IRA REAL ESTATE - Did you know that you can purchase Real Estate with your retirement plan? Well you can, and in fact, you can purchase real estate tax free through your IRA and 401k plan. It is an often overlooked, but highly valuable investment strategy.

The law allows your qualified plan or IRA to own just about any kind of real estate. You can invest directly in: single family and multi-unit homes, co-ops, condos, apartment buildings, even improved or unimproved land.

An IRA account holder has several options when investing in real estate -- and it generally depends on how much cash the IRA account holder has allocated to any one investment. For example, if there is enough money in the IRA account to pay "all cash" for a real estate investment, the IRA custodian would purchase the property for the benefit of the IRA account holder and hold title to the property "free and clear". If, on the other hand, there are insufficient funds allocated to pay cash, the IRA account holder could either finance the property, or invest in a Limited Liability Company (LLC) and take co-ownership in the property. Examples of partial ownership are shown to the left under the "Corporate Ownership Plan".

If you buy a property for your IRA, the income and appreciation normally builds up tax-free until you start to take withdrawals. (You can't deduct depreciation, as you can in a taxable investment.)

Please note that anything in this general overview should not be construed as legal advice and it is highly recommended that any self-directed retirement account owner seek the advice of a tax advisor, accountant or investment advisor before making any decisions based on this opinion overview.

However, if you would like additional information and some "tips" on how to get started, please submit the "Request IRA Real Estate Info" form below.