Estate Planning · DuPage County, Illinois
Wills, trusts, and the planning that keeps your family in control and out of court, from the same DuPage County firm since 1990.
This is a specialized area of estate planning. Strategic charitable planning lets you support causes you care about while reducing income, capital gains, and estate taxes. Charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, and donor-advised funds can each multiply the impact of every dollar you give.
At Chris J. Aiello, P.C., we’ve handled these matters for DuPage County clients for over three decades. We translate the complexity into plain language, recommend strategies that actually fit your situation, and integrate this planning with the rest of your estate documents.
Every situation is different. We design the right combination for yours.
Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) — income to you, remainder to charity
Charitable Lead Trust (CLT) — income to charity, remainder to family
We know the Illinois rules in this niche — not just generic estate planning principles.
Specialized strategies must coordinate with your wills, trusts, and POAs. We design them together.
We model the actual tax and benefit impact of strategies before you commit.
Tax law and rules change. We update strategies as needed over time.
Specialized work but predictable pricing — quoted at consultation, not hourly billed.
Chris or John handles this work personally. No handoffs to paralegals.
From our Villa Park office, we represent clients across DuPage County and the western suburbs of Chicago.
A CRT pays you (or other beneficiaries) income for life or a set term, then distributes the remainder to charity. You get an immediate partial tax deduction, defer capital gains on contributed appreciated assets, and ultimately benefit the charity. Very tax-efficient for high-income years or large appreciated holdings.
DAFs are simpler and lower-cost — good for moderate giving and flexibility. CRTs are more sophisticated and provide ongoing income to you. For estates above the Illinois threshold, CRTs are often more tax-efficient.
Yes. Donor-advised funds and many trust structures let you support any qualified 501(c)(3). You can divide annually, leave it to a family member to direct, or set rules in advance.
Best for families giving $1M+ annually who want family involvement and naming control. Higher administrative burden than DAFs. We can help you decide which structure fits your goals.
Yes — both DAFs and certain trusts allow you to take the deduction in the year of contribution while distributing to charities over time.
A free consultation tells you whether this strategy fits your situation — and what the realistic impact would be.