At Quest Trust Company our World Famous Customer Service begins and ends with our clients. So, when it comes to our fee structure we want to keep it simple and transparent. Also, every dollar you spend on a Quest Trust fee goes back into making sure your self-directed IRA experience with us is the best it can be.
While other IRA custodians may boast cheaper fees, you may find that their services do not meet all of your needs. Although our fee structure might not be the cheapest, our fees remain average with industry standards. You will find that the customer service and education we provide will easily pay for itself, and you’ll receive a much higher value for only a slightly more expensive fee.
What Fees Can I Expect To See?
With a Self-Directed IRA at Quest, you will never experience a hidden charge. Our outlined Fee Schedule allows you to accurately plan for any fees you would expect to see during an investment, ensuring you never have to be shocked by an unplanned charge. Additionally, with 3 different Annual Fee Plans, you have the option to choose the best structure that works for you rather than being locked into an all-inclusive plan that may not fit your needs.
Initial Fees:
Getting started is easy and won’t cost you an arm and a leg. For just $100, we can establish and generate an account number for a new self-directed IRA. Then, when you’re ready to fund your first transaction, there’s only a few charges you’ll incur. Any other fee you’d see at Quest would surround account maintenance, such as end of year reporting or additional investment processing, or yearly investment fee plans.
With Option 1, or the “Fee Based on Number of Assets” option, you will pay a flat fee of $350 per asset per year. At the time you purchase your investment, this fee will be assessed and you can expect to see it a year later on the same date. If you select Option 2, the “Fee Based on Total Account Value” option, your fees will be quarterly and will depend on the total account value, meaning the value of the assets and the cash. You can see below that this option is tiered. Note – if you have cash in the account but do not have any assets, this chart will not apply and you will only be charged the $30 quarterly maintenance fee.
The last option is Option 3, The Gold Family Concierge Plan. This is our all-inclusive plan at $3,000 a year. With The Gold Family option, you can open multiple accounts for you and your immediate family without having to pay the $100 account opening fee. All other fees are included with this fee plan, except for a few special fees like asset research and overnight mail costs. On top of the fee benefits, there are many others that you can find in our FAQ section below.
Transaction Fees:
When you do a transaction at Quest, our Quest representatives will work diligently with third parties to ensure your investments is funded smoothly. At the time we conduct a new transaction, there may be a few fees you could incur. Purchasing, selling, exchanging, or re-registering an asset will have a $125 transaction fee and you can either choose to send the funds for different costs, as seen below. The “Other Fees” section contains fees you will see at Quest if you select to use an optional service, require paper versions of certain online documents, or incur a late fee. These do not always apply. Other fees such as the Non-Recourse Loan fee, Roth Conversion fees, and Asset Research fee may not apply to your situation, so these fees are only assessed if applicable. Learn more about when this fee is charged in the FAQs!
Self-directing shouldn’t come with aggressive fees every way you turn, which is why we believe in only charging a few main fees for the more difficult services we provide. As you shop around, you’ll see our fees remain average with other custodians in the industry. We are confident that our service will show any potential or current client the value of Quest Trust Company.
If you have questions about our services or fees, give us a call at 281.492.3434. To learn more about how to get started investing with a self-directed IRA, schedule a 1-on-1 consultation with an IRA Specialist by clicking HERE.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fee Schedule FAQs
What if I have chosen to pay my fees by deducting from my account, but there is no cash available to deduct the fee from?- If we cannot deduct the fee from your account, we will default to the credit card we have on file.
- Quest will reach out to the client in order to obtain correct card information. If we are unable to reach the client after a certain time, the account could be closed due to unpaid fees.
- Yes! You can always change your fee option based on what fits your wealth building strategy at the time!
- No, there is no cost to change your fee selection.
- If you would like to change fee schedules, you can change your fee option by submitting an updated Fee Schedule document in the Client Portal!
- There is no limit for the number of times you can change your fee option!
- The quarterly fees are assessed at the end of March, June, September, and December.
- There are a few ways you can elect to pay your fees. You can either pay your fees via credit or debit card or you can choose to deduct the fees from your Quest account.
– Gold Member Concierges provides additional benefits you can’t get with other options. You will have a designated rep with the Gold Member Concierge service to ensure account business is handled properly and in a timely manner. Additionally, you’ll get special reminders to make your account management easy, such as maturity date and other notices, as well as access to private events exclusively for Gold Family Members.
- Quest does not have any account minimums. You can open a new account without putting anything into you; we simply ask that we have a credit card on file at the time we establish your new account.
- No! Certain fees will only apply to specific investments. The Non-Recourse fee will only apply to debt-leveraged loans. The Roth Conversion Asset fee will only apply if you are converting an asset from a Traditional account to a Roth account. The Asset Research Fee will only apply if you elect to have Quest do the annual research, but you have the option to do this yourself with no charge. If you require a specialty service, you will see the hourly Special Services fee.
- Quest does not charge when funds are moving into your Quest account. There could be a fee for funds that are outgoing.
- Certain investments like auction properties will require cashier’s checks. If needed, this is when the Cashier Check fee will be charged.
- If your account is open but you do not have any investments, there will be a quarterly maintenance charge of $30.
- Certain investments will work better for different plans! It’s important to look at things like the cost of the investment, the duration, and how many investments you plan to do. If you are unsure which fee plan is best for you, you can call an IRA Specialist and we can help!
Here is an example of the fees you may see when you open your Self-Directed IRA and do your first transaction:
John attends a Quest Lunch & Learn and decides he is ready to start a Roth IRA. When John opens his account, he will pay $100. Luckily, he heard of a limited promotion that Quest was running and was able to start his account at no cost at all! After only a few days his account is open, and John is ready to roll over his old 401(k). John doesn’t incur any expense for this process, nor will he ever have to worry about paying fees for any incoming funds. When money is coming into your Quest account, we do not charge a fee.
A week or two goes by, John’s funds have arrived in his IRA, and now he is ready to invest his IRA into a perfect rental property he has found! He calls a Quest transaction representative to get help with his transaction. He fills out a Direction of Investment form and provides a few supporting documents. While his Quest representative works with the title company to complete all funding documents, John is charged a $125 transaction fee (and his choice of either a $30 wire or $5 check fee) for this purchase of his new investment.
The last fee John can expect to see will be his Administrative Fee, which is the costs for us to hold and maintain his new SDIRA asset. Depending on what option he has selected when he filled out his account opening paperwork, he can expect to see an annual fee every year on the anniversary of his purchase or he will see a quarterly fee based on his account value at the time the fee is assessed (different based on his Fee Option he previously selected). John doesn’t have to worry about paying fees when monthly rental income from the property comes back to his SDIRA. If John were to have an expense that needed to be paid, he would only need to be aware of the cost to send his check ($5) or wire ($30).