During the month of February, there’s a lot of focus on love, hearts, friendship, and— yes, self-directed IRAs. Besides googling what to buy your significant other, everyone’s researching how to open an account to get that tax break before April 15^th rolls around or how to transfer their account to save on high fees. As a marketer, I’m always curious what people are looking for during holidays and national events— they influence people in ways you wouldn’t expect. It’s interesting to see what influences search trends, but what does this have to do with self-directed IRAs and fees?

You’ve got a lot of freedom with a self-directed IRA, but you do have a few rules you need to follow. Investing in real estate with your self-directed IRA is a lot like investing in real estate outside of your IRA— except the IRS prohibits a few things (per IRC Section 4975). These investment rules are really the biggest differences between IRA investing and the traditional real estate purchase— aside from the incredible tax benefits.

Have you ever wondered where all those TV shows and movies come from when you are sitting on a plane, browsing a cable network, or scrolling through a video on demand streaming platform? Well, there are two ways. First, the network can create the content. We have probably all tuned in at some point to a specific network to watch one of our favorite shows that you only find on that network, right? Or maybe you subscribe to a favorite streaming service because they have a show that you love to watch! Well, what about the rest of the content that you see while scrolling through your cable provider or the seemingly endless options that you have while browsing one or more of the streaming services that you subscribe to?

Taking a required minimum distribution (RMD) can be challenging if you’re not sure what you’re doing. There are real tax consequences if you don’t do it right, so smart IRA investors know it’s important to take it seriously. Since self-directed IRAs deal with alternative and sometimes illiquid assets, this can seem complex. But at IRAR, we’ve seen it all— and we’re here to help.

Our team of experienced self-directed IRA experts is here to guide you through the process, answering real RMD questions from real SDIRA investors.

As much as we all wish retirement plans were free of charge, they aren’t. Companies that provide services for retirement plans ALWAYS charge fees in some way, even if it’s not clear how.  After all, they have to cover basic business costs to service your account, so they always find a way.

Even so, you’ll sometimes see promotions by big banks where they offer great benefits like making a contribution to your account or promises to match your retirement savings, all while promoting these accounts as free— don’t be fooled. There is no such thing as a free IRA.

Can you imagine— a future where your retirement is secured by physical property. A future where you know that no matter what the stock market looks like, there is a tangible asset you and your retirement can rely on.

That’s why investing in real estate is such a popular strategy. Unlike stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, it’s something you can touch, something you can feel, something you can depend on— no matter what happens. That’s the kind of security most people want in a retirement investment.

When the IRA was first created, you only had one option— but since 1997, there’s been another choice, one more and more investors are picking every year. The Roth IRA! A favorite of many investors looking to make their retirement dollars go the extra mile— and you can take advantage too, as long as you qualify.

Do you have a Traditional IRA? If so, you’ll have to start taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) eventually. Once you turn 70 ½, you’re required by the IRS to take out (and pay taxes on) a portion of your retirement savings. But for some people who don’t hold any cash in their self-directed retirement account, this causes momentary panic. I don’t have any cash in my self-directed IRA, how do I take my RMD? What do I do!?  

We know you want to help your clients open their self-directed IRAs as quickly and seamlessly as possible. We want that too! Our team is always aiming to make the process as simple as possible for investors and their advisors. The process with IRAR is quick and easy, but there are a few things we see investors miss pretty frequently.

Here’s what to watch for with your clients, so they can start investing ASAP:

Once upon a time, self-directed IRAs were an unknown niche of the investment market— accounts that only the rich were utilizing to build wealth.  Nowadays, though they aren’t the standard retirement option, they’re way more popular— your financial advisor may have even heard of them! Because alternative assets are going mainstream (and unlike traditional retirement accounts, these investments are allowed in a self-directed IRA), the popularity of self-directed IRAs continues to grow. For good reason. The freedom to diversify retirement savings into assets not usually allowed gives investors more chances to build savings fast while making investments that will sustain them long term.