Helping family and friends: The best ways to make gifts, loans

WASHINGTON — At some point in your life, you may decide to give or loan money, a car or other property to a loved one and/or friend.

Whether you want to make a gift or a loan, there are a few things that will help you to do it correctly and avoid problems down the road with the IRS.

Making a gift:

A gift can be made in the form of cash or other property. Planning to give your adult son $10,000, or your nephew a new car? Those are both considered gifts.

But gifts also include a sale or exchange of property for less than its fair market value. In either event, if you give a gift to someone who is not your dependent, there are rules and limits that you need to know to handle the gift correctly.

More