Self-directed individual
retirement accounts represent an estimated $171 billion of the overall IRA
market, and one of the most popular assets for these accounts is real estate.
Single-family residential property is the most frequent target of these real
estate-focused IRA investors because there is widespread understanding of that
market. But investors who are seeking value and potentially higher returns are
increasingly interested in the commercial real estate market.
As a real estate
professional, you can utilize your expertise and knowledge to grow your own
IRA, SEP IRA, or Individual 401(k). However, an even more substantial
opportunity to make money may be selling commercial real estate to your
clients’ IRAs or helping developer clients coordinate IRA funding sources for
purchases. IRA transactions are not complicated, but they are often unfamiliar
to your clients. And the fact that real estate professionals derive a
commission from sales involving an IRA just the same as they would from a
non-IRA transactions means that working with this type of investor can be
lucrative.
Potential clients who are
interested in SDIRAs are likely to ask the following seven questions to help
build their own knowledge and assess how prepared you are to help them with
this type of real estate transaction.
How does IRA investing in
commercial real estate differ from regular real estate investing?
The biggest difference
between a “regular” real estate purchase and one done by an IRA is how taxes
come into play. Because IRAs are tax-advantaged accounts, the Internal Revenue
Service wants to track the money that is contributed, invested, and, ultimately,
distributed. It does this by making IRAs custodial accounts, meaning that an
authorized provider is the signer for the account and is keeping the books for
that account.
Thus, an IRA is its own
legal and financial entity, separate from an investor’s personal finances. The
IRA has its own titling on legal documents associated with its investments, and
all paperwork must be executed in conjunction with the IRA provider. As long as
the account holder stays in concert with its provider, IRA purchases and sales
can occur within the same time frame as transactions outside of IRAs.
How does an IRA make money
in commercial real estate?
An IRA makes money the
same way regular real estate investments make money. The following are the most
common SDIRA approaches.
Rental returns. The IRA
holder determines the terms of lease agreements and can vary them based on
market conditions and investment goals. And the IRA holder decides what to do
with the incoming cash: buy another asset, take a distribution, make improvements
to the existing asset, or any combination.
Appreciation. Strategies
such as land speculation and buying and selling options are allowed by the IRS.
One of the advantages of investing within an IRA is that financial gains
associated with the sale of real estate are still under the umbrella of the
account, and as such, are tax deferred. Those proceeds can be used, in full, to
turn around and buy another asset, real estate or not. Successful investments
in land or commercial property can appreciate in value while concurrently
generating rental revenue for the IRA. Of course, whatever return is generated
by an asset goes back to the IRA and any expense that is incurred by the IRA’s
asset must be paid by IRA funds.
Lender. IRA funds can be
disbursed to an individual or entity and repaid according to the terms of that
note. These loans may be secured by collateral or not, and the terms are
negotiated by the IRA holder and the borrower. The IRS only mandates that the
loan be a real economic transaction (no sweetheart deals), and that a
nondisqualified person/entity cannot be the borrower. Bridge loans,
construction loans, mortgage loans, and more are allowable.
What if an IRA doesn’t
have the full purchase price of a commercial real estate property?
Many investors don’t have
the funds in their IRAs to purchase a real estate property outright. However,
through partnerships, joining an entity, debt financing, and more, IRA holders
still have several options to own a portion of their desired asset.
Partnering an IRA with
another source of funds — by being a tenant in common or owning a percentage of
an entity such as an LLC — is a common way to structure an investment. IRAs may
partner with anybody, including individual investors, LLC and C-corporation
entities, and other IRAs or retirement plans — even disqualified
persons/entities are eligible to partner with an IRA. An IRA may also take out
a loan to increase its purchasing power.
Tenants-in-Common. A TIC
agreement is typically set up as side-by-side, undivided percentage ownership:
if IRA X owns 65 percent of a commercial property and IRA Y owns 35 percent,
all revenue, payments, and distributions will be split according to that
percentage.
Investors should think
ahead about the logistics involved in this arrangement. For example, everything
from replacing dripping pipes to building a new wing will be funded according
to that percentage. TICs that include a disqualified person (account holder,
spouse, direct ascendant, descendant or their spouse, certain fiduciaries, or
entity owned by a disqualified person) as one of the investors are allowed but
require planning and care in execution. Rules that apply to IRAs investing with
disqualified persons include dividing revenue and payment of bills, maintenance
arrangements, and more. A key rule that applies to this arrangement is that
side-by-side ownership with the established percentage of ownership must remain
unchanged throughout the life of the investment.
Purchase through an
entity. Purchasing commercial real estate by pooling funds from multiple
investors into an entity is another popular method for IRAs to invest in larger
projects. In this strategy, the IRA’s asset is its ownership in the entity
that, in turn, owns the property. In this scenario, all rules that would apply
to an IRA buying the property would also apply to the entity’s ownership.
Debt-financed purchase.
Individual IRAs (and in some cases partnerships and entities) can often arrange
for a nonrecourse loan. Because the loan is not guaranteed by the IRA holder,
the terms reflect the additional risk to the lender and usually require a
larger down payment; details vary according to the lender. Other loan
combinations are also possible.
Must I create an LLC or
entity to own commercial real estate in an SDIRA?
No. An IRA can use an LLC
or entity, but it is not required. An IRA can have direct ownership in a
commercial real estate asset.
LLCs are commonly used for
real estate investments outside of an IRA to achieve a level of liability
protection. However, because an IRA is its own legal entity, separate from the
IRA holder, it does provide separation from the IRA holder’s personal finances
and may alleviate the need to have an LLC in the arrangement.
In addition, mass
marketing by providers of IRA-owned entities has led to the myth that LLCs or
entities are required for this kind of investing — or at the very least,
provide an easier foundation for investing in real estate properties. Some
promote this strategy because it ostensibly allows money to be available
quicker through checkbook control. However, a few SDIRA providers such as New
Direction IRA have developed technology that allows funds to be disbursed for
real estate expenses quickly and for free, minimizing the costs and risks that
checkbook control often includes. The decision on the structure of the
investment is a matter of individual choice and risk tolerance.
Are there geographical
limits on where an IRA can invest in commercial real estate?
An IRA can invest in
commercial real estate anywhere in the world as long as the appropriate
documentation of the asset can be acquired. Allowable structures may vary —
IRA, partnership, entity, — depending on the country, and there may be foreign
taxes and other expenses associated with real estate in a particular country.
Can an IRA buy and develop
raw land?
SDIRAs can acquire raw
land and participate in its development. The IRA holder can choose contractors,
suppliers, tenants, and more according to their individual development and
investment plans. However, the IRA holder (and any company that they own or
control) will not be able to participate in the work itself.
If the IRA is one of many
owners, and there are no disqualified persons/entities involved, the financing
arrangements for development of a property are varied and relatively flexible.
If disqualified persons/entities are involved in the land and development
ownership structure, the possibilities may be more rigid. For instance, if IRA
X owns 40 percent of the land and development and disqualified person Y owns 60
percent, all disbursements for purchase, improvements, maintenance, and all
income generated by the project need to be split 40/60 throughout the life of
the project. Of course, the IRA would always be able to sell its share to a
non-disqualified person/entity at any point.
How do I distribute IRA
funds?
Distribution of IRA assets
can take place in two forms: cash or in-kind. In order to receive cash
distributions, the IRA holder would either take distributions of the rental
income or they would sell some, or all, of the asset. Once those proceeds are
received by the IRA, the account holder can take distributions as he or she
wishes.
With an in-kind
distribution, the ownership changes from the IRA to the IRA holder’s personal
finances. This is achieved by retitling the property. Similar to a cash
distribution, the IRA holder can distribute their entire ownership interest or
just part of it. The taxable amount for IRAs (other than Roth) is the value of
the ownership distributed. Once a complete in-kind distribution has taken
place, the rental returns of that investment become part of the IRA holder’s
personal finances, and IRS prohibitions related to disqualified persons and the
property cease.
Expertise in commercial
real estate is a powerful tool that can be utilized in combination with the tax
advantages of an IRA. One of the great benefits of a SDIRA is that the account
holder can take their knowledge of how to make money outside their IRA and use
it to make money inside their IRA.
Bill Humphrey and
Catherine Wynne are the principals of New Direction IRA, which provides
investor education, custodial, and recordkeeping services for self-directed
plans. Contact them at newdirectionira.com.
What If…
“The IRS doesn’t really
enforce the rules about buying properties from family members, right? I read
that you can get around that by….”
Because the IRS can and
does enforce its rules, it is important to adhere to the guidelines about
prohibited transactions, which include the buying or selling of properties
to/from disqualified persons and even to/from your own non-IRA real estate
holdings. This is a particularly important rule since, outside of IRAs, real
estate transactions between relatives and friends are common. The IRS considers
an arrangement to circumvent a prohibited transaction a violation of the rules.
This means that a disqualified person cannot sell a property to a
non-disqualified person so that the IRA can buy it from that non-disqualified
person. The consequences of a discovered prohibited transaction can be severe,
including immediate distribution (and the tax consequence of that) at the time
of the transgression, interest, and penalties.
“Can I get a commission if
it is my personal IRA buying the real estate?”
Unfortunately, no. The IRS
prohibits disqualified persons from receiving compensation from the IRA.
However, even though you cannot be directly compensated with a commission, you
are still the decision maker for the IRA and you can benefit from not having to
pay the real estate commission that would ordinarily go to the real estate
professional involved in a transaction. By negotiating a price reduction on the
property to reflect the cost savings to both the buyer and the seller of not
having to pay a traditional commission, you can instantly increase the equity
in your newly acquired property. It may not be a commission in your pocket, but
it’s the same amount of money in a tax-deferred vehicle with all the advantages
that come with an asset in an IRA.
“Can I still take
depreciation if my IRA is the real estate owner?”
You can’t do that through
your personal taxes since the IRA is the owner of the property. But there are
significant tax advantages for you in other ways because the real estate is
being held in a tax-advantaged vehicle: Any profits derived from a real estate
investment in an IRA are tax deferred, plus in most cases the IRA is set up in
a way that exempts it from paying income taxes. That is a double tax savings
that comes from doing this investing via an IRA. In fact, IRA profits do not
even need to be reported your personal taxes.
“LLC or no LLC?”
This decision may be
clarified by talking to your lawyer. Even if an IRA’s only asset is that real
estate property, the IRA may or may not satisfy the IRA holder’s risk
tolerance. And, of course, not all LLCs are created equally when it comes to
liability protection. Strategies to mitigate risk certainly include liability
insurance purchased by the IRA for its asset(s) as well as having the IRA own
an LLC which owns the property. Consult with your legal adviser before
proceeding.