Read through these FAQ’s on retirement accounts to get a better idea including information on IRA comparisons and tax laws.

1. What is the difference between Traditional IRA retirement accounts and the Roth IRA retirement accounts?
Traditional IRA retirement accounts and a Roth IRA retirement accounts are great ways to save for retirement, but there are very different financial outcomes for these retirement accounts. A traditional IRA retirement account allows for contributions that may be deducted from your taxes. All the earnings are tax-deferred until you begin withdrawing funds from the retirement account at age 59 ½ (or mandatory 70 ½). At which point, all the distributions are taxed at your ordinary income rate. With a Roth IRA retirement account, the contributions are not tax deductible. Roth IRA retirement accounts are only available to individuals making $95,000 or married couples making a combined income of $150,000. When you reach retirement age, you can withdraw funds from the retirement account, tax-free.

2. What is the difference between direct rollover and rollover retirement accounts?
There are several ways funds in retirement accounts can be rolled over into a Trust Administration Services self directed IRA. The IRA Rollover occurs when an individual has taken a distribution personally from his IRA. The IRA owner has 60 days to rollover the distribution into another IRA retirement account. The rollover from a qualified plan such as a 401(k) occurs when an individual takes personal possession of his/her distributions from a qualified retirement plan. The plan administrator will withhold 20% of the distribution for tax purposes. Note: The IRS will only allow one rollover, per retirement account, during any 12 month period.

The direct rollover from a qualified plan is similar to an IRA retirement account transfer. In such cases, the recipient of a qualified plan distribution chooses to have his distribution rolled over directly to another financial institution in order to open an IRA retirement account with those funds. The direct rollover option is the best option for retirement accounts when available, as it will avoid the possibility of the 20% mandatory withholding requirement for distributions from qualified business retirement plans.

3. Can I buy an office building and run my business out of it through my IRA retirement account?
No. Tax laws prohibit the owner of retirement accounts from any act whereby they manage the plan income or assets to his or her own interest. For more information review Prohibited Transactions for retirement accounts.

4. Can I buy a cabin with funds in retirement accounts and use it for vacations?
No. Just like owning an office building and managing the assets for your own interest, the same restrictions on retirement accounts hold true for vacation properties.

5. Can I buy a house using retirement account funds and let my son or daughter live there?
No. Your son or daughter would be considered a disqualified person since he or she is a family member of the retirement account owner. Other disqualified persons include the spouse, ancestor, lineal descendant or spouses of the lineal descendant.

6. Can personal funds in retirement accounts be used as a good faith deposit on a property and reimbursed later once the transfer is complete?
No. Tax laws prohibit any act between the plan and the retirement account holder selling, exchanging or leasing property or lending money, credit for furnishing goods, services or facilities.

7. With respect to real estate, do you require that I have a property manager?
Yes. A designated Property Manager is required for each income producing property. The property Manager should be an unrelated third party; however, under certain circumstances the Accountholder may choose to act as his/her own manager. We have created a Property Management Agreement which may be used for this purpose. In most cases a third party manager will have his/her own form which may be substituted for our form of agreement. In the event the Property Manager’s form of agreement is found to contain provisions which are incompatible with our requirements or omits certain required provisions, we may, in our discretion, either contact the Property Manager to request that his/her agreement be amended or supplemented, or we may determine that the investment is administratively unfeasible and refuse to process the transaction. By signing this investment authorization the Accountholder acknowledges and represents the following: 1) he/she has read and approved of the provisions of the Property Management Agreement; 2) he/she appoints the named individual or entity as his/her Property Manager; and 3) he/she directs the Custodian to execute the applicable Property Management Agreement.

8. With respect to promissory notes, do you require that I have a loan servicing agent?
Yes. A designated Loan Servicing Agent is required for each promissory note. The servicing agent should be an unrelated third party; however, under certain circumstances the Accountholder may choose to act as his/her own servicing agent. We have created a Servicing Agent Agreement which may be used for this purpose. In most cases a third party agent will have his/her own form which may be substituted for our form of agreement. In the event the Servicing Agent’s form of agreement is found to contain provisions which are incompatible with our requirements or omits certain required provisions, we may, in our discretion, either contact the Servicing Agent to request that his/her agreement be amended or supplemented, or we may determine that the investment is administratively unfeasible and refuse to process the transaction. By signing this investment authorization the Accountholder acknowledges and represents the following: 1) he/she has read and approved of the provisions of the Servicing Agent Agreement; 2) he/she appoints the named individual or entity as his/her Servicing Agent; and 3) he/she directs the Custodian to execute the applicable Servicing Agent Agreement.

9. How often are statements for retirement accounts sent?
Retirement accounts have quarterly statements.

10. What are the wire instructions for retirement accounts?
Wire instructions are a method of moving retirement account funds from bank to bank. This is done in lieu of checks or money orders. Normally, wire transfers for retirement accounts are used for larger sums and take about 24 hours to transfer. Retirement account wires should have explicit information regarding the source and nature of the funds. The incoming wire transfer information for TRUST is:

First-Citizens Bank 1801 Century Park East Century City, CA 90067

Routing No: 122037760
Account Name: Equity Trust Company

Account number: 771119476

Further Credit to:

Equity Trust Company custodian fbo "Your Name" and Account #

Source of Funds:

For more information on retirement accounts, contact your TRUST Retirement Plan Specialist

TRUST is a leading personal management provider of retirement planning services, self directed IRA retirement accounts and custody accounts. Access the largest diversified options for your retirement account investments with our retirement planning services.

TRUST does not sell investments nor provide investment advice, and all transactions are at the direction of the accountholder and/or their designated financial representative. Investment products for retirement accounts are not FDIC insured, not guaranteed by the bank and may lose value.