Solo 401k + Business Structuring

[Mimi H.]

Hi Everyone,

I'm presuming that I'm not alone in this and would love to hear how others deal with this situation:

1) employee at a company that offers a small matching on 401k

2) owner of properties with cash flow

When I was a single employee owner of my last company, I was able to put together a Solo 401k which has really fantastic tax advantages (one of which was the ability to contribute up to $53k annually (that's 2015 #s) ) to the plan. For those who are not aware of the Solo 401k, it's super beneficial --> http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/One-Participant-401%28k%29-Plans

I'd like to set up a Solo 401k for my rental income and I'm wondering if anyone else here is doing that, and if so, how you structure your rentals. Meaning, if you have multiple rentals, do you put each under it's own LLC and then W2 yourself so you can set up a solo 401k? Do you set up a solo 401k for each rental? Do you put all the rentals under one LLC?

It's fairly early days for me in the multiple property market so I could really use some advice on this one. I am confident that the super savvy investors here have already run into this. :)

Thanks much for reading!

M

[Brian Eastman]

@Mimi H. 

Rental income is not useful for sponsoring a Solo 401k.  This is passive investment earnings, not earned income taxed at your regular rate.  You are much better off leaving the rental income as-is than trying to re-configure your business to claim that income at a higher tax rate so that you can then set it aside into your retirement plan.