A Self-Directed Individual Retirement Arrangement is an IRA that requires the account owner to make investment decisions and investments on behalf of the retirement plan. IRS regulations require that either a qualified trustee, or custodian hold the IRA assets on behalf of the IRA owner. Generally the trustee/custodian will maintain the assets and all transaction and other records pertaining to them, file required IRS reports, issue client statements, assist in helping clients understand the rules and regulations pertaining to certain prohibited transactions, and perform other administrative duties on behalf of the Self-directed IRA owner for the life of the IRA account. The custodian usually offers a selection of standard asset types that the account owner can select to invest in, such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. In addition, most custodians will also permit the account owner to make other types of investments. The range of permissible investments is broad, however, the IRS does place limits on the types of assets that may be invested in and on the types of transactions that may be carried out.
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IRS regulations prohibit IRA investments in life insurance and in collectibles such as artwork, rugs, antiques, metals (there are exceptions for certain kinds of bullion), gems, stamps, coins (there are exceptions for certain coins minted by the U.S. Treasury), alcoholic beverages, and certain other tangible personal property.
IRS regulations prohibit transactions that are an improper use of the value in the account or annuity by the account owner, the account owner's beneficiary, or any other disqualified person. These rules are generally designed to prevent self-dealing. Disqualified persons include your fiduciary and members of your family, such your spouse, ancestor, lineal descendant (e.g. children), and any spouse of a lineal descendant). In addition, other disqualified persons include:
The following are prohibited transactions with an IRA:
If the account owner or beneficiary engaged in a prohibited transaction, the account is treated as distributing all its assets to you at their fair market values on the first day of the year in which the transaction occurred. The distribution would be subject to any taxes or penalties associated with an early distribution. Generally, a 10% early withdrawal penalty and treatment of the distribution as ordinary income for the purposes of income taxes.
Examples of self-dealing include:
Some of the additional investment options permitted under the regulations include real estate, stocks, mortgages, franchises, partnerships, private equity and tax liens. Real estate may include residential and commercial properties (U.S. & Internationally), farmland, raw land, new construction, property renovation, development, and passive rental income. Real estate purchased in a self-directed IRA can have a mortgage placed against the property, thus lowering the amount of total cash needed for a purchase; however, neither the IRA nor the account owner of the IRA can have personal liability on the mortgage. Business investments may include partnerships, joint ventures, and private stock. This can be a platform to fund a start-up business or other for-profit venture that is managed by someone other than the account owner of the IRA. Other alternative investments include: commodities, hedge funds, commercial paper, foreign stock, royalty rights, equipment & leases, American depository receipts, and U.S. T-bill
In an effort to reduce fees, paperwork, and processing delays, some self-directed IRA investors choose to employ a Limited Liability Company (LLC) IRA structure. In such a structure the account holder directs his IRA custodian to invest into a limited liability company that the account owner manages himself. The account owner can then execute transactions on the LLC level without the involvement of the IRA custodian, thus reducing fees and eliminating custodian transactional fees and delays. The profits of the LLC pass through to the IRA with nearly identical tax favorable treatment. Some claim that this IRA LLC strategy has been legitimized through a tax court case: Swanson v. Commissioner, 106 T.C. 76 (1996). Others disagree on the validity of the court case.[1] Some refer to this structure as "checkbook control" because the IRA account holder often has sole signing authority for the LLC and its bank accounts.