was very straightforward (just deposit Masser ect) Recently I managed to establish a non-profit for Shiruim ect. And have managed to divert some income I was getting to be paid directly to the non profit. (LeKavod uncle sam). Here is the complexity. Part of my income in the company account which pays expenses that are a mix of both Masser "approved" and non Masser "approved". My initial thought was to just divert all my Maser (from other streams of income) into this company account. (And just keep a single cheahbon of what percentage it was to keep those expenses only maser) However I run into the reverse issue of only being able to "spend" maser on "expenses" that are legally in line with the non profit. I know I can just do things the hard way and manually review everything...but maybe someone has a more straightforward solution. Thanks
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    early-architect-85402

    09/07/2023, 3:25 PM
    Has anyone gotten a psak about not having to take off ma'aser while you're trying to get out of debt? I've heard people talking about it, but I've never heard a real source. I have heard that it only works if you're actually working to get out of debt, not if you're still spending frivolously.
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    future-alligator-11234

    09/19/2023, 10:21 PM
    Amazing mitzva to support the cause of Maasar awareness. https://silvertable.org/?shareKey=ras2570
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    melodic-actor-60035

    01/24/2024, 5:51 PM
    Where should money in a DAF be invested (assuming don't want it to lose its original value)?
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    steep-dog-55906

    06/25/2024, 1:44 PM
    I don't understand the current state of Israel politics at all, but as I understand it the government is cutting funding to yeshivas. If I wanted to donate money to the fundraising happening now to support those yeshivas, does anyone know how I might go about doing it? To be clear, I don't mean a significant amount of money that would require a personal phone call to anyone, but more like something because I'd like to be mishtatef (mishtatefes?)
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    crooked-photographer-36202

    08/15/2024, 12:23 PM
    Anyone heard of or used Daffy for opening a DAF? Fees seem way lower than Fidelity https://www.daffy.org/resources/donor-advised-funds-costs-compare
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    thankful-intern-11611

    09/26/2024, 7:23 PM
    As Rush Hashana is coming up, I am considering pledging x amount of maaser to tzedakah, as it says in (Devarim 14:22) ‘Asser Ta’Asser’? Separate a tenth so that you will become wealthy! if anyone can share their experience or tips, it would be very helpful.
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    fast-megabyte-10597

    09/29/2024, 1:34 AM
    For discussion purposes only, for end result psak please ask you LOR. In Baltimore ther is something called the Baltimore tuition initiative which is giving many tuition paying families a percentage of their tuition back. Would maaser need to be taken from this rebate? Is it just considered getting your own money back that you already took maaser from or is it considered money that you would not have had otherwise so maaser needs to be taken?
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    early-architect-85402

    12/24/2024, 1:56 AM
    Can anyone recommend a Tzedaka that supports orphans in the US? I see a bunch for E"Y, but I'm not easily finding one for the US. Bonus points if I can order a pushka from them.
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  • s

    stale-carpet-1608

    01/13/2025, 12:25 AM
    Does one give Maaser on a check received from escrow surplus money?
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    dry-exabyte-22497

    01/21/2025, 2:07 AM
    Is donating with The Donors Fund card with a 2.9% fee any worse for the receiving organization than using a credit card?
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  • o

    orange-umbrella-29466

    01/25/2025, 11:45 PM
    My wife is in the hospital for a while.and we are experiencing financial difficulties due to this including her unable to work. Financial pressures are immense and I am feeling like I need to compromise Judaism to make up for finances.
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    orange-umbrella-29466

    01/25/2025, 11:45 PM
    Please help me.
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    thankful-daybreak-55786

    01/28/2025, 5:38 PM
    Friends is there an exhaustive maaser guide/excel sheet out there
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    famous-dinner-96142

    02/05/2025, 12:36 AM
    Any ideas for maaser regarding investments (specially stock markets). I take off maaser from income and if there is extra I’ll put into stock market. So the capital is already post maaser, is there a way to figure out when you withdraw what the “capital is” and what gains are
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  • s

    steep-kitchen-65549

    02/25/2025, 2:27 AM
    How would one deal with loses of maaser money that is in a DAF (just asking hypothetically 🙂 bec market was down today which made me think)? For example, say I put $100 dollars in a DAF and invest it in the most basic S&P500 index. It will go up and down. The S&P can be negative for quite some time as well... Do I need to remember how much I started off with and how much I donated to make sure that I gave the correct amount? Or is putting, say 10%, in the DAF all I need to?
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    rich-insurance-32675

    02/25/2025, 2:34 AM
    I keep my DAF in a money market fund to avoid the loss
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    flat-daybreak-65495

    02/25/2025, 2:41 AM
    My understanding is that you are responsible to make up any investment losses. I also keep my DAF only in a money market fund.
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  • f

    famous-dinner-96142

    02/25/2025, 3:30 AM
    Why would you put in anywhere, why not just let it sit in the DAF?
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  • c

    cold-australia-71602

    02/25/2025, 3:51 AM
    If you transfer securities to a DAF to avoid capital gains taxes, can you then sell it right after you transfer it (and leave in MMKT fund/cash) so you don’t run the risk of it losing value?
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    curved-toothbrush-84425

    02/25/2025, 9:20 PM
    Aren't the obligations of separating maaser and distributing it 2 different things? If so, you wouldn't pay it back. You fulfilled the obligation of separating the maaser and you were a steward to give it out. You decided that giving investing it until it was distributed was in the best interest of whatever charities would receive the funds. You were wrong, but I don't see why that would create a personal obligation for you to repay it. Charities invest money all the time. If they lose some are the board of directors responsible to pay it back? Another point is that once the funds are sent to a DAF it no longer belongs to you. The DAF operates based on your recommendations. They invested or distribute it based on your recommendation, but they're the ones doing it, not you. They're not even your Shaliach. They have the power to reject your recommendations.
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    witty-engineer-80805

    03/10/2025, 7:09 PM
    @mysterious-tomato-10057 do you have a way to track matanos l'evyonim from some taxable source to e.g. kids collecting on street corners etc. on Purim
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    stale-carpet-1608

    04/09/2025, 11:22 PM
    If it is a custom to give Rabbi of Shul $ for being an agent in selling chametz, would that money be considered Maaser?
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  • c

    clean-activity-38399

    05/15/2025, 4:03 AM
    for people that use PayPal giving "lease take a moment to review an important update to PayPal's processing timeline that may affect the timing of your grant distributions. Previously, donations processed by the 15th of the month at 5:00PM Central Time were funded by the 25th of that same month. PayPal has now updated their policy: To ensure your donation is funded by the 25th, it must be processed by the 15th of the month at 8:00AM Central Time."
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    powerful-butcher-25898

    05/19/2025, 12:41 PM
    I know this has been discussed, but I can’t find specific ones- which daf accounts are most practical for tzedaka purposes? Do any of them give a debit card or something to donate online?
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    freezing-nail-88776

    07/01/2025, 3:12 AM
    Is there a masses app or spreadsheet that people use that automatically calculates maaser? The maaser app doesn’t work.
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    limited-wolf-7975

    08/04/2025, 1:20 PM
    This question may have been answered already in previous discussions but I wasn’t able to figure it out - if I use a DAF to donate, can I donate to a typical Charidy or Causematch campaign? Meaning, is the process similar to how I would donate if I was using a credit card, or do I have to go through the DAF side, in which case the donation probably wouldn’t show up as a contribution to someone’s specific campaign page? I understand that either way the institution would get the funds, but seeing as most my current contributions are to various people’s campaigns (ie their kids school or shul etc.), I would like to ensure I can continue to do so even if I use a DAF. For reference, I would either open up with The Donors Fund or through Fidelity. Follow up question - does the Donors Fund allow me to put appreciated stock into the account? Thank you in advance!
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    busy-forest-32211

    08/27/2025, 11:24 AM
    I have commuter benefits taken off before taxes. Do I need to take maaser from it or is that a work related expense, which I assume is patur from maaser?
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