<prompt> Human: Could anyone give a quick rundown on charitable donations and tax deduction? Do I need an official statement from a charity? Can I assign my own value to donated goods? Do I need exact dates of donation? Etc.Thanks!  <response>: For items donated to charity, I highly recommend the Salvation Army and the Goodwill valuation guides. Use these to help determine the FMV of your items. Even if you donated to another charity, these values are generally acceptable.As mentioned previously, for an audit you will also need dates and a detailed list of what was donated. If you are claiming over 250 of items, you will also need the name and address of the charity. if you are claiming over 500 of items, you will need to submit the detailed list with your tax return. 