This is a third party review of Real Trust IRA Alternatives. This due diligence report reviews over 100 different data points for Real Trust IRA Alternatives to provide you with a thorough due diligence report of the company to help you make a better decision. The public version provides only 20 of these data points. If you want to see the full version of this review, you can click the button below.
Information last updated on: 11/13/2025
Company certified on: Not Certified
Real Trust IRA
Introduction
IMPORTANT: We are no longer able to find Real Trust IRA Alternatives. It is not clear whether they are still in business, but their old website goes to a competitor indicating they may no longer be in business.
Real Trust IRA Alternatives is a self directed IRA administrator. They establish and administer Self-Directed IRA’s and 401(k)’s for individuals and small business owners who wish to exercise greater control over their retirements plans and expand their investment choices to include alternative assets such as real estate, private placements, private lending, precious metals and much more.
Real Trust IRA
Contact Information
Website: | |
|---|---|
Phone Number: | (877) 536-4100 |
Email: |
Offices:
Corporate Office: | 1420 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2200, Seattle, WA 98101 |
Operations Office: | 312 East Trow Avenue, Suite 201, Chelan, WA 98816 |
Business Hours: | 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM PST (Monday - Friday) |
Real Trust IRA
Company Details
Company Classification: | Administrator |
Date Established (under current name): | 2003 (Former Entrust Franchisee) |
Type of entity: | (Not Disclosed) |
Who provides custody for client assets: | Washington Federal Bank |
Company is registered in: | Washington |
Primary Line of Business: | Providing self-directed IRA administrative services to clients for alternative investments |
Other Lines of Business: | None |
Typical Client: | Retail Client |
Capable of working with Financial Advisory Firms | (Not Disclosed) |
Governmental Agency Oversight: | (Not Disclosed) |
Company's Last Audit: | (Not Disclosed) |
Summary of Assets Under Custody
Number of Active Clients: | 1,400 |
Number of Active accounts: | (Not Disclosed) |
Amount of assets company provides custody for: | (Not Disclosed) |
Self-Directed IRA Industry Affiliations
Self-Directed IRA industry affiliations (outside of this company): | (Not Disclosed) |
Ownership of industry related websites: | (Not Disclosed) |
Industry related company affiliations: | (Not Disclosed) |
Industry related non-profits: | (Not Disclosed) |
Industry related associations: | (Not Disclosed) |
Industry related board of trustee positions: | (Not Disclosed) |
Industry related publications: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Fee Schedule
Account Setup Fee: | $50 |
Account Termination Fee: | $250 + $50 per asset |
Service Fee Classification: (flat, transaction-based, asset-based, hybrid) | Option of asset-based or per asset based fees |
Company Fee Schedule: | Real Trust IRA Fee Schedule* (as of 1/1/16) |
* Use the Real Trust IRA Fee Calculator (click button below) to calculate your estimated fees based on the company's published fee schedule. This is a useful tool when comparing different custodians based on your cost to use them. Please note, if you have never before used a self-directed IRA custodian or administrator to administer your account, the fees will be different than most broker dealers that provide transactional services for stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.
Real Trust IRA
Available Account Types
Type of Account: | Available at Real Trust IRA |
|---|---|
Traditional IRA | Yes |
Roth IRA | Yes |
SEP IRA (or SERSEP) | Yes |
SIMPLE IRA | Yes |
Individual 401(k) | Yes |
Defined Contribution Plan (Group plan e.g. 401k, 403b 457) | No |
Defined Benefit Plan (pension) | No |
ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) | No |
Health Savings Account (HSA) | No |
Education IRA (ESA) (Coverdell Education Savings Account) | No |
Non-Qualified Account (Individual) | No |
Non-Qualified Account (Joint Tenants) | No |
Trust Account | No |
Partnership / Limited Partnership | No |
UTMA / UGMA Custodial Account | No |
C-corp, S-corp, or LLC account | No |
Other: | N/A |
Real Trust IRA
List of Allowable Assets
Type of Asset | Allowed For Custody? |
|---|---|
Real Estate | Yes |
Private Placement (Reg A) | Yes |
Private Placement (Reg D) | Yes |
Private Placement (e.g. REIT, BDC, etc) | Yes |
Precious Metals | Yes |
Futures or Managed Futures | Yes |
Options or Hedges (non-publicly Traded) | (Not Disclosed) |
Bitcoin (or other virtual currency) | (Not Disclosed) |
FOREX | Yes |
Hedge Funds | Yes |
Limited Partnerships | Yes |
Single-member LLC (or Checkbook LLC) | Yes |
Multi-member LLC | Yes |
REITs | Yes |
Annuities (fixed or Variable) | (Not Disclosed) |
Viaticles or Life Settlements | Yes |
Insurance (other) | No |
Trust Deeds | Yes |
Tax Liens | Yes |
Private Lending (Unsecured Notes) | Yes |
Private Lending (Secured Notes) | Yes |
Private Company Stock | Yes |
Public Company Stock (or ETFs) | Yes |
Publicly Traded Options | Yes |
Church Bonds | (Not Disclosed) |
Mutual Funds or Closed-End Funds (CEF) | Yes |
Livestock, Horses, or similar animals | (Not Disclosed) |
Business Development Company (BDC) | (Not Disclosed) |
International Real Estate | (Not Disclosed) |
International Asset (other than real estate) | (Not Disclosed) |
Other | N/A |
Does Real Trust IRA sub-custody certain assets at other firms: | No |
Does Real Trust IRA provide sub custody services to other firms: | No |
Asset Specialization: | (Not Disclosed) |
Most popular assets held: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Operations
Client account title format: | RIA FBO: [ Participant Name ] and [ Account Number ] |
Number of full-time employees: | (Not Disclosed) |
Process for setting up a new account: | (Not Disclosed) |
Process for adding a new asset to client account: | (Not Disclosed) |
Procedures in place to protect client information: | (Not Disclosed) |
Procedures for annual valuations: | (Not Disclosed) |
Procedures for when an investment is suspected to be or is found to be fraudulent: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Technology
Does company participate in DTC system: | (Not Disclosed) |
Details of DTC: | (Not Disclosed) |
Does company accept Fed Funds wires: | (Not Disclosed) |
Fed Funds wire details: | (Not Disclosed) |
Client account access: | (Not Disclosed) |
Accounting: | (Not Disclosed) |
Account reporting: | (Not Disclosed) |
Trading investments: | (Not Disclosed) |
Safekeeping of client assets: | (Not Disclosed) |
Record keeping of client assets: | (Not Disclosed) |
Document storage: | (Not Disclosed) |
Compliance: | (Not Disclosed) |
Security and client information protection: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Management Team
- Mark Hodges, President & CEO
Access Company Management Profiles
Glassdoor Ratings: (How company rates as an employer) (No profile)
Real Trust IRA
Client Protection
Insurance coverage limits for client assets: | (Not Disclosed) |
Coverage for uninvested cash balances: | (Not Disclosed) |
Errors & Omissions coverage (E&O): | (Not Disclosed) |
Additional or supplemental insurance coverage for client accounts: | (Not Disclosed) |
Have any owners or managing members of the company been charged with a felony, theft, or fraud: | (Not Disclosed) |
Has the company itself ever been investigated, charged, or convicted of a felony, fraud, theft, or industry related violation: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Customer Satisfaction
Better Business Bureau: (click to review BBB overview) | |
Accredited Business since: | Not Accredited |
BBB Rating: | A+ |
Yelp Ratings: (click to review yelp ratings) | Read Yelp Ratings (No profile) |
Number of people on customer service team: | (Not Disclosed) |
Number of people on the "premier" or " institutional" customer service team: | (Not Disclosed) |
Number of people on the team that performs investment reviews for client assets: | (Not Disclosed) |
Average turnaround time for a client's new investment (assuming all documents required have been send in by client): | (Not Disclosed) |
Average turnaround time for setting up a new client account (assuming all documentation required has been sent in by client): | (Not Disclosed) |
Method of client account access: | (Not Disclosed) |
Is client education provided by company: | (Not Disclosed) |
Is financial advice provided by company to client: | (Not Disclosed) |
Real Trust IRA
Self Direct Your Retirement Transparency Index
The Self Direct Your Retirement Transparency Index is a metric we have developed to indicate how transparent self-directed IRA custodians and administrators are about their company. We value transparency as an ideal trait from a company that is providing custody or administration of your retirement accounts. It shows that the company has nothing to hide about their activities. You should consider this when you are making your choice.
The Self Direct Your Retirement Transparency Index is split into two parts. The first part is whether they voluntarily provided this information to us or whether we had to find this data on our own. Companies that provided us with the data were given the "company certified seal". If they did not participate, the seal does not show up in their profile. The second part of the index is how transparent the companies were in providing us with this information. A higher transparency number indicates a more transparent company. A number above 80% is ideal. There may be legitimate reasons companies do not want to share certain information, but you should consider this when making your decision.
Below the seal, we have listed the last time the company provided us with information. As long as the company has the certified seal, the information should be considered up-to-date. We contact the company periodically to ensure the information is accurate. If the company chooses not to verify the information, then we remove the seal. Transparency is only one factor you should consider when choosing a self directed IRA custodian or administrator.
Willingness to provide information - Very Low
Company Certified Information
Information last updated on: 02/23/2016
Real Trust IRA
Compared to Peers
Visit the Self-Directed IRA custodian & administrator comparison page to see how Real Trust IRA compares to its peers.
Real Trust IRA
Company Spotlight - Industry Trends
We asked Real Trust IRA to provide their individual insight into the following questions. This section is a bit more personal. The idea is that it will give you more insight into the company you are considering to custody your investments.
What trends do you see in the self-directed IRA industry? | (Not Disclosed) |
What trends in asset types do you see at your firm? | (Not Disclosed) |
What is your firm's biggest concern about the self-directed IRA industry? | Lack of education pertaining to self directed IRAs and how they work. |
Please list some additional concerns your firm has about the industry? | (Not Disclosed) |
Do you see any changes in regards to what investors want from custodians and administrators? | (Not Disclosed) |
What are your company's biggest challenges? | (Not Disclosed) |
What are the self-directed IRA industry's biggest challenges? | (Not Disclosed) |
What needs to be changed in the Self-Directed IRA industry? | (Not Disclosed) |
How could the Self-Directed IRA Industry improve? | (Not Disclosed) |
What is the biggest reason for the company's success? | (Not Disclosed) |
Company's view of important of the following items (ranked in order of importance)
(Not Disclosed)
Real Trust IRA
Conclusion
We are not able to make a reasonable assessment of this administrator due to their lack of transparency. It is hard to truly know what you are getting from an administrator who is administering your investments if they are unwilling to disclose even basic information about themselves to potential clients. While the company might be suitable for your investing needs, you should exercise caution unless they are willing to disclose all the information you need to make a reasonable decision.
If you find a company that is not willing to be transparent to you as a potential customer of their services, then you should reconsider them as a potential choice for your retirement funds. Ultimately, your personal retirement investing needs will determine whether Real Trust IRA Alternatives is ultimately a good fit for you. Transparency is only one metric which you should consider in your due diligence process. Please use our Self Directed IRA Custodian & Administrator Comparison Tool to help you make that determination.
One of the biggest areas of frustration we see from self-directed IRA investors is when they realize they have chosen the wrong self-directed IRA custodian or administrator. Choose your Self-Directed IRA custodian or administrator wisely. If you put the time in now to find the right company, you will save time, money, and aggravation later. Read our Choosing a Self-Directed IRA Custodian report for more information.
Next Steps... Once you have located your ideal Self-Directed IRA Custodian or Administrator, you will be on your way to self-directing your retirement. If you decide that this process seems too complex and you need assistance or financial advice, feel free to contact us. Our wealth management firm specializes in providing financial advice pertaining to alternative investments held in self-directed IRAs and 401ks. We are fiduciaries and provide unbiased advice. Contact us if you want to learn more about our services.
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