See the following for more on this. https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/2017-ira-dedu...The above chart is for 2017 because the IRS has not yet published the 2018 chart. 

Because I'm in Houston which is like 45 minutes away I've had to hire a management company to handle it for me.When I retire next year and if I get a second unit, I may start managing it myself.

We want to make enough to be free to move back and forth between the two countries and eventually retire and live off of the passive income.I found the BP podcast about 10 days ago and I think I have listened to most of them.

Great Point William,It's actually only 2% of the $24.2 Trillion of retirement assets in the US that are "self directed" however, that does include traditional investment accounts that are self directed such as Charles Schwab, Merrill Edge, TD Ameritrade, etc.

We had planned to retire in 2006 but because of the market crash we couldn't retire as planned, and ended up selling our houses for a song and a dance, a pretty sad fair of events.  

Cashed out a retirement account (paid the penalty) for downpayment on duplex - better return nowPrivate Money- This is my next deal- friend is inventor of Rollerblades and I am meeting this summer with his good friend who is a big time RE developer in NYC.

The concept of a self directed IRA is about being able to diversify that tax sheltered retirement savings into an asset class that you know, and to potentially grow that capital more effectively in real estate, notes, etc.  

However, now that you know about self-directed IRAs you should continue to learn about them as they are a great tool to boost retirement savings.Let me know if I can be of any further assistance.Jaime

Great managers can be hard to find and you never know if they will be offered a job they can't refuse, retire, or relocate.  

I'm looking to buy properties with an ARV of approx $100k.Other info that might help: My FICO is excellent, $30k total to put in the deal, $50k in retirement, $60k in equity between primary residence and one rental