Retirement Home in a Self Directed IRA?

It never fails.  Cold winters up North bring cause lots of clients to think about retirement in the sun.  They come to our doors in search of ways to use their retirement accounts to purchase resort property in the warm areas of the globe.  Maui, Florida, Phoenix, even British Honduras are all the stuff of dreams when thinking about retiring somewhere winter never visits. 

There are many clients that want to use their IRA/401(k) accounts for purchasing the “dream retirement home”.  Is this possible?  It certainly is, within certain boundaries.   What does the IRS code say about buying retirement property in your IRA?  The answer is nothing.  The IRS does not endorse nor recommend any investment to be purchased by your IRA.  The rules prohibit only two classes of investment:  Life insurance and collectibles.  The code also requires that the money be used for investment.  The other rules governing investments deal with who you deal with and how the investment is used.   For a client purchasing a property for potential future retirement, we always point out the following:

• When you take the property out of your plan or “distribute” it for your personal use, you will be taxed on the fair market value of the property
• You must be over 59 ½ years of age or you will pay a 10% penalty as well as the taxes due.
• No personal use is allowed by you or by any disqualified person* while it is in your IRA
• All expenses of the purchase and maintenance must be paid entirely by your IRA while it is in the IRA
• You may rent it out but all monies must go back to the IRA
• You must have a plan for the ultimate distribution of the property from your IRA should you wish to use it upon retirement

Are you still  interested at this point?  The questions are “how to buy it in the IRA” and “what to do when you retire and want to use it” should be answered before plunging into the “retirement home purchase” scenario.  The services of a qualified tax professional may be necessary in order to determine what the tax burden will be upon retirement as there needs to be some strategy for paying taxes on the property distributed from your IRA.  The other important part of this scenario is that you need a self directed IRA with an administrator that is comfortable with real estate purchases.

There are two major ways to approach this problem, although there may be some variations.  Consider the first case: 

Bob and Frannie by a condo in Maui.

On vacation in West Maui, Bob and Frannie decide to purchase a home on the hill above Kahana.  Formerly pineapple fields, the developer took advantage of the great ocean views and created a subdivision close to the West Maui airport and Lahina that retired people just love.  Although Bob and Frannie are only in their early 40’s, they did not want to miss out on the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something now, thinking they may not be able to afford it in the future. 

The cost of the property was $350,000.  Bob had an IRA that was approximately $250,000 resulting from his severance from a company layoff.  Frannie had about $100,000 in her IRA from the same company and the money was invested in a mutual fund after distribution from the company 401(k) plan.   Neither Bob nor Frannie had any great plans to make this money work harder but the idea of property in Maui was just too good to walk away from.  With the help of a self directed IRA administrator and a semi-knowledgeable real estate broker they managed to close on the property, title held in the name of the two self directed IRAs:  Bob’s IRA with a 71% undivided interest and Frannies’ IRA owning the remaining 29%.  The property was placed on a short term rental program in order that the IRA would have cash to pay for the real estate taxes, maintenance and HOA dues.  The property may not be used by Bob and Frannie while it is still in their plan.  

In the future the property may either be taken completely out of the IRAs as one large in-kind distribution or could be taken out incrementally over a period of years to lessen the immediate tax burden.  This strategy is a subject unto itself but it has been done.  A few parting thoughts on this:  1) a self directed Roth IRA would allow distribution after 59.5 years of age without tax consequences and 2) the IRS requires that when you turn 70.5 years of age you MUST take distributions from a traditional IRA.  

Can I Live in a Property Owned by my IRA?

You have seen this on the Internet and wonder – is it possible to use your IRA to purchase real estate that you can actually live in?  We get this question all the time at New Direction IRA.  The answer to that question is NOT a simple “yes.”  There are many ways to buy real estate with your IRA, here are two of them:

#1    Purchasing as personal property but paid for with your account
The advertising that states you can buy real estate with your IRA and live in it is not actually referring to the purchase of real estate within the IRA.  What it is talking about is a little known rule for IRAs whereby you can take distributions from your Plan before reaching the age of 59 ½ years without penalty.  This type of transaction is called a “72(t) distribution.”

In IRS Publication 590, included in the list of allowed distributions without penalty, is one in which you establish an agreement with the IRS for you to take equal payments from your IRA account.  The IRS states:

Annuity: You can receive distributions from your traditional IRA that are part of a series of substantially equal payments over your life (or your life expectancy), or over the lives (or the joint life expediencies)  of you and your beneficiary, without having to pay the 10% additional tax, even if you receive such distributions before you are age 59 ½  You must use an IRS-approved distribution method and you must take at least one distribution annually for this exception to apply.

The payments under this exception must generally continue until at least 5 years after the date of the first payment, or until you reach age 59 ½  whichever is later. If a change from an approved distribution method is made before the end of the appropriate period, any payments you receive before you reach age 59 ½ will be subject to the 10% additional tax.

Those who sell annuities market primarily the 72(t) distribution concept.   The IRA is actually investing in an annuity that guarantees a series of payments, which are taken as distributions.  This is how it is used for real estate purchases:

• Sellers of annuity contracts will have the individual transfer their IRA into an IRA account, which in turn will purchase an annuity contract that guarantees a fixed payment in order to meet the required payment agreed to with the IRS
• The individual will find a piece of real estate and buy it using a mortgage guaranteed by their personal assets, with payments from the annuity used to pay the mortgage on the property.

How is this different from real estate held in your IRA?  The substantial differences are:

1. You must have enough wealth to guarantee the mortgage on the property to begin with.  
2. This is not an IRA investment.  The real estate is outside of your IRA.  Sale of the property, unless it is your primary residence, will follow all the rules of any investment sale.
3. The IRA is being liquidated to make the distribution payment.  You may not put those funds back into the IRA after taking them out.
4. There is generally little flexibility on the rate of return or how you invest the IRA after the annuity is purchased and the 72(t) distribution election is made.
5. You will be taxed on the distributions at your current tax rate rather than at your tax rate at retirement.
6. You have a mortgage on your credit rating as well as the need to come up with a down payment.

#2   Purchasing real estate as an investment within your self-directed account
Using a “Self-Directed” custodian, you may, if you choose, buy and sell real estate within your IRA. The proceeds of each sale go back into your account, tax-free, to be used for the next purchase.  There is no time limit on how long real estate is held, nor is there any requirement for “like kind” purchases with the proceeds as there is in a Section 1031 Exchange.  Taxes occur when you take distributions from the IRA at age 59 ½ or later, at which time they are taxed at your income tax rate at that time.  With this type of investment, however, there is a requirement that this be an investment and that the IRA owner cannot use it personally while it is still in the IRA.

Which method or real estate purchase is right for you?
If your intent is to use your IRA now for the purchase of, most likely, a second home to use now, the 72(t) option could be for you.  If your attraction to real estate is for building wealth within a tax-deferred account by buying and selling for a profit and growing your IRA, then a 72(t) is probably not what you want.  The tax-deferred status of IRAs is specifically designed for the purpose of tax-free growth.  You lose this status when the real estate is purchased outside the IRA and funded with taxable distributions from an annuity.

Are there other options available?
Must you purchase an annuity contract in order to take a 72(t) distribution?  The answer is no.  It is possible to do a 72(t) distribution from any IRA, regardless of the assets held.  For ease of distribution, the investments in the IRA should have sufficient liquidity available to make the mandatory distributions.  You need only to be able, or to have an adviser able, to make the calculation of the required annual distribution amount.   It is a relatively simple calculation, and most tax advisers can advise you.  Your self-directed custodian can hold any investment of your choosing for the purposes of the 72(t) distribution.  Purchasing mortgages, income property, or any cash-producing asset can be used.  Consider that the purchase of an appreciating asset that also produces cash flow sufficient for your distributions may allow the account to grow for your future retirement needs while still funding the 72(t) distribution.   Making your investments inside a self-directed account allows you to keep maximum flexibility rather than locking you into the purchase of annuity contract..  As an example, consider the following for your IRA:

1. Purchase a condo for cash within your IRA for $150,000
2. Your IRA rents the condo for $800 per month, which nets $700 per month cash flow into the IRA.
3. You determine that the required monthly distribution for a 72(t) will involve taking $700 per month from your IRA account.
4. You use the $700 to make payments on your “second home” mortgage.
5. The condo appreciates at a rate of 5% per year, making your IRA worth $190,000 in five years even while paying out the required distributions.
6. Your IRA is going up in value because it contains real estate.
7. You have your second home to use now.

Conclusion
Choosing the right option is important when one of the choices is electing a 72(t) distribution which involves a commitment to the IRS to take mandatory distributions.  Seek input from your tax and financial advisers before embarking on investments either inside or outside of your IRA in order to quantify the tax consequences of the various options.  For information on self-directed IRAs and the IRS rules applicable to those types of investments contact your local self-directed IRA administrator.

Broker Builds Business Using Self-Directed IRA Accounts

“There are twice as many buyers out there!” exclaimed Realtor® Paul K in Denver Colorado. Paul, after hearing about how he could invest his own IRA in real estate, got to work putting together deals for his and his wife’s IRA.  “If I am to help my clients I will need to do this myself first” is Paul's belief.  After sponsoring a class by New Direction IRA for his investors in January, he feels that the idea is gaining momentum all over the Front Range where there is currently a housing shortage due to displaced former homeowners and low rental housing inventories.  He has a lot of clients who are interested in the “real estate IRA” concept and, because of his knowledge and experience in the process, have come to him when it’s time to make that IRA real estate investment.

It is a smart real estate broker who realizes, like Paul, that for every client that buys or lists a house there is likely a rollover 401k that can be self-directed into real estate and other non-traditional retirement investments.  Opportunities also exist in real estate offices for bridge loans and second deeds of trust for both the brokers and their clients to expedite real estate deals.

Many individuals are tired of their money taking a ride on the stock market roller-coaster and most of them would be interested in self-direction and the world of investment choices available through brokers like Paul and other knowledgeable professionals.  Traditionally most financial advisers have been rooted in securities either through restrictions with the companies they work for or through lack of knowledge about non-security investments.

The IRS states on the FAQ section of their website that “investment in real estate is not prohibited”.  There are rules, of course, such as the real estate must be for investment purposes only and that there be no personal use of the property.  For experienced real estate investors, this and other rules should not present a problem.  The key to investing an IRA in real estate or other non-traditional investments is working with a knowledgeable IRA administrator who provides assistance and education for that first self-directed investment.

We think Paul is on to something.  Dissatisfaction with stock market and the desire to own a tangible asset like real estate will create more clients for a real estate broker like Paul as well as satisfied IRA investors, whether it be on Front Range or anywhere in the country.

Managing Property Owned by your Self Directed IRA

When your IRA owns real estate, one of the questions that frequently comes up is “how do I manage the property”?  Good question.  Since the IRA owns the real estate, the IRA pays all the bills and takes in all the income of the property.  You, as the IRA holder can have no contact with the money, it all must run through the IRA account.  The administrator reacts to your authorization to pay bills but does not “manage” the property.  A tenant who fails to pay rent will not be a red flag to the custodian as they are not the manager.  So how do you handle this and other issues?

I want to manage it myself:  in this case the custodian pays all the bills and takes in the rent.  You pick the tenants and have tenants make the rent check payable to New Direction IRA, you receive the check and forward it to the custodian for deposit.  You make the decisions on what maintenance and improvements are necessary and hire someone to do the work.  Can you do these things yourself?  How much you can do is a gray area in the IRA code.  A discussion on this is probably more suitable in a longer article.  If you are the "hands on" type you may want to consider a new tool New Direction IRA has created called myDirection which allows you to both receive the IRA bills at your home and initiate payment on these expenses on line.  You can monitor expenses AND know immediately if rent payments are being made to cover the IRA expenses.  NOTE: The myDirection website requires a self directed account with New Direction IRA and a log in to be functional for your account.

I want to hire a Manager:  In this case the IRA hires the manager at your direction.  New Direction IRA signs the agreement after you have approved it.  The manager controls all the monies of the property and you cannot have personal access to the money.  A manager can do as much or as little as you direct and does not have to be licensed according to our or the IRS requirements but may not be a close family member according to the IRA requirements.  The manager is paid by the IRA and is required to furnish the custodian with income/expense reports on at least a quarterly basis accounting for the IRA monies. Keep in mind this manager will have 100% control of the monies generated by the property so choose wisely.  The manager must also sign an acknowledgement indicating that he/she understands that the IRA is the owner and that periodic financial reports must come to New Direction IRA in addition to any reports you receive.

One of the primary concerns of your self-directed IRA administrator is to keep your account tax-deferred (or tax-free if a Roth).  To this end, the monies of the IRA must be accounted for and you must not have access to or use the IRAs money.  You nor close family members may not use the property.  There are other rules which your real estate broker or custodian can help you with when your IRA buys real estate.   Real estate is the number one investment held in self-directed IRAs, maybe it’s the right one for yours’.