Now it is possible to sell options inside your IRA and many people do. I do not recommend it for the most part. Why?

Because it is still more riskly than just owning a bunch of boring dividend paying stocks. If you are an OptionGenius member you can see how I invest my own funds and the allocation. But in my retirement accounts, I am mainly invested in stocks. I do sell covered calls and sometimes some puts, and the occasional credit spread/condor/ or butterfly. But those are the exception.

I use my normal trading accounts for the bulk of my option selling trades.  Several reasons.

1. I like to take the gains out to live on and enjoy. Can’t take your profits out of an IRA and I want to enjoy my gains now.

2. The gains can be offset by any losses you may be carrying on your income tax.

3. You could use portfolio margin if you wanted to lever up and go for bigger % gains.

4. I don’t want to wait for some government mandated age before I retire. I want to do it much sooner and I cannot do that if my money is tied up and I cannot touch it.

Just some food for thought.

How To Invest For Retirement is a post from Option Selling.
To learn how you too can earn 8-12% Monthly Returns Safely and Conservatively check out OptionGenius.com

I just found out in my IRA account at Schwab, I can not trade any option spreads or Iron Condors on any Index.

My response:

It is not that you cannot trade these in your IRA. It is that Schwab will not let you. Big difference. I trade these in my IRA all day long and twice on Sundays. (joke).
 
If you are willing to switch brokers you can as well.

Big name brokers like Schwab like to protect themselves. They know that the general public is not sophisticated enough to be able to trade options much less sell options so in order to “protect” their customers they limit what types of trades you can do in your IRA account.

If it’s my money, I should be able to do whatever I want with it.

I used to have an IRA account at Fidelity. I had to “qualify” to be able to sell options in that account. There are different levels of options qualifications. They actually asked me several questions about my option trading experience before I could sell options in that IRA account.

Even then, I was severely limited in what types of trades I could do. Covered calls and credit spreads were OK, anything more complicated was not. Their order screen would not even take an option trade with more than 2 options.

So I switched my IRA (which is a Roth IRA in case anyone was interested), to an option friendly broker. No hassle, no questions, no fuss. My account was opened and I can do any trade I want. Even futures!

Selling options and complex trades are allowed in your retirement accounts. The bigger brokers do not allow it because they do not want to get sued if you blow up your account. But there are other brokers who do allow it.

I even know people with Real Estate in their IRA account.

Option Selling In Your IRA is a post from Option Selling.
To learn how you too can earn 8-12% Monthly Returns Safely and Conservatively check out OptionGenius.com