Can an IRA Go Into an LLC?
The IRS has stringent rules regarding who an IRA can transact with, so its owner should be mindful of these restrictions and avoid prohibited transactions. An IRA may invest in an LLC as long as its ownership does not involve disqualified parties such as its holder and any disqualified individuals.
Use of an IRA LLC for real estate purchases is one strategy used by many investors, as this enables them to maintain checkbook control of their IRA funds. Furthermore, an IRA can invest in nontraditional assets like tax liens, private businesses, and precious metals.
IRAs are tax-advantaged
An IRA LLC can be an excellent way to invest in non-traditional investments. This investment structure gives IRA owners checkbook control while providing limited liability protection. Furthermore, an IRA LLC makes complex asset purchases such as real estate easier. Unfortunately, setting up such an investment structure may prove challenging; custodians require original documents in order to review transactions quickly enough – potentially delaying settlement dates considerably.
Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) accounts provide freelancers and small business owners with an ideal retirement savings solution, with potential tax benefits and much higher contributions limits than regular IRAs.
SEP IRAs are an excellent option for self-employed individuals due to their flexibility and contribution limits that reach $61,000 by 2022. Furthermore, SEP IRAs make sense for businesses with under 50 employees as a supplement for other retirement accounts.
IRAs are disregarded entities
An LLC that holds real estate investments should handle property expenses for an IRA investment and manage and maintain properties on behalf of their owner, offering limited liability protection and greater privacy for their IRA holder.
An IRA/LLC can also help facilitate joint ventures. For instance, if you wish to purchase a multifamily apartment complex, an IRA LLC could serve as the ideal governing structure and set of rules to determine how each shareholder operates the company.
By qualifying as a disregarded entity, an LLC can save on state taxes by eliminating the need to file state income tax returns as well as expensive and time-consuming annual audits of it. Furthermore, such an arrangement protects an IRA against transactions with disqualified parties who could compromise it’s security.
IRAs are disqualified entities
When an IRA invests in an LLC, the IRS generally treats it as though it never existed for tax purposes – its income and expenses pass directly through to its sole member (in this case the IRA), known as disregarded entity treatment. However, certain transactions that the IRS prohibits involve disqualified parties such as relatives of an IRA owner as disqualified persons – this type of arrangement involves prohibited transactions; one example includes selling, exchanging or leasing property between retirement plans and disqualified people even at fair market value.
To prevent prohibited transactions, it is important to keep your IRA funds separate from any personal finances. You can do this by sending it directly to an LLC bank account instead of using it for personal purchases or depositing checks into it directly.
IRAs are prohibited entities
Self-directed IRA LLC owners can use their self-directed IRA LLCs to invest in various forms of real estate, such as residential, commercial and raw land that ranges from single family homes to multi-family dwellings, building lots, vacation property contracts for sale or lease options, etc. However, it’s essential to avoid doing business with disqualified persons as engaging in an illegal transaction could lead to dissolving of your account along with penalties and fees being assessed by the IRS.
Note that using or depositing funds from outside your IRA LLC for personal purposes would constitute prohibited transactions under Internal Revenue Code Section 4975.
Establishing a checkbook control IRA is one effective way of avoiding prohibited transactions, enabling an IRA to directly manage its investments without needing to communicate with its custodian. Keep in mind that special tax implications may arise with this strategy so it is advisable to consult your tax professional first before taking this course of action.
Comments are closed here.