Amarnath Foundation is a 501(c)(3) Private Operating Foundation preserving naturally occurring affordable housing in central Indiana. Your DAF can grant to us today.
There's a common misconception that DAFs can only fund public charities. They can't fund regular (non-operating) private foundations without expenditure responsibility — but private operating foundations are different.
A grant from a donor-advised fund to a private operating foundation (POF) is a qualifying distribution that does not trigger taxable distribution rules under IRC §4966, and does not require the sponsoring organization to exercise expenditure responsibility under IRC §4945.
Under IRC §4942(j)(3), a POF must spend at least 85% of its adjusted net income directly on its charitable activities — meaning the foundation itself operates the program. Amarnath qualifies because we directly own and operate the affordable housing properties our charitable mission preserves.
For the donor, granting from a DAF to a POF is administratively identical to granting to a public charity: log in, search, send. No special paperwork. No expenditure responsibility letters.
References: IRC §4942(j)(3) (operating foundation definition); IRC §4966(d)(2)(B)(ii) (DAF distribution exclusion for operating foundations); Treas. Reg. §53.4942(b)-1.Step-by-step instructions for Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, and Vanguard Charitable. Each takes under 90 seconds.
99-362881199-362881199-3628811Amarnath currently holds 7 doors across central Indiana (Anderson and Muncie), with 12-20 doors planned by end of 2026. Every dollar goes toward keeping these units affordable and operating.
Funds one quarter of repair reserves on a single 4-unit building — the cushion that lets us fix things before they become evictions.
Covers a typical quarter of plumbing, HVAC servicing, and small structural repair on one Anderson property.
Funds a full repair budget for a 4-unit building. This is the size of grant that turns "we may need to raise rent" into "we don't."
Recent real example: a $15,000 sewage line replacement that, without reserves, would have meant lost units and displaced families.
Funds twelve months of operating reserves across our three current properties — the kind of stability that keeps a small POF resilient through any single repair shock.
Equivalent to roughly one year of unanticipated capital expenditures across the current portfolio.
Every claim on this page is checkable. Here's the paperwork.
Bharath Ramanidharan founded Amarnath Foundation in June 2024 to preserve naturally occurring affordable housing — small multifamily buildings already renting at affordable levels that risk being lost to either disrepair or speculative resale.
The foundation operates as a private operating foundation specifically because the model requires direct, hands-on stewardship of buildings: not granting to other operators, but doing the work itself. Bharath leads acquisitions, financing, and resident relations directly.
Outside the foundation, Bharath operates several other ventures and brings an operator's discipline to nonprofit accounting: every dollar tracked, every repair documented, every distribution test met.
No. Amarnath is a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation under IRC §4942(j)(3) — not a public charity, and not a standard (non-operating) private foundation either.
For a donor granting from a DAF, the tax treatment is identical to granting to a public charity: no expenditure responsibility required, and the original contribution to your DAF was deductible at the higher AGI limits that apply to public-charity-equivalent vehicles. Your DAF sponsor handles the rest.
Typically 5-15 business days from the date you submit the grant recommendation. Fidelity Charitable usually processes in 3-7 business days; Schwab and Vanguard tend toward 7-14 business days for first-time recipients (we'll already be on file the second time you grant).
If you need a grant to land before December 31 for any reason, we recommend submitting your recommendation no later than mid-December.
No. Expenditure responsibility under IRC §4945 is required when a private foundation grants to a non-charitable entity or to certain non-operating private foundations. It does not apply to grants from a DAF to a private operating foundation, because POFs qualify as the equivalent of public charities for distribution purposes under §4966(d)(2)(B)(ii).
If a representative at your sponsor pushes back, ask them to look up our EIN — our IRS determination shows operating foundation status, and that is the qualifying flag they need.
Yes to both. Every major DAF sponsor offers an "honor of / memory of" field and an "anonymous" toggle when you submit your recommendation.
If you grant in honor of someone and provide their address through your sponsor, we'll send a physical acknowledgement card. If you grant anonymously, we will not see your name or contact info — only the amount and the sponsor.
Your tax receipt comes from your DAF sponsor at the time of your original contribution to the DAF — not from Amarnath. The grant from your DAF to Amarnath is a distribution of already-deducted funds and is not separately deductible.
We will, however, send you (or the sponsor, if anonymous) a written acknowledgement of the grant for your records.
We're publishing a 28-page guide covering: bundling vs. spreading grants, year-end timing, granting to operating foundations, recoverable grants, in-kind gifts of appreciated property routed through DAFs, and the IRS rules every DAF holder should know in 2026.
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