uDirect IRA Services

What uDirect IRA Services does

uDirect IRA Services, LLC is a privately held, third-party administrator of self-directed retirement accounts, founded in 2009 by Kaaren Hall and headquartered in Irvine, California. The company enables individuals to hold alternative assets — real estate, precious metals, cryptocurrency, private notes, real estate syndications, and IRA-owned LLCs — within Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Solo 401(k), and Inherited IRA structures. Custodial services are provided through a partnership with American Estate & Trust, LC, a Nevada-licensed, bonded, and regulated trust company (license TR10009), which holds client cash in an interest-bearing AE-Trust Quick Access Fund backed by FDIC-insured accounts, government bonds, money market funds, and corporate bonds.

The business operates on a flat-fee administration model: a $50 account setup fee and annual maintenance fees (e.g., $275 for precious metals accounts), with separate transaction, distribution, and storage fees, and no percentage-of-assets pricing. The technology stack is a self-directed IRA administration platform layered over the AET custodial infrastructure, with proprietary differentiators including digital asset custody integration for major cryptocurrencies, the IRA-Owned LLC (Checkbook IRA) structure for faster alternative-asset execution, and the AE-Trust Quick Access Fund for cash management. There is no public-facing mobile app, no API or SDK, and no AI/ML capability disclosed.

Go-to-market is sales-led and consultative: phone-based consultations with real people answering inbound calls, self-service online account opening via the AET client portal, and referral partnerships with CPAs, attorneys, and real estate professionals. Marketing is content-driven, anchored on a published BiggerPockets book on self-directed IRAs, educational webinars, free reports, an active blog, and social media presence led by the founder. The company reports administering over $1 billion in assets across thousands of account holders, with no disclosed institutional ownership, funding rounds, M&A activity, or expansion outside the United States.

Name

uDirect IRA Services

Legal name

uDirect IRA Services, LLC

Website

https://udirectira.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

uDirect IRA Services is a privately held, third-party administrator of self-directed retirement accounts (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Solo 401(k), Inherited IRAs) that lets individual investors hold alternative assets such as real estate, precious metals, cryptocurrency, private notes, and syndications within their IRAs, with custody provided by partner American Estate & Trust.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Self-Directed Retirement Account Administration

NAICS

Trust, Fiduciary, and Custody Activities (523991), Trusts, Estates, and Agency Accounts (52592), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Finance Services (6199), Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)

akta.pro primary industry

Directed Trust & Trust Advisory Services (FSAAANAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Safekeeping for Private Assets & Alternatives (Private Equity, Real Assets, OTC) (FSAFAHAI), Estate Planning, Trust Structuring & Governance (FSAAADAF), Private Client Custody & Brokerage (Execution, Reporting, Safekeeping) (FSAAABAN)

Keywords

• Self-directed IRAs
• Alternative asset investing
• Retirement account administration
• Real estate IRA
• Third-party administrator

Headquarters

HQ city

Irvine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Account Administration Fees: Flat-fee based IRA administration model. Set-up fee of $50 per account and annual maintenance fees. Specific annual fee of $275 for precious metals accounts. No percentage-of-assets pricing.
2. Transaction Processing: Fees for processing investment transactions, distributions, and account maintenance activities within self-directed IRAs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

uDirect IRA Services is a third-party administrator that establishes and services self-directed retirement accounts (Traditional, Roth, SEP, SIMPLE, Solo 401(k), Inherited, and Health Savings Accounts), enabling individual investors to allocate retirement funds into alternative assets such as real estate, precious metals, cryptocurrency, private lending notes, and real estate syndications. Custodial and trust services are provided through its partner American Estate & Trust, LC (AET), a Nevada-licensed trust company. The company administers over $1 billion in assets for self-directed investors across the United States.

Product overview

uDirect IRA Services is a third-party administrator offering a suite of self-directed retirement account products. The core offering consists of multiple IRA account types (Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA, Solo 401(k), and Inherited IRA) that can all be self-directed to hold alternative assets. These account types share the common benefit of enabling investors to direct their retirement funds into a broad range of alternative investments including Real Estate (through Real Estate IRA, Syndications, and IRA-Owned LLC/Checkbook IRA structures), Precious Metals (Precious Metals IRA), Cryptocurrency (Crypto IRA), and Private Lending (Note Investing). The company administers over $1 billion in assets and provides custodial services through its partner American Estate & Trust, LC.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Traditional IRA A type of individual retirement account where pre-tax contributions may be tax-deductible and investments grow tax-deferred until withdrawals in retirement, made self-directed through uDirect's administration.
• Roth IRA A retirement account funded with after-tax dollars that allows tax-free growth and tax-free qualified withdrawals in retirement, administered as a self-directed account by uDirect.
• SEP IRA A Simplified Employee Pension plan for self-employed individuals and small business owners with higher contribution limits than traditional or Roth IRAs, made self-directed for alternative asset investments.
• SIMPLE IRA A Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees retirement plan for small businesses that allows both employer and employee contributions, administered on a self-directed basis.
• Solo 401(k) A retirement plan for self-employed individuals with no employees, offering high contribution limits and both traditional and Roth options, including a loan provision, and supporting alternative asset investments.
• Inherited IRA An IRA account passed down to a beneficiary after the original owner's death, subject to special withdrawal rules and timelines under the SECURE Act, administered on a self-directed basis.
• Real Estate IRA A self-directed IRA that holds real property as its investment, allowing investors to own rental properties, commercial real estate, raw land, and real estate notes within their retirement account.
• Precious Metals IRA A self-directed IRA that allows the purchase and storage of precious metals including gold, silver, platinum coins and bullion for retirement accounts, with a $275 annual fee and additional storage charges.
• Crypto IRA A self-directed IRA that holds cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and other digital assets) as investments within a tax-advantaged retirement account, facilitated through qualified digital asset custodians.
• Note Investing / Promissory Notes A self-directed IRA investment option that allows investors to act as a lender through secured or unsecured promissory notes, real estate deeds of trust, or UCC-1 filings.
• Real Estate Syndications IRA real estate syndication investments that allow multiple investors to pool resources to acquire larger properties such as apartment complexes or commercial buildings.
• Checkbook IRA (IRA-Owned LLC) An IRA-Owned LLC structure where the IRA invests into a specially structured LLC, giving investors direct control over check writing and faster execution for alternative asset transactions.
• Health Savings Account (HSA) A tax-advantaged savings account used for healthcare expenses that can serve as an effective tool for saving for future medical costs.

Quantifiable outcome

• $1 billion+ in assets administered across alternative investments
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• American Estate & Trust, LC (AET)coreOthersAmerican Estate & Trust, LC is a Nevada-licensed, bonded, and regulated trust company that serves as the custodian for uDirect IRA Services' client accounts. AET is regulated by the Financial Institutions Division of Nevada and holds license number TR10009. All client IRA cash is held in the AE-Trust Quick Access Fund until invested.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Equity Trust: One of the largest self-directed IRA custodians in the U.S., offering IRAs that hold alternative assets including real estate, private equity, and notes—directly competing with uDirect across nearly all asset categories.
• BitIRA: Cryptocurrency-focused self-directed IRA provider offering secure digital-asset custody within retirement accounts; directly competitive with uDirect's Crypto IRA offering.
• Directed IRA: Self-directed IRA custodian focused on alternative assets including real estate, private equity, and LLC-structured checkbook IRAs—directly comparable product mix to uDirect.
• Rocket Dollar: Specializes in self-directed Solo 401(k) and IRA accounts with checkbook-control/IRA-owned LLC structures, overlapping with uDirect's Checkbook IRA offering for real estate and active investors.
• Alto IRA: Tech-forward self-directed IRA platform offering alternative investments (crypto, real estate, venture, private equity) with a modern interface; competes directly with uDirect in the digital-asset and alternative-asset IRA segment.
• New Direction IRA: Self-directed IRA custodian offering real estate, precious metals, private placements, and notes inside retirement accounts; mirrors uDirect's traditional alternative-asset product set.
• STRATA Trust: Self-directed IRA custodian handling alternative investments including real estate, notes, and private placements; competes in the same mid-market alternative-asset IRA space.
• Kingdom Trust: Specialized self-directed IRA custodian supporting alternative investments including real estate, private equity, and cryptocurrency; competes head-to-head with uDirect for the same self-directed investor customer.
• iTrustCapital: Crypto-focused retirement account platform offering tax-advantaged trading of digital assets within IRAs; competes directly with uDirect's Crypto IRA product.
• Bitcoin IRA (by BitGo): Allows retirement accounts to hold Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with institutional-grade custody; competes with uDirect's Crypto IRA for digital-asset retirement allocations.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/udirectira
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCWAycexbDjYjHh8R8goug0A/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/uDirectIRA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/udirect-ira-services
• Instagraminstagram.com/udirectiraservices

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about uDirect IRA Services