IRA Custodians
An IRA is an IRA, Whether Self-Directed or Conventional
All IRA accounts are required by law to be held by a custodian. Safeguard Advisors works with several IRA custodians in forming the Checkbook IRA structure.
The role of the custodian is to hold and report on the IRA. The administration and reporting of the account is the same as any other IRA, and self-directed IRA custodians are regulated in the same fashion as more conventional firms. All aspects of the IRA such as tax treatment, timelines, contribution limits, and beneficiary designations apply based on the tax code. What makes Self-directed IRA custodians different is the necessary staff training and paperwork to document the investment of an IRA into non-traditional assets – thus providing broader investment choices.
With the Safeguard Advisors Checkbook IRA program, the custodian is documenting the IRA’s investment into the special purpose LLC or Trust that we will create on your behalf. Once the IRA-owned entity is setup and funded, the custodian is purely in a back-end administrative role; holding the account and performing annual reporting requirements. You will also utilize the custodian in the future for the processing of any IRA-layer transactions to add or remove capital from the structure such as IRA contributions, distributions to you, or plan-to-plan transfers and rollovers.
Secure Funding of your Checkbook IRA
During the establishment of your plan, our team at Safeguard Advisors will assist with the establishment and funding of your self-directed IRA account with a designated custodian.
Funds will be added to the new IRA account at your direction, via new contribution, transfer from another IRA, or rollover from a qualified employer plan such as a 401(k), pension, etc.
Funds will be received by the custodian and held in a FDIC depository account insured up to $250,000.
We will then assist you with directing the IRA account to be invested into the LLC/Trust entity we have created, and funds will be issued to the entity checking account. Funds are usually only held by the IRA custodian for a handful of days as this processing takes place. Once the IRA has been invested into the LLC/Trust entity, the funds are entirely in your control within the bank account, and will continue to be FDIC insured. The custodian is then simply holding the paperwork to reflect the IRA account’s ownership of the LLC/Trust.
Custodians We Work With
Safeguard Advisors works primarily with Solera National Bank as IRA custodian. As a nationally chartered bank, Solera has the distinct advantage of being able to act as registered IRA custodian and hold the LLC/Trust checking account. This unified service simplifies and speeds up plan setup and reduces your overall plan administration costs. Solera has a dedicated team focused on self-directed retirement plan clients, and offers responsive and friendly support.
Safeguard Advisors has relationships with a handful of other self-directed custodians that actively support the checkbook IRA model, including IRA Resources Trust, Kingdom Trust Co., and Forge Trust Co.
Please contact your Safeguard consultant if you would like diligence information about a custodial firm or have questions about the IRA custodial layer of services associated with the Checkbook IRA platform.
Summary
Safeguard is facilitating the set up of a Self-Directed IRA plan on your behalf and never has access or control of your retirement funds. You, and you alone, through authorizing signatures, maintain complete control of your funds throughout a process that is deemed a non-taxable plan-to-plan transfer or rollover.
