Best places to open Self Directed IRA

[Jennifer Griffin]

I am interested in opening a self directed IRA to start saving money to go towards my first deal eventually. I find this the most reasonable. I have attempted the whole lines of credit thing but that simply will not give me the cash reserve I need to make the investments I desire. I will wait for that a little later after some things stabilize for me financially. What are some great places I can research that others have became of customer of for their SD IRA? What are some considerations I need to have when shopping around for the best place? Thanks.

[Casey Mericle]

Jennifer,

I've been with a few different companies thus far and haven't been happy until recently with Advanta IRA out of Tampa (full disclosure I'm a customer but receive nothing for mentioning them). I like them because my questions are typically answered by a real person when I call in. If I miss my rep she gets back with me same day.

I find there fees very reasonable because I use a SD IRA Trust for checkbook control. If you don't know what that is Jack Shea has an excellent low cost course that will save you a bunch of money in SDIRA fees. Google his name and "real estate" and you'll find it. I think he also resides on BP from time-to-time.

The two big things for setting one up is fees and how quickly you can get to your money. Some companies charge by the transaction other charge by the value of the IRA. I'd suggest going with one that charges on a per transaction basis. Setting up a checkbook control IRA trust will allow you to make one transaction to put your money in a trust account at your corner bank and do multiple transactions out of that trust account. They have checkbook control LLCs but they cost more and you have to jump through more red tape.

Speed is also a big factor in finding a company that will process transactions within 24 hours or less. If you do the checkbook trust you'll have a check in your hand all the time. Sometimes making a deal can't wait until tomorrow, so waiting on your IRA administrator can really hamper your deal flow. I hope that helps.