[quote author="IrvineRenter" date=1254222799][quote author="momopi" date=1254101043]Can anyone recommend a service to set up self-directed IRA?</blockquote>
I used to work with one of the foremost experts in the country for using self-directed IRAs to invest.
<a href="http://www.theentrustgroup.com/">Entrust Administration</a> has a <a href="http://www.theentrustgroup.com/elc/">Learning Center</a> with all the information you could want. In particular, you will want to read the <a href="http://www.theentrustgroup.com/elc/knowledge/article/9/76/">Swanson decision</a>. You can find a link to the PDF of the entire decision <a href="http://checkbookira.net/legal.html">here</a>.
Check out the sites: <a href="http://www.checkbookira.com/">Checkbook IRA</a> and <a href="https://www.iraservices.com/">IRA Services</a>. IRA Services is the custodian I use.
From there, you can do a Google search that will turn up other resources.
Basically, (1) you open and fund a Roth IRA with a Custodian (fancy term for an an IRA administrator). (2) You form an LLC. (3) You tell your custodian to take the money you put into the IRA and buy all the shares of the LLC. (4) the Custodian will send you a check written out to the LLC. (5) You open a bank account for the LLC and deposit the check. (6) You send the custodian an confirmation that the LLC got the money and that the IRA is now the owner of an LLC. (7) At that point, you are in complete control of the money in your Roth IRA that you can use to invest in whatever you want. There are rules you have to follow, but you have tremendous freedom.</blockquote>
I clicked the thanks button, but I need to thank you in a post. Thank you... thank you sooooooo much. Hopefully no one else will recommend transferring anything to anyone other than the LLC they set up. But, we will see.