Overview of Self-Directed IRA Rules and Regulations
According to U.S. tax codes, an IRA must be a trust or a custodial account formed in the United States for the exclusive benefit of an individual or his beneficiaries. The account needs to be governed by written instructions and meet particular requirements in relation to holdings, distributions, contributions, and the trustee or custodian’s identity. These give rise to a special type of IRA known as a self-directed IRA (SDIRA).
Differences between Self-Managed vs. Self-Directed IRA
All IRAs permit account owners to select from investment opportunities acceptable under the IRA trust agreement, and to buy and sell those investments upon the account owner’s good judgment, on the condition that the sale proceeds will remain in the account. The restraint on investor choice springs from IRA custodians being allowed to pick the types of assets they will handle within the limits of tax regulations. Majority of IRA custodians only accept investments in very liquid, easily valued products – for example, approved stocks, mutual funds, etc.
However, a number of custodians are willing to manage accounts with alternate investments and to provide the account owner considerable control to “self-direct” such investments within the confines of tax regulations. There is an expansive list of alternative investments, limited only by a few IRS prohibitions against illiquid or illegal activities under self-directed IRA rules, and a custodian’s willingness to manage the holding.
The most commonly cited example of an SDIRA alternative investment is direct ownership of real estate, which could involve redevelopment of a property or a rental case. Direct real-estate ownership is very different from publicly traded REIT investments, since the latter is typically available through more conventional IRA accounts.
Advantages of a Self-Directed IRA
The benefits associated with an SDIRA are related to an account owner’s capacity to make use of alternative investments to attain alpha in a tax-fortunate manner. Ultimately, SDIRA success depends on the account owner’s special knowledge or expertise in capturing returns that, after being modified for risk, beat market returns.
An overarching premise in self-directed IRA rules is that self-dealing, where the owner or manager of an IRA uses the account for personal satisfaction or in a way that disrespects the tax law, is not allowed. Major elements of self-directed IRA rules and regulations and compliance include identifying disqualified people and the kinds of transactions they are not allowed to initiate with the account. The effects of violating transaction rules can be harsh, including the IRS declaring the whole IRA as taxable at its market upon the beginning of the year in which the forbidden transaction happened, meaning the taxpayer may have to pay old deferred taxes on top of a 10{a297cf9dc7a3561ea4de82dfe41a4812581d7c1162289af1e080f3bbdd650976} early withdrawal penalty.
Aside from to the IRA owner, self-directed IRA rules classify a “disqualified person” as any individual controlling the assets, receipts, disbursements and investments, or those who have significant influence on investment decisions.