All Forum Posts by: Justin Windham

@Jeff Caravalho

I agree with what others have posted. Being Solo 401k eligible is a blessing when you are considering self-directed investing. In addition to the Solo 401k being a more powerful and flexible structure compared to the IRA LLC, it is also in general less expensive to setup and maintain.

@Marquis W. pointed out. That said, I agree with paying off "toxic debt" and placing a higher priority on any 401k contributions that may be matched. While your 401k is restricted to certain assets, the typical return on these assets should probably be weighed against the returns you can make putting the money elsewhere. For real estate investors, this analysis often leads to a "forget the 401k" type conclusion.

Welcome, @Dan Wallace! Good to have you.

@Pablo Garcia

Great specificity on the timing of your goal. Excellent job on your credit score and your starting to save as well.

Don't shortchange your 401k at work too quickly. Although it may not be part of your short-term goals, I talk to people all day long who have significant previous employer 401k balances who are very happy to be able to self-direct these funds into real estate and other alternative assets. Welcome to BP!

@Frank Yaccarino

In addition to the great information above, you may want to look into a Solo 401k for investing into real estate. If you are eligible for this plan, you may find it meets your needs better than an IRA.

Welcome to Bigger Pockets, @Kahler Grandbouche! Be sure to search for information regarding your questions and post up if you don't find what you're looking for!

Welcome back to Denver (once you get here)!

Another great example of what can be done with self directed IRAs and 401ks. Thanks for sharing, everyone!

Quite a few years back we had a client who was buying up properties in their Solo 401k and then selling those properties minus the mineral rights. They were able to get back their initial investments in the plan from the sale of the real estate and keep the mineral rights which ended up resulting in ongoing checks coming into the 401k from the energy company. It was really impressive.

Hi @Yasir Lillingston! I'm sure you'll get some good feedback regarding your post. I just wanted to get things started by saying "Welcome to BP!"

@Luisito Espanola Welcome to BP! I agree with what others have said, a 401k (specifically a Solo 401k) can really help in reducing taxes on earned income. Of course maximizing that income is a a better focus than finding deductions in general.

If you start a company and adopt a Solo 401k plan now, you can contribute earned income to the plan for 2015 as well as for any future years you have such income. Those contributions are deductible and will grow in your Solo 401k on a tax deferred basis. With the right plan, you can also take loans from the growing balance as well as invest these funds directly into real estate and other alternative assets such as funding private loans.

@JP P. Glad you got some good info from Brian and Doreen. Buying this house "the old fashioned way" is the way to go if you are going to occupy it. If you have the ability to purchase an investment home with your Roth IRA as a completely separate transaction, that could be great too. Self-directed retirement account investing is really powerful, it just needs to be done correctly (as with almost anything else).