The slip document
The deed, the condominium declaration and unit number, or the permit. A photograph of the paper is enough to start.
Donate a deeded boat slip, dockominium unit or marina interest
Marina and slip specialists: (888) 228-7320
Donate a Marina, Boat Slip or Dock Right
A deeded boat slip is real property. It has a legal description, usually a parcel number, a tax bill and an association that invoices you every year whether a boat is tied to it or not. Slips, dockominium units, dry-stack spaces, mooring rights and whole or partial marina interests can all be donated to Giving Center, an IRS-approved 501(c)(3). Send us the document and we will tell you what it actually conveys.
Tell us about the slip
Every property gets a look. Name, phone and email are the only required fields.
Fully IRS Compliant
We Handle the Paperwork
Form 8283 Done Right
501(c)(3) Recognized Charity
Five different things people call a boat slip
The word covers arrangements that transfer in completely different ways. A deeded slip is a parcel of real property, sometimes including the submerged land, sometimes a defined volume of water and air above it. A dockominium unit is a condominium interest in a dock, with a recorded declaration and an owners association, much like a condo in a building. A dry-stack space can be a deeded unit inside a storage barn or a rental agreement dressed up in ownership language.
A mooring right is usually the outlier. Many are permits issued by a harbormaster or a municipality, held on a waiting list, and not transferable to whoever the holder chooses. A slip in a marina that leases its bottom from the state adds another layer, because the state submerged land lease sits underneath everything. None of this stops a gift. It decides how the gift is written.
The first question we ask
What the recorded document says, not what the marina calls it. A copy of the deed, the declaration or the permit answers it in a few minutes.
Why slips get donated
The boat usually went first. What is left is an annual invoice for dues, maintenance and sometimes a share of dock reconstruction after a storm, on an asset the owner has not used in years. Slip resale markets are small, local and seasonal, and a broker who lists houses will not take a slip listing seriously.
The other common case is inheritance. A slip passes with an estate to heirs who live inland and have no use for it, and the association keeps billing while everyone decides. A donation ends the invoices in one transfer and produces a deduction based on a qualified appraisal rather than on a fire-sale price.
What to have in front of you
Three documents move the review from a conversation to a decision.
Where the dues stand
The current balance, the annual amount and any assessment the association has voted for dock or seawall work.
The transfer rules
Most marinas and dock associations have a consent requirement or a right of first refusal. Tell us which yours has and we will handle the correspondence.
Questions about donating a slip or dock interest
My marina says a slip can only be sold to another member. Does that end it? +
No. Associations often waive the restriction for a charity, or accept the charity as a member for as long as it takes to sell. Where neither happens, the practical route is a sale to an approved buyer with a cash gift of the proceeds, receipted in the ordinary way. All three outcomes are common.
My mooring is a permit from the town, not a deed. Can I give it? +
Tell us and we will read it. Some mooring permits are personal to the holder and cannot be assigned at all, in which case there is nothing to transfer and we will say so plainly. Others run with a slip or a property and move with it.
What about the boat itself? +
That is a separate gift and a different program. Our sister site Boats with Causes handles vessels. People often donate the boat and the slip in the same month, through the two programs.
I owe dues and a storm assessment. Is that a problem? +
It is a number in the review, not a bar. What matters is the balance against what the slip can realistically sell for. Give us the figure rather than leaving it out; finding it later is what slows transfers down.
How does an appraiser value a slip? +
With comparable slip sales in the same waterway, adjusted for length, beam, depth, utilities and the state of the docks. It is a thin market, so the appraiser needs to work in it. Above $5,000 the IRS wants a qualified appraisal and Form 8283 Section B, and the appraisal is the donor’s expense and the donor’s choice of appraiser.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. See IRS Publication 526, Publication 561 and the Form 8283 instructions, and consult your own advisor.
Related guides
Tell us about the slip and we will review it
The marina name and your unit or slip number are enough to start.