Tips for making donations to charities

The Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance offers the following tips:

• Get the charity's exact name. With so many charities in existence, mistaken identity is a common problem.
• Resist pressure to give on the spot, whether from a telemarketer or door-to-door solicitor. Take time to do your research first.
• Be wary of emotional appeals. What matters is not how tragic the problem is but what the charity is doing to help.
• Get specifics. If the charity says it's helping the homeless, for example, ask how and where it's working.
• Check websites for basic information. A charity's mission, program and finances should be available on its site. If not, check give.org.
• The N.C. Secretary of State's office licenses most charities or professional fundraising organizations operating in this state and keeps a searchable database of each organization's financial information Information also can be obtained by emailing csl@sosnc.com or calling 888-830-4989.
• Don't assume that every soliciting organization is tax exempt. You can check an organization's tax status.

This story was originally published November 25, 2015 at 5:00 PM with the headline "Tips for making donations to charities."