The Entrust Group can be seen as the best overall self-directed IRA custodian as its been in business for over 30 years and manages more than $3 billion in assets. This group has one of the better blends of flexibility and investment options.

For example, it enables investors to choose alternative investments like real property, precious metals, and private equity investments.

While it doesn’t offer check writing services, it does offer training materials to assist clients to create it own their own. This could be seen as a downside for some investors that demand check writing services and don’t want to create it by themselves. One of the best benefits Entrust has is that it carefully filters investment choices to prevent fraud.

Who Entrust is best for

This is best for an investor who doesn’t mind not having check writing access and is a do it yourself or DIY individual. Entrust Group is great for those wanting the security of an established firm with many investment choices and manageable fees.

Check out our roundup of the Best Self-Directed IRAs

Entrust investment options

Entrust group allows investors to choose a variety of alternative investments which include:

• Mortgage notes and other secured or unsecured private loans. The difference between unsecured and secured loans is that secured loans are backed by collateral like a home. If a borrower defaults on a secured loan, the lender could seize the asset (i.e home or car) to pay the debt. Conversely, unsecured loans aren’t backed by collateral and include credit card along with student loan debt.
• Oil and Gas companies. Some examples are energy companies that derive their income from drilling and extracting natural resources.
• Precious Metals like gold, silver, platinum which can come in many forms such as bar or coin. Precious metals like gold can be a smart method to hedge against inflation.
• Real Property not just REITs
• Private Equity investments in LLCs, LPs, and other private placements.

Entrust features

This firm has a proprietary and intuitive platform that helps investors choose the right alternative investment. It also has a self-education section which allows investors to make the right choice based on their needs. Lastly, it offers investors the ability to organize their investments using a popular financial planning software called eMoney which has won many awards and is used by financial planners to create net worth statements, stock option reports along with asset allocation reports.

It has three main fees which are account set up fees ($50), admin fees ($199-$2,000) and transaction fees ($0-$250). Some fees like the setup and transaction fees are waived for precious metal accounts/transactions. Also, admin fees and transaction fees are based on the amount of underlying investments and account size.

Customer support

Entrust has an in-house group of trained client support agents and partners with 3rd party advisers. Investors interested in alternative assets should ask their advisers which custodian (if any) they partner with.

Pros

• Reasonable fees
• Large investment selection
• Established company that takes extra measures to prevent fraud
• Offers educational material and eMoney access

Cons

• No checkbook writing access
• Doesn’t offer investment advice
• No foreign investment options