Understanding Custodians

Flexibility

The law allows all custodians (the firms picked to oversee IRA products) to accept the same products for the IRA. After that, each administrator makes its own choice on which of those products it will actually work with.

Each administrator has its own set of rules. Some allow no real estate. Some allow only land. Some allow land, improved properties, etc. Almost all will allow the traditional investments of annuities, CDs/TDs and mutual funds.

The custodian may or may not be able to hold title to real estate in the state in which you want your IRA to hold title to property. Typically, each has a list of the states in which it will do business. You need to know beforehand.

If the IRA is going to have multiple assets (real estate, trust deeds, etc.), will the administrator allow all of those assets? Alternatively, you may use multiple custodians.

When you have a unique transaction, is the administrator flexible enough to consider it? While not a sure thing, this can be discussed ahead of time.

Durability

Will the administrator be in business as long as the IRA is? Not all custodians are able to stay in business over the long run. Several companies have gone out of business over the years.

• Some for poor business practice.
• Some because of fraud.
• Some because of takeovers or buy-outs.

Ability

How able is the staff that backs up the administrator? This is critical because the nature of investing in real estate requires people with knowledge of the industry.

Does the administrator have an in-house attorney? Is the administrator able to answer legal questions quickly? Does it have the expertise it takes to understand the law on IRAs?

What is the firm’s turn-around time? Real estate opportunities are time sensitive. The good deals in real estate go fast.

How often does the administrator do your type of transaction and does it have back-up staff? What happens when the account representative you use goes on vacation?

Cost

What type of charges does the administrator have? Charges vary tremendously depending on the type of fee.

Asset-based fees: A percentage based on the amount of the IRA asset. Usually around 00.5% to 01.00% of the first $500,000

Transaction-based fees: A fee for each transaction. In some instances, this can mean a fee every time the administrator collects a note payment.

Hybrid fees: A combination of asset-based and transaction-based fees.

$100,000 IRA accounts may cost as little $500 or as much as $1,500 yearly. We have the ability to determine which are the most cost effective.

Summary

Flexibility, durability, ability and cost are important factors to consider when choosing an administrator. Too often, because of the frustration of trying to find an administrator, accountholders settle for the first company they find. That administrator, , for one of the above stated reasons, may not be the right one. Accountholders can later change their custodians to obtain the benefits needed, but at a price. Companies typically charge a fee starting at 1% of the transferred amount to move accountholders to another administrator. Choose right the first time and save time and money.

IRA Resource Associates, Inc.’s stated goal

We are the investment real estate brokerage for self-directed plans in the Pacific Northwest. We provide complete real estate investment acquisition and sales service for self-directed retirement plans. We also provide for-a-fee advice for those who have the desire to take on the responsibility of finding and acquiring/selling investment real estate products without our expert management. If your plan is self-directed (IRAs, Keoghs, SEPs) we can help.

When you are a Client of IRA Resource Associates, Inc.

We take on the responsibility of finding real estate products suitable for your IRA. We also provide professional national sales and marketing services in the event you wish to sell your investment real estate-related product. We provide the outlets and opportunities that make investing and selling investment real estate products within an IRA a relatively painless procedure.

We first obtain from you the answers to questions necessary to determine which IRA administrator will be right for you. This list of questions is an exclusive tool used by IRA Resource Associates, Inc. based on years of questions and answers with custodians and accountholders.

We will assist you in finding the appropriate administrator/custodian/trustee for your specific needs based on your need for flexibility and their durability, ability and cost factors. More than one option is provided and you will be able to choose from the best.

We will review all paperwork to and from the chosen administrator for correctness so that the paperwork is error free and complies with legal guidelines. This can save hundreds of dollars in review fees. This saves time as well as the $100 custodians charge for each multiple review.

Through our unique network of marketing meetings, we will provide you with the latest available investments from which to choose. These marketing sessions are both of a national and regional scope. We meet with hundreds of real estate brokers at these meetings to review their investments for our clients.