Growing Interest in Buying Via Self-Directed IRAs

SAN FRANCISCO—An increasing number of investors are becoming interested in investing in commercial real estate through self-directed IRAs, a practice that has been active for quite some time. Mike Howe, a relationship manager with locally based Pensco, tells GlobeSt.com that the increased interest has been spawned from a combination of market volatility, a downed economy and low interest rates.

“People have been able to use their IRAs to increase in all types of alternative assets for a long time,” says Howe. “It wasn’t necessarily a popular thing to do, but it’s become increasingly better now to invest in alternative assets for a lot of people based on their risk profile. You need to evaluate your own risk profile, but you could make a higher return for your investment through a self-directed IRA rather than putting your money in a savings account of CD now.”