There are people that prefer taking charge or having complete control over matters, especially if they're directly affective by the outcome of such events. This type of person doesn't like putting the situation into the hands of others ? they feel that they can do a better job at handling the way things should be going down. Moving forward, retirement is an inevitable phase in everyone's life. No matter how many hours you spend working out at the gym, regardless of how many anti-oxidants you pop daily, you're still going to grow old and die. But before you do meet your maker, you're going to retire from work first. Countless individuals, in preparation of retirement, make sure that they come up with a retirement plan that'll ensure they live the remaining years in their lives to the fullest (in comfort and style). One plan many of them choose to use as a vehicle is self directed IRA (Individual Retirement Account). This works like a savings account, only it has certain benefits that for you to enjoy. The main advantage with self-directed IRA is that you have complete control of the steering wheel here. That means you're the guy making all the decisions here, calling the shots, and running the show. That's good news for the type of chap that doesn't like having somebody do it for him. There won't be any external intervention with how you run things here, unless the rules and regulations of the self-directed IRA changes, and that's when the guys you're dealing with will tell you that you need to make adjustments as deemed necessary. But anyway, you're still in control, which is all that matters. Here are more facts about this type of IRA: you make regular contributions to the account as to allow it to grow nice and ?fat?. Since you're the guy making all the decisions, you may choose to invest the money you've deposited in the self-directed IRA into something else. That's one advantage with that comes with this sweet puppy. Here's another: the profit that's reaped from the investment you pooled the money from the self-directed IRA into, will come tax-free. That's huge, and is perhaps the biggest benefit for putting such a plan into action. It not only helps you save money for the retirement days soon to come, but provide you with an outstanding opportunity to maximize investment profits. But as we all know, with something good, corresponds something bad (in most cases). There are some instances when you won't be able to enjoy every benefit the account may come with. An example would be being covered by other retirement plans. For a more detailed explanation of the no-no's you shouldn't be doing, you better go see a financial adviser. This is the guy that can walk you through the entire process of setting up a self-directed IRA, the suggested ?actions? for you to take, the best investments for you to invest in, as well the no-no's you should avoid. Not only that, he'll also be able to keep you posted in case of any changes in the rules and regulations, so you won't be caught off guard, and know the steps to take in case of such an event.