If you are charitably inclined, one tactic to consider is to give away your house but retain the right to live there for the rest of your lifetime (and perhaps for the life of your spouse). This technique is known as a retained life estate.
In these arrangements, the value of the house will be set by an independent appraiser. Then a value will be placed on the retained right to live in the house, based on your life expectancy. The difference will be a charitable tax deduction.
Suppose, for example, you and your spouse are 70 and 68 years old, with a home valued at $400,000. You give this home to a local charity but reserve the right to occupy the house as long as either you or your spouse is still alive.
Depending on interest rates at the time of the transaction, the value of the right to stay in the house might be around $250,000. In this scenario, you will get a $150,000 tax deduction ($400,000 minus $250,000) right away even though you are not giving away assets now.