Self-Directed Real Estate Investing 101: What You Need to Know About Investing in Real Estate with Your Retirement Account

How does real estate in an IRA work?

Here are the general steps to an IRA real estate investment:

1. Open and fund a self-directed account – You can do this through a qualified self-directed IRA custodian.
2. Find a property to purchase
3. Direct your custodian to fund your investment with your account – Provide your self-directed account custodian the specifics of the property you’d like to purchase with your IRA, how much money you need, where to send the funds, and if documentation requires signing. You can choose to fund the entire purchase or a portion of it with your account.
4. Manage the investment in your account – Money from expenses and profits must flow to and from your account in the same proportion that it funded the investment.

Once you’re familiar with how the process works, the Real Estate Investing Hub can help you explore next steps, like researching properties, accessing reports, or finding services for inspections, insurance, and tax filing.

Video: Self-Directed IRA Real Estate Investing

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Self-Directed Real Estate Investing Rules to Know

The IRS provides guidelines regarding self-directed investments:

Investment must be at “arm’s length”

IRS rules state that you and the investment must be at arm’s length. In other words, you cannot directly benefit from a piece of property or other asset owned by your retirement account.

Your retirement account is designed to provide for your retirement and is not intended to benefit you now. You cannot receive a direct or indirect benefit from the property purchase. It’s considered an “indirect benefit” if your IRA is engaged in transactions that, in some way, can benefit you personally.

A few examples include:

• Using property held in the retirement account: Using real estate purchased through your IRA as an office, personal residence, vacation home, retirement home, etc. is not allowed.
• Receiving personal benefits from your retirement account: You cannot lend yourself money from your IRA or pay yourself, or a company you own, to do work on a home purchased by your IRA.

Be aware of “disqualified persons”

Additionally, IRS rules state that a self-directed retirement account may not buy an investment from, sell it to, or otherwise be involved with a “disqualified person.”

Who is a “disqualified person?” A disqualified person includes you as the account holder, service providers of the IRA, fiduciaries, family members of lineal ascent or descent (parents, grandparents, children, or grandchildren), and entities of which 50 percent or more is owned directly or indirectly by a disqualified person.

Video: Real Estate IRA Rules and Regulations

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Whenever making an investment decision, please consult with tax, legal, and accounting professionals. Read more about real estate IRA rules or refer to the IRS for more information: Internal Revenue Code 4975 and IRS Publication 590.