Tax Advantages for Retirement

Written By John Bowens on April 9, 2024

If you're like most hard-working Americans, you want to keep more of your money and pay as little in taxes as possible. The key is having investment accounts that provide tax advantages - like an IRA or 401(k). Of course, you're probably already familiar with these accounts if you're reading this. But what you may not know is that you can hold a lot more than just stocks, bonds, and mutual funds in a self-directed IRA.

With a truly self-directed account at a company like Equity Trust, you can invest in all sorts of alternative assets like real estate, precious metals, tax liens, private equity deals and more. This gives you a lot more options to build wealth outside of Wall Street... options that can produce income, provide a hedge against inflation, and minimize your taxes!

The Power of Tax-Advantaged Accounts

For most investors, the best way to minimize taxes is by maxing out your contributions to accounts like a 401(k), IRA, and self-directed IRA. When you put money into these types of qualified retirement plans, it goes in tax-deferred and is allowed to compound and grow tax-free until retirement age.

For example, in a traditional IRA your contributions are tax-deductible, meaning they lower your taxable income for that year. Then everything inside the account – interest, dividends, rents, capital gains, etc. -- grows without being taxed until withdrawal (typically in retirement when you're in a lower tax bracket). Click below to download your FREE IRA GUIDE!👇

With a Roth IRA, you pay taxes up front on the contributions, but then everything inside accrues 100% tax-free growth and income, with no taxes due upon withdrawal (as long as you follow the rules). What really turbocharged the power of a Roth is using it to hold assets like real estate, private equity, precious metals and other alternative investments that appreciate dramatically over long periods of time.

Imagine buying a rental property for $100,000 inside your Roth IRA. If that property goes up in value to $500,000 over 20 years, and you collect rent and income, it ALL compounds 100% tax-free. This is compared to paying taxes every year if you held the rental property in a regular taxable account.

This is just one way IRAs can be a tax-advantaged wealth-building machine for savvy investors who know how to use them. With income taxes potentially rising in the future, the value of having accounts that provide tax deferral and completely tax-free compounding become even more powerful!

How To Maximize Tax Advantages With A Truly Self-Directed IRA

The biggest mistake investors make is thinking their IRA can only hold stocks, bonds, and mutual funds picked from the limited options provided by their bank, brokerage firm, or employer plan. This simply is not true.

By opening a truly self-directed IRA with a custodian like Equity Trust, you have virtually unlimited options. You're no longer restricted to just Wall Street assets either. Instead, you can invest in things like:

  • Rental, commercial, and international real estate

  • Real estate notes and tax liens

  • Precious metals & cryptocurrencies

  • Private equity & small business opportunities

  • Energy investments like oil & gas, renewables

  • Farmland, timber, and natural resources

  • And much more!

Take Control of Your Wealth With Equity Trust

With the winds of inflation and economic uncertainty swirling, it's more important than ever to keep as much of your hard-earned money as possible.That's why it makes so much sense to maximize the use of self-directed IRAs to invest in alternative assets while enjoying big tax advantages.

If you haven't explored this type of account yet, it's definitely worth looking into. With 50 years in the financial services industry, Equity Trust has helped hundreds of thousands of investors just like you save millions in taxes through alternative investing. They make it easy to open a new account or roll over/transfer existing retirement assets in just a few minutes.

The only question now is: Why wouldn't you want to pay less in taxes and have your wealth compounding faster in a tax-advantaged account? With a self-directed account through Equity Trust, you have the world of alternative investing at your fingertips while enjoying big tax savings!

Self-Directed IRA Case Studies

Learn How to Save Taxes with Your Retirement Account

Fill out the info below to download your FREE Self-Directed IRA Guide.

Tax Advantages for Retirement

Written By John Bowens on April 9, 2024

If you're like most hard-working Americans, you want to keep more of your money and pay as little in taxes as possible. The key is having investment accounts that provide tax advantages - like an IRA or 401(k). Of course, you're probably already familiar with these accounts if you're reading this. But what you may not know is that you can hold a lot more than just stocks, bonds, and mutual funds in a self-directed IRA.

With a truly self-directed account at a company like Equity Trust, you can invest in all sorts of alternative assets like real estate, precious metals, tax liens, private equity deals and more. This gives you a lot more options to build wealth outside of Wall Street... options that can produce income, provide a hedge against inflation, and minimize your taxes!

The Power of Tax-Advantaged Accounts

For most investors, the best way to minimize taxes is by maxing out your contributions to accounts like a 401(k), IRA, and self-directed IRA. When you put money into these types of qualified retirement plans, it goes in tax-deferred and is allowed to compound and grow tax-free until retirement age.

For example, in a traditional IRA your contributions are tax-deductible, meaning they lower your taxable income for that year. Then everything inside the account – interest, dividends, rents, capital gains, etc. -- grows without being taxed until withdrawal (typically in retirement when you're in a lower tax bracket). Click below to download your FREE IRA GUIDE!👇

With a Roth IRA, you pay taxes up front on the contributions, but then everything inside accrues 100% tax-free growth and income, with no taxes due upon withdrawal (as long as you follow the rules). What really turbocharged the power of a Roth is using it to hold assets like real estate, private equity, precious metals and other alternative investments that appreciate dramatically over long periods of time.

Imagine buying a rental property for $100,000 inside your Roth IRA. If that property goes up in value to $500,000 over 20 years, and you collect rent and income, it ALL compounds 100% tax-free. This is compared to paying taxes every year if you held the rental property in a regular taxable account.

This is just one way IRAs can be a tax-advantaged wealth-building machine for savvy investors who know how to use them. With income taxes potentially rising in the future, the value of having accounts that provide tax deferral and completely tax-free compounding become even more powerful!

How To Maximize Tax Advantages With A Truly Self-Directed IRA

The biggest mistake investors make is thinking their IRA can only hold stocks, bonds, and mutual funds picked from the limited options provided by their bank, brokerage firm, or employer plan. This simply is not true.

By opening a truly self-directed IRA with a custodian like Equity Trust, you have virtually unlimited options. You're no longer restricted to just Wall Street assets either. Instead, you can invest in things like:

  • Rental, commercial, and international real estate

  • Real estate notes and tax liens

  • Precious metals & cryptocurrencies

  • Private equity & small business opportunities

  • Energy investments like oil & gas, renewables

  • Farmland, timber, and natural resources

  • And much more!

Take Control of Your Wealth With Equity Trust

With the winds of inflation and economic uncertainty swirling, it's more important than ever to keep as much of your hard-earned money as possible.That's why it makes so much sense to maximize the use of self-directed IRAs to invest in alternative assets while enjoying big tax advantages.

If you haven't explored this type of account yet, it's definitely worth looking into. With 50 years in the financial services industry, Equity Trust has helped hundreds of thousands of investors just like you save millions in taxes through alternative investing. They make it easy to open a new account or roll over/transfer existing retirement assets in just a few minutes.

The only question now is: Why wouldn't you want to pay less in taxes and have your wealth compounding faster in a tax-advantaged account? With a self-directed account through Equity Trust, you have the world of alternative investing at your fingertips while enjoying big tax savings!

Self-Directed IRA Case Studies

Learn How to Save Taxes with Your Retirement Account

Fill out the info below to download your FREE Self-Directed IRA Guide.

Beginners Guide To Self-Directed IRA’s

You probably know all about the most popular retirement savings accounts: a 401(k) offered by your employer, and IRAs (either traditional or Roth) that you and possibly your employer may contribute to. IRAs can at times have certain tax advantages over 401(k)s, and often give you greater control over your investments—many employee-sponsored plans let Uncle Sam and often unscrupulous financial planners have a big say in where your money goes.

Even traditional and Roth IRAs place substantial limits on how you can invest in your future; though they can be a better option than many other retirement investment vehicles, they don't always allow you the freedom you deserve.

Anyone who truly wants to take control of their retirement ought to consider a self-directed IRA. They've been around for decades, but few people know about them—the freedom of investment options they offer doesn't give commission-based retirement planners much of an incentive to educate clients about this product.

You can take an in-depth look at self-directed IRAs here, or keep reading for a basic overview and to see if a self-directed IRA might be right for you.

What Is A Self-Directed IRA?

A self-directed IRA allows you to make your own investment decisions. This is the retirement vehicle choice that will interest you if:

  • You like remaining in the driver’s seat when it comes to how to invest your funds

  • You see the financial benefit of investing in other types of commodities beyond stocks and bonds

  • You’re not afraid of diversifying your financial risk

If you’re not afraid of rolling up your sleeves to take a more proactive stance over your retirement funds, and you have an open mind about the types of investments that are at your disposal to invest in, then perhaps a self-directed investment fund is right for you. 

How Does Self-Directed IRA Management Differ From Traditional IRA Management?

The most obvious question is how a self-directed IRA (SDIRA) management differs from traditional IRA management. The fact is, you can invest in the same financial products within a SDIRA that you can with the traditional IRA. And, both types of retirement accounts are held at a financial institution. 

However, the traditional account is managed by a financial officer, and the confines of the traditional IRA only allow you to invest in financial products such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. If you’re an investor who doesn’t have much confidence in any of these products, or if you’d simply like to explore investing in other type of financial products, then investing in a traditional IRA could leave you feeling confined.

On the other hand, the type of products at your disposal to invest in within a SDIRA create a plethora of retirement income streams for you to take advantage of. 

What Are The Specific Advantages Of Self-Directed IRA Management?

There are all sorts of financial possibilities and investments that become available to you once you decide to create a SDIRA fund. Common investment vehicles include:

  • Limited Partnerships

  • Tangible Asset Deeds

  • Tax Lien Certificates

  • Accounts Receivable Financing

  • Building Bonds

  • Commercial Paper

  • Contracts of Sale

  • Crowdfunding

  • Equipment Leasing

  • Factoring

  • Foreign Sales Corporation Stock

  • Improved or Unimproved Land (Leveraged or Un-Leveraged)

  • Joint Ventures

...And more. 

And, the best part is, you can use your current industry education (or expertise) to select the best types of investments you’re interested in. You don’t have to blindly invest in a financial product without understanding its industry or its probability factor to generate revenue. 

You won’t be confined into investing in finanBullet listcial products you don’t believe in, or you feel won’t offer you the best returns on your investments. Instead, you’ll gain far more control over your investment portfolio within a SDIRA as you see fit.

Are Self-Directed IRA Vehicles Worth Considering?

A SDIRA is definitely worth considering if you’re the type of new or experienced investor who keeps their finger on the pulse of news in various industries. If you’re this type of investor, then you’ve done your homework, and you’re probably eager to take advantage of revenue generation in all sorts of exciting new industries that were previously non-existent, even as recently as 10 years ago.

Or, perhaps you’re the type of investor who enjoys the idea of investing in solid, long-standing institutions such as real estate, livestock, or precious metals. Perhaps these are the types of investment vehicles that were previously out of your reach but now they’re an investment option that you’d like to take advantage of.

Not only will a SDIRA allow you to finally take advantage of revenue generation in the products you’ve kept your eye on, but a SDIRA will also allow you to decide how aggressively or conservatively you’ll invest and control your retirement funds.

Special Considerations For Self-Directed IRAs

While there are plenty of advantages you could realize by investing in a SDIRA, there are special considerations you’ll need to keep in mind.

For example, the IRS forbids investments in products such as works of art, certain types of metals, life insurance products, antiques, or alcoholic beverages. There are also IRS statutes that forbid you from making harmful financial decisions that involve self-dealing or conflicts of interests. For more information, talk to the SD-IRA experts at Equity University.

If you think you're better at handling your money and planning for your retirement than the government or a financial advisor, then a self-directed IRA could be an important part of your portfolio. SD-IRAs give you the freedom and control to plan for retirement your way, and give you the most opportunities to create your own fantastic returns without limiting the specific retirement instruments you select.

Don't restrict your retirement potential. Visit Equity University today and get started on your own self-directed path to retirement enlightenment.

By submitting this web form, I expressly authorize Equity Trust to send me emails and text messages about its products and services using automated technology to the email address/phone number provided on the form above. This consent is not required to obtain our produFull Widthcts and services. Contact us at 888-825-1531 if you prefer not to use this form to receive this offer. You can unsubscribe at any time. Message and data rates may apply. View Terms & Privacy.

Equity Trust Company is a directed custodian and does not provide tax, legal, or investment advice. Any information communicated by Equity Trust Company is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as tax, legal, or investment advice. Whenever making an investment decision, please consult with your tax attorney or financial professional.
*Assets under custody as of 1/1/2024.


Founded in 1974 | Self-Directed IRA Custodian since 1983. The predecessor business to Equity Trust Company was established in 1974 and the IRS approved as a custodian in 1983.

1 Equity Way, Westlake, OH 44145 | ©2024 Equity Trust. All rights reserved.