May a decedents estate claim a charitable deduction for personal property donated to goodwill

[saweiss851]

after my father passed away, we donated his personal property to goodwill.  can the estate claim that deduction, thereby reducing the taxable income that otherwise would be passed thru to the beneficiaries?

[Anonymous_ · Accepted solution]

Charitable contributions, and corresponding deductions in the context of an income tax return for an estate, need to be expressly provided for in the decedent's will. 

See https://www.irs.gov/publications/p559/ar02.html#en_US_2016_publink100099699

You might want to consider the personal and household effects as having been distributed to the beneficiaries and then the beneficiaries, in turn, having donated the items to the charitable organization (which will allow them to deduct their share on their individual income tax returns).