by Mat Sorensen | Apr 15, 2019 | Investing
There are 28 trillion dollars in retirement plans in the United States. Do you know that these funds can be invested into your business? Yes, it’s true, IRAs and 401(k)s can be used to invest in start-ups, private companies, real estate, and small businesses. Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs and retirement account owners didn’t even know that retirement accounts can invest in private companies but you’ve been able to do it for over 30 years.
Think of who owns these funds: It’s everyday Americans, it’s your cousin, friend, running partner, neighbor…it’s you. In fact, for many Americans, their retirement account is their largest concentration of invest-able funds. Yet, you’ve never asked anyone to invest in your business with their retirement account. Why not? How much do you think they have in their IRA or old employer 401(k)? How attached do you think they are to those investments? These are the questions that have unlocked hundreds of millions of dollars to be invested in private companies and start-ups.
How Many People Are Doing This?
Recent industry surveys revealed that there are one million retirement accounts that are self-directed into private companies, real estate, venture capital, private equity, hedge funds, start-ups, and other so-called “alternative” investments (e.g. Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies). It is a sliver of the overall retirement account market, but it’s growing in popularity.
So, how does it work? How can these funds be properly invested into your business? If you ask your CPA or lawyer, the typical response is, “It’s possible, but very complicated, so we don’t recommend it.” In other words, they’ve heard of it, but they don’t know how it works, and they don’t want to look bad guessing. If you ask a financial adviser, particularly your own, they’ll talk about how it’s such a bad idea while thinking about how much fees they’ll lose when you stop buying mutual funds, annuities, and stocks that they make commissions or other fees from. Well, not all financial advisers, but unfortunately too many do.
Now, there are some legal and tax issues that need to be complied with, but that’s what good lawyers and accounts are for, right? And yes, there is greater risk in private company or start-up investments so self-directed IRA investors need to conduct adequate due diligence and they shouldn’t invest all of their account into one private company investment. So how does it work?
What is a Self-Directed IRA?
In order to invest into a private company, start-up, or small business, the retirement account holder must have a self-directed IRA? So, what is a self-directed IRA? A self-directed IRA is a retirement account that can be invested into any investment allowed by law. If your account is with a typical IRA or 401(k) company, such as Fidelity, Vanguard, TD Ameritrade, Merrill Lynch, Charles Schwab, then you can only invest in investments allowed under their platform, and these companies deem private company investments as “administratively unfeasible” to hold so they won’t allow your IRA or 401(k) to invest in them (some make exceptions for ultra-high net-worth clients, $50M plus accounts). As a result, the first step when investing in a private company with retirement account funds is to rollover or transfer the funds, without tax consequence, to a self-directed custodian who will allow your IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, HSA, or Solo 401(k) to be invested into a private company. My company, Directed IRA & Directed Trust Company, handles self-directed IRAs and our clients have invested millions in private companies.
Legal Tip: If an investor’s retirement account is with their current employer’s retirement plan (e.g. 401(k)), they won’t be able to change their custodian until they leave that employer or until they reach retirement age (59.5 years old or 55 under some plans). So, for now, they’re 401(k) is usually limited to buying mutual funds they don’t understand and don’t want.
Sell Corporation Stock or LLC Units to Self-Directed IRAs
Are you seeking capital for your business in exchange for stock or other equity? If so, you should consider offering shares or units in your company to retirement account owners. You don’t need to wait until your company is publicly traded to sell ownership to retirement accounts. Here are a few well-known companies who had individuals with self-directed IRAs invest in them before they were publicly traded: Facebook, Staples, Sealy, PayPal, Domino’s, and Yelp, just to name a few.
You can also raise capital for real estate purchases or equipment whereby a promissory note is offered to the IRA investor who acts as lender, and the funds are usually secured by the real estate or equipment being purchased. There are many investment variations available, but the most common is an equity investment purchasing shares or units where the IRA becomes a shareholder or note investment whereby the IRA becomes a lender. Keep in mind, you need to comply with state and federal securities laws when raising money from any investor.
Need to Know #1: Prohibited Transactions
There are two key rules to understand when other people invest their retirement account into your business. First, the tax code restricts an IRA or 401(k) from transacting with the account owner personally or with certain family (e.g. parents, spouse, kids, etc.). This restriction is known as the prohibited transaction rule. See IRC 4975 and IRS Pub 590A. Consequently, if you own a business personally you can’t have your own IRA or your parents IRA invest into your company to buy your stock or LLC units. However, more distant family members such as siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles could move their retirement account funds to a self-directed IRA to invest in your company. And certainly, unrelated third-parties would not be restricted by the prohibited transaction rules from investing in your company. What if you are only one of the founders or partners of a business, and you want to invest your IRA or your spouse’s IRA into the company? This is possible if your ownership and control is below 50%, but this question is very complicated and nuanced, so you’ll want to discuss it with your attorney or CPA who is familiar with this area of the tax law.
If a prohibited transaction occurs, the self-directed IRA is entirely distributed. That’s a pretty harsh consequence and one that makes compliance with this rule critical.
Need to Know #2: UBIT Tax
The second rule to understand is a tax known as Unrelated Business Income Tax (“UBIT”, “UBTI”). UBIT is a tax that can apply to an IRA when it receives “business” income. IRAs and 401(k)s don’t pay tax on the income or gains that go back to the account so long as they receive “investment” income. Investment income would include rental income, capital gain income, dividend income from a c-corp, interest income, and royalty income. If you’ve owned mutual funds or stocks with your retirement account, the income from these investments always falls into one of these “investment” income categories. However, when you go outside of these standardized forms of investment, you can be outside of “investment” income and you just might be receiving “business” income that is subject to the dreaded “unrelated business income tax.” This tax rate is at 37% at about $12,000 of taxable income annually. That’s a hefty rate, so you want to make sure you avoid it or otherwise understand and anticipate it when making investment decisions. The most common situation where a self-directed IRA will become subject to UBIT is when the IRA invests into an operational business selling goods or services who does not pay corporate income tax. For example, let’s say my new business retails goods on-line, and is organized as an LLC and taxed as a partnership. This is a very common form of private business and taxation, but one that will cause UBIT tax for net profits received by self-directed IRA. If, on the other hand, the same new business was a c-corporation and paid corporate tax (that’s what c-corps do), then the profits to the self-directed IRA would be dividend income, a form of investment income, and UBIT would not apply. Consequently, self-directed IRAs should presume that UBIT will apply when they invest into an operational business that is an LLC, but should presume that UBIT will not apply when they invest into an operational business that is a c-corporation.
Legal Tip: IRAs can own c-corporation stock, LLC units, LP interest, but they cannot own s-corporation stock because IRAs and 401(k)s do NOT qualify as s-corporation shareholders.
Now, if you’re an LLC raising capital from other people’s IRAs or 401(k)s, you should have a section in your offering documents that notifies people of potential UBIT tax on their investment. UBIT tax is paid by the retirement account annually on the net profits the account receives so it doesn’t cost the company raising the funds any additional money or tax. It costs the retirement account investor since UBIT is paid by the retirement account. Despite the hefty tax, many IRAs and 401(k)s will still invest when UBIT is present as they may be willing to pay the tax on a well-performing investment or their investment strategy. Alternatively, many self-directed IRAs may be investing with an intent to sell their ownership in the LLC as the mechanism to receive their planned return on investment. When selling their LLC ownership, the gain in the LLC units would be capital gain income and would not be subject to UBIT.
If the investment from the self-directed IRA was via a note or other debt instrument, then the profits to the IRA are simply interest income and that income is always investment income and is not subject to UBIT tax. Many companies raise capital from IRAs for real estate purchases or for equipment purchases. These loans from an IRA or IRA(s) are often secured by the real estate or equipment being purchased and the IRA ends up earning interest income like a private lender.
Summary
So, here’s a brief summary of what we’ve learned. First, there’s $28 trillion in retirement plans in the U.S. These retirement accounts can be used to invest into your start-up or private company. You need to comply with the prohibited transaction rules and you can’t invest your own account or certain family member’s account into your business as that would invalidate the IRA. But everyone else’s IRA can invest into your company. And lastly, depending on how the company is structured (LLC or C-Corp), and how the investment is designed (equity or debt/loan), there may be UBIT tax on the profits from the investment. Remember, UBIT tax usually arises for IRAs in operating businesses structured as LLCs where the company doesn’t pay a corporate tax on their net profits. This income is pushed down to the owners and in the case of an IRA this can cause UBIT tax liability.
Here’s the bottom line, retirement account funds can be a significant source of funding and investment for your business, so it’s worth some time and effort to learn how these funds can most efficiently be utilized. While there are some rules unique to retirement accounts they can easily be understood and planned for.
by Mat Sorensen | Mar 18, 2019 | News
The IRS recently announced that the State Department will be denying passports, and may revoke yours if you have a “seriously delinquent tax debt.” A seriously delinquent tax debt is where you owe more than $52,000 (including interest and penalties). While this law has been on the books for some time, the IRS recently started sending certifications of seriously delinquent taxpayers to the State Department last year.
If you owe the IRS money and have plans to travel abroad, there are a couple of options you can use to maintain or obtain a passport even through you may be a “seriously delinquent taxpayer.” Here are the most common options:
1. Installment Agreement
Enter into an installment agreement with the IRS to repay the debt (i.e. A payment plan). So long as you are current on your installment agreement, you can obtain or maintain your passport. An installment agreement is essentially and agreement whereby you agree to the debt owed and set-up a payment plan to have it paid back over time. The IRS usually requires financial disclosures in order to determine the payment amount and schedule. You can learn more here.
2. Offer in Compromise
Have a pending offer in compromise with the IRS, or be paying timely on an agreed upon offer in compromise. An offer in compromise is a method of negotiating a compromise on the amount owed to the IRS. The IRS only accepts an offer in compromise if there is a debt as to the liability (i.e. There is a legitimate tax question over your position and that of the IRS), or there is a doubt as to collect-ability (i.e. “Can you really pay it back?”). You can learn more about an offer in compromise here. Keep in mind, so long as the offer in compromise request is pending, you can still obtain or maintain your passport. So, start here if you still have issues to work out with the IRS before you agree to the amount owed in an installment agreement. Though, if you don’t have a legitimate reason for an offer in compromise, you should consider the installment agreement.
If you’ve got plans to travel abroad AND you’ve got a serious tax debt, be proactive about paying it back with an installment agreement or start the process of making an offer in compromise. You don’t want to be surprised by a letter in the mail from the state department that your passport has been revoked. Or even worse, have non-refundable travel plans that have to be cancelled because your passport is revoked. And, last but not least, be abroad and have your passport revoked and your travel status in jeopardy. You may just end up spending your foreign trip at the local U.S. Embassy.
by Mat Sorensen | Dec 11, 2018 | Investing
Roth IRAs can be established and funded for high-income earners by using what is known as the “back door” Roth IRA contribution method. Many high-income earners believe that they can’t contribute to a Roth IRA because they make too much money and/or because they participate in a company 401(k) plan. Fortunately, this isn’t true.
While direct contributions to a Roth IRA are limited to taxpayers with income in excess of $129,000 ($191,000 for married taxpayers), those whose income exceeds these amounts may make annual contributions to a non-deductible Traditional IRA and then convert those amounts over to a Roth IRA. Our IRA company – Directed IRA – can help those who want a self-directed “back door” Roth IRA, but the strategy can be done with almost anyone who wants a Roth IRA.
Examples
Here’s a few examples of earners who can establish and fund a Roth IRA:
- “I’m a high-income earner and work for a company who offers a company 401(k) plan. I contribute the maximum amount to that plan each year. Can I establish and fund a Roth IRA?” Yes, even though you are high-income, and even though you participate in a company 401(k) plan, you can establish and fund a Roth IRA. You just have to use the “back door” method.
- “I’m self-employed and earn over $200,000 a year; can I have a Roth IRA? Isn’t my income too high?” Yes, you can contribute to a Roth IRA despite having income that exceeds the Roth IRA income contribution limits of $191,000 for married taxpayers and $129,000 for single taxpayers. You just have to use the “back door” method.
The Process
The strategy used by high-income earners to make Roth IRA contributions involves the deposit of non-deductible contributions to a Traditional IRA, and then converting those funds in the non-deductible Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. This is often times referred to as a “back door” Roth IRA. In the end, you don’t get a tax deduction on the amounts contributed, but the funds are held in a Roth IRA and are tax-free upon retirement (just like a Roth IRA). Here’s how it works:
Step 1: Fund a new non-deductible Traditional IRA.
This IRA is “non-deductible” because high-income earners who participate in a company retirement plan (or who has a spouse who does) can’t also make “deductible” contributions to an IRA. However, the account can be funded by non-deductible amounts up to the IRA annual contribution amounts of $5,500 for 2018 ($6,000 for 2019 and forward). The non-deductible contributions mean you don’t get a tax deduction on the amounts contributed to the Traditional IRA. Don’t worry about having non-deductible contributions though, as you’re converting to a Roth IRA, so you don’t want a deduction for the funds contributed. If you did get a deduction for the contribution, you’d have to pay taxes on the amounts later converted to Roth. You’ll need to file IRS form 8606 for the tax year in which you made the non-deductible IRA contributions. The form can be found here.
If you’re a high-income earner and you don’t have a company-based retirement plan (or a spouse with one), then you simply establish a standard deductible Traditional IRA, as there is no high-income contribution limit on Traditional IRAs when you don’t participate in a company plan.
Step 2: Convert the non-deductible Traditional IRA funds to a Roth IRA.
In 2010, the limitations on Roth IRA conversions, which previously restricted Roth IRA conversions for high-income earners, was removed. As a result, all taxpayers are able to covert traditional IRA funds to Roth IRAs since 2010. It was in 2010 that this “back door” Roth IRA contribution strategy was first utilized as it relied on the ability to convert funds from Traditional to Roth. It has been used by tens of thousands of Americans since.
If you have other existing Traditional IRAs, then the tax treatment of your conversion to Roth becomes a little more complicated as you must take into account those existing IRA funds when undertaking a conversion (including SEP and SIMPLE IRAs). If the only IRA you have is the non-deductible IRA, then the conversion is easy because you convert the entire non-deductible IRA amount over to Roth with no tax on the conversion. Remember, you didn’t get a deduction into the non-deductible Traditional IRA so there is not tax to apply on conversions. On the other hand, if you have an existing IRA with $95,000, and you have $5,000 in non-deductible Traditional IRA contributions in another account that you wish to convert to Roth, then the IRS requires you to convert your IRA funds in equal parts deductible (the $95K bucket) and non-deductible amounts (the new $5k) based on the money you have in all Traditional IRAs. So, if you wanted to convert $10,000, then you’d have to convert $9,500 (95%) of your deductible bucket, which portion of conversion is subject to tax, and $500 of you non-deductible bucket, which isn’t subject to tax upon once converted. Consequently, the “back door” Roth IRA isn’t well suited when you have existing Traditional IRAs that contain deductible contributions and earnings from those sums.
There are two workarounds to this Roth IRA conversion problem, and both revolve around moving the existing Traditional IRA funds into a 401(k) or other employer-based plan as employer plan funds are not considered when determining what portions of the Traditional IRAs are subject to tax on conversion (the deductible and the non-deductible). If you participate in an existing company 401(k) plan, then you may rollover your Traditional IRA funds into that 401(k) plan. Most 401(k) plans allow for this rollover from IRA to 401(k), so long as you are still employed by that company. If you are self-employed, you may establish a Solo or owner-only 401(k) plan, and rollover your Traditional IRA into this 401(k). In the end though, if you can’t roll out existing Traditional IRA funds into a 401(k), then the “back door” Roth IRA is going to cause some tax repercussions, as you also have to convert a portion of the existing Traditional IRA funds, which will cause taxes upon conversion. Taxes on conversion aren’t “the end of the world” though, as all of the money that comes out of that Traditional IRA would be subject to tax at some point in time. The only issue is it causes a big tax bill, so plan carefully.
The bottom line is that Roth IRAs can be established and funded by high-income earners. Don’t consider yourself “left out” on one of the greatest tax strategies offered to Americans: The Roth IRA.
by Mat Sorensen | Nov 20, 2018 | News
As 2018 comes to an end, it is critical that Solo 401(k) owners understand when and how to make their 2018 contributions. There are three important deadlines you must know if you have a Solo 401(k) or if you plan to set one up still in 2018. A Solo 401(k) is a retirement plan for small business owners or self-employed persons who have no other full time employees other than owners and spouses. It’s a great plan that can be self-directed into real estate, LLCs, or other alternative investments, and allows the owner/participants to contribute up to $55,000 per year (far faster than any IRA).
New Solo 401(k) Set-Up Deadline is 12/31/18
First, in order to make 2018 contributions, the Solo 401(k) must be adopted by your business by December 31st, 2018. If you haven’t already adopted a Solo 401(k) plan, you should start now so that documents can be completed and filed in time. If the 401(k) is established on January 1st, 2019 or later, you cannot make 2018 contributions.
2018 Contributions Can Be Made in 2019
Both employee and employer contributions can be made up until the company’s tax return deadline including extensions. If you have a sole proprietorship (e.g. single member LLC or schedule C income) or C-Corporation, then the company tax return deadline is April 15th, 2018. If you have an S-Corporation or partnership LLC, the deadline for 2018 contributions is March 15th, 2019. Both of these deadlines (March 15th and April 15th) to make 2018 contributions may be extended another six months by filing an extension. This a huge benefit for those that want to make 2018 contributions, but won’t have funds until later in the year to do so.
W-2’s Force You to Plan Now
While employee and employer contributions may be extended until the company tax return deadline, you will typically need to file a W-2 for your wages (e.g. an S-Corporation) by January 31st, 2019. The W-2 will include your wage income and any deduction for employee retirement plan contributions will be reduced on the W-2 in box 12. As a result, you should make your employee contributions (up to $18,500 for 2018) by January 31st, 2019 or you should at least determine the amount you plan to contribute so that you can file an accurate W-2 by January 31st, 2019. If you don’t have all or a portion of the funds you plan to contribute available by the time your W-2 is due, you can set the amount you plan to contribute to the 401(k) as an employee contribution, and will then need to make said contribution by the tax return deadline (including extensions).
Example
Now let’s bring this all together and take an example to outline how this may work. Sally is 44 years old and has an S-Corporation as an online business. She is the only owner and only employee, and had a Solo 401(k) established in 2018. She has $120,000 in net income for the year and will have taken $50,000 of that in wage income that will go on her W-2 for the year. That will leave $70,000 of profit that is taxable to her and that will come through to her personally via a K-1 from the business. Sally has not yet made any 2018 401(k) contributions, but plans to do so in order to reduce her taxable income for the year and to build a nest egg for retirement. If she decided to max-out her 2018 Solo 401(k) contributions, it would look like this:
- Employee Contributions – The 2018 maximum employee contribution is $18,500. This is dollar for dollar on wages so you can contribute $18,500 as long as you have made $18,500. Since Sally has $50,000 in wages from her S-Corp, she can easily make an $18,500 employee contribution. Let’s say that Sally doesn’t have the $18,500 to contribute, but will have it available by the tax return deadline (including extensions). What Sally will need to do is let her accountant or payroll company know what she plans to contribute as an employee contribution so that they can properly report the contributions on her payroll and W-2 reporting. By making an $18,500 employee contribution, Sally has reduced her taxable income on her W-2 from $50,000 to $31,500. At even a 20% tax bracket for federal taxes and a 5% tax bracket for state taxes that comes to a tax savings of $4,625.
- Employer Contributions – The 2018 maximum employer contribution is 25% of wage compensation. For Sally: Up to a maximum employer contribution of $36,500. Since Sally has taken a W-2 wage of $50,000, the company may make an employer contribution of $12,500 (25% of $50,000). This contribution is an expense to the company and is included as an employee benefit expense on the S-Corporation’s tax return (form 1120S). In the stated example, Sally would’ve had $70,000 in net profit/income from the company before making the Solo 401(k) contribution. After making the employer matching contribution of $12,500 in this example, Sally would then only receive a K-1 and net income/profit from the S-Corporation of $57,500. Again, if she were in a 20% federal and a 5% state tax bracket, that would create a tax savings of $3,125. This employer contribution would need to be made by March 15th, 2019 (the company return deadline) or by September 15th, 2019 if the company were to file an extension.
In the end, Sally would have contributed and saved $31,000 for retirement ($18,500 employee contribution, $12,500 employer contribution). And she would have saved approximately $7,750 in federal and state taxes. That’s a win-win.
Keep in mind, you need to start making plans now and you want to begin coordinating with your accountant or payroll company as your yearly wage information on your W-2 (self employment income for sole props) is critical in determining what you can contribute to your Solo 401(k). Also, make certain you have the plan set-up in 2018 if you plan to make 2018 contributions. While IRAs can be established until April 15th, 2019 for 2018 contributions, a Solo K must be established by December 31st, 2018. Don’t get the two confused, and make sure you’ve got a plan for your specific business.
Note: If you’ve got a single member LLC taxed as a sole proprietorship, or just an old-fashioned sole prop, or even or an LLC taxed as a partnership (where you don’t have a W-2), then please refer to our prior article here on how to calculate your Solo K contributions as they differ slightly from the s-corp example above.
by Mat Sorensen | Nov 6, 2018 | News
Late last week, the IRS announced increased contribution limits for IRAs, 401(k)s and other retirement plans. IRAs have been stuck at $5,500 since 2013, but are finally moving up to $6,000 starting in 2019. If you save in a 401(k), including a Solo K, the good news is that your contribution limits were increased too, with employee contributions increasing from $18,500 to $19,000 and total 401(k) contributions (employee and employer) reaching $56,000. The IRS announcement and additional details can be found here.
Health savings account (HSA) owners also won a small victory with individual contribution maximums increasing by $50 to $3,500, and family contribution amounts increasing by $100 to $7,000.
Breakdown
Here’s a quick breakdown on the changes:
- IRA contribution limitations (Roth and Traditional) increased from $5,500 to $6,000, and there is still the $1,000 catch-up amount for those 50 and older.
- 401(k) contributions also increased for employees and employers: Employee contribution limitations increased from $18,500 to $19,000 for 2019. The additional catch-up contribution for those 50 and older stays the same at $6,000. The annual maximum 401(k) (defined contribution) total contribution amount increased from $55,000 to $56,000 ($62,000 for those 50 and older).
- HSA contribution limits increased from $3,450 for individuals and $6,900 for families to $3,500 for individuals and $7,000 for families.
These accounts provide advantageous ways for an individual to either save for retirement or to pay for their medical expenses. If you’re looking for tax deductions, tax deferred growth, or tax-free income, you should be using one or all of these account types. Keep in mind there are qualifications and phase out rules that apply, so make sure you’re getting competent advice about which accounts should be set up in your specific situation. Lastly, remember, all of these accounts can be self-directed and invested into assets you know best.
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There are 28 trillion dollars in retirement plans in the United States. Do you know that these funds can be invested into your business? Yes, it’s true, IRAs and 401(k)s can be used to invest in start-ups, private companies, real estate, and small businesses. Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs and retirement account owners didn’t even know that retirement accounts can invest in private companies but you’ve been able to do it for over 30 years.
