Knowledge Base
Print

Self-Directed 401k Plans

PostedNovember 4, 2023

By Jason Watson, CPA
Posted Saturday, November 5, 2023

There are 401k plans that allow you to invest in non-traditional investments such as real estate or buying a business. A common phrase you hear in a ROBS 401k which stands for Rollover for Business Start Ups. It is beyond the scope of this chapter, and frankly it can be a very bad idea although it sounds hip at your next cocktail party. Rob is certainly the operative word since we see a lot of these ideas rob people of their retirement money.

A self-directed IRA is easier to set up and maintain, while a self-directed 401k plan is much more challenging. While these two self-directed vehicles share similar problems and gotchas. Here is a recent post on the pitfalls of self-directed IRAs and 401k plans-

wcginc.com/6133

If you want more information, we have worked with Equity Trust and New Direction IRA who can create and help maintain these accounts and plans.

Jason Watson, CPA, is a Partner and the CEO of WCG CPAs & Advisors, a boutique yet progressive tax, accounting and business consultation firm located in Colorado serving small business owners and taxpayers worldwide.

Jason Watson CPA LinkedIn     Jason Watson CPA Email

Taxpayer’s Comprehensive Guide to LLCs and S Corps 2025 Edition

LLC's and S Corps bookThis KB article is an excerpt from our 420+ page book (some picture pages, but no scatch and sniff) which is available in paperback from Amazon, as an eBook for Kindle and as a PDF from ClickBank. We used to publish with iTunes and Nook, but keeping up with two different formats was brutal. You can cruise through these KB articles online, click on the fancy buttons below or visit our webpage which provides more information.

$49.95 $39.95 $29.95

Talk to a Small Business CPA About Your Situation

Please use the form below to tell us a little about yourself, and what you have going on with your small business or 1099 contractor gig. WCG CPAs & Advisors are small business CPAs, tax professionals and consultants, and we look forward to talking to you!

The tax advisors, business consultants and rental property experts at WCG CPAs & Advisors are not salespeople; we are not putting lipstick on a pig expecting you to love it. Our job remains being professionally detached, giving you information and letting you decide within our ethical guidelines and your risk profiles.

We see far too many crazy schemes and half-baked ideas from attorneys and wealth managers. In some cases, they are good ideas. In most cases, all the entities, layering and mixed ownership is only the illusion of precision. As Chris Rock says, just because you can drive your car with your feet doesn’t make it a good idea. In other words, let’s not automatically convert “you can” into “you must.”

Let’s chat so you can be smart about it.

We typically schedule a 20-minute complimentary quick chat with one of our Partners or our amazing Senior Tax Professionals to determine if we are a good fit for each other, and how an engagement with our team looks. Tax returns only? Business advisory? Tax strategy and planning? Rental property support?

accounting services for small business

Text WCG Offices

Need to get in touch through a quick text?  We’ll respond back within a day and get going!

accounting services for small business

Call Our Amazing Team

If you need to speak to a tax professional now, give us a call and we'll get you connected.

accounting services for small business

Chat With a Tax Pro

Taxes can be tricky. Chat with a WCG human now and get questions answered.

Previous Self Employed Retirement Plan Basics
Next SEP IRA
Table of Contents