STRATA Trust Review: Precious Metals IRA Fees, Storage Options, Pros and Cons (2026)

STRATA Trust Company, chartered and supervised by the Texas Department of Banking, holds precious metals IRAs for $150 a year plus storage and $75 per trade (September 29, 2026). So the real questions are what that adds up to at your balance, what it costs to leave, and how often you plan to trade. A gold IRA custodian is the licensed company that legally holds your IRA and keeps its records. A precious metals IRA is an IRA that owns physical gold, silver, platinum or palladium.

This STRATA Trust review checks the charter and owner, dates the summer 2026 fee increase from archived fee pages and prices a metals IRA at $50,000 and $250,000. It also covers the two vaults, the silver limit, the complaint and court record, the gold companies that use STRATA and who it suits. STRATA is one of the gold IRA custodians SafeOunce checks with the same charter, fee and complaint questions. This review covers STRATA Trust Company of Austin and Waco, Texas (stratatrust.com), not Strata Corporation, Citi Strata cards or a strata title property.

The facts below come from Texas banking records, STRATA's own pages, the BBB and Trustpilot, each dated.

Company website links in this table: SafeOunce earns nothing from these links.

Our STRATA Trust Verdict: Flat Yearly Fees, but $75 Every Time You Buy or Sell#

STRATA is a state-supervised Texas trust company with flat yearly fees, but its $75 charge per trade and $250 closing fee cost frequent buyers and early leavers the most. SafeOunce found no CFTC, SEC or Texas regulator action against it in searches on September 29, 2026. A per-trade fee is a charge each time metal is bought or sold in the IRA. At STRATA, it is $40 plus a $35 depository handling fee.

What should you check before a gold company opens your account at STRATA? Check three things: the fee schedule your account uses, where the metal is stored and whether it is segregated, and the exit cost in writing. Dealer-referred accounts can sit on a different schedule from STRATA's public page.

Look elsewhere if you plan to buy every month, hold less than $25,000 or may leave within two years. The STRATA verdict for everyone else is simpler. Its flat fee comes to $265 a year with shared storage and $325 segregated (fee page modified August 31, 2026). Its fees do not rise with your balance, and its pages say it does not pick or endorse dealers or prices.

What Is STRATA Trust Company? Charter, Regulator and Owner#

STRATA Trust Company is a Texas state-chartered trust company that acts as custodian for self-directed IRAs, including IRAs that hold gold, silver, platinum and palladium. It started in 2008 as Self Directed IRA Services, Inc. and took the STRATA name in 2017. STRATA says it holds more than $10 billion ("$10B+") in client assets, a company claim SafeOunce has not checked.

Why does the charter matter to you? The charter is what lets STRATA hold IRA money at all. It also names the regulator you can complain to: the Texas Department of Banking.

STRATA's Texas trust company charter: what the state approved in 2017#

The Texas Banking Commissioner approved STRATA's trust company charter, number 1047-29, on July 21, 2017, and STRATA opened under it on September 1, 2017. A trust company is a company licensed to hold other people's assets for them. The Texas Department of Banking record lists STRATA as a "Trust Company (Non-Exempt)" with status "Open" (September 29, 2026). It also says STRATA was formed by merger with Self-Directed IRA Services, Inc.

The approval is Texas Department of Banking Order No. 2017-009. It required "no less than $4 million in restricted capital" before STRATA could begin operations. Restricted capital is owners' money the company must keep in reserve. The $4 million was the requirement at opening in 2017; STRATA's current capital is not public.

The table lists four conditions in the 2017 charter order.

The order also barred dividends in STRATA's first three years without the regulator's approval. None of these conditions protects your account against every loss.

Austin home office, Waco operations: the names and addresses to check#

Texas banking records list STRATA's home office at 600 West 5th Street in Austin and a branch at 7901 Woodway Drive in Waco. Its BBB profile uses the Waco address. The state record shows the home office moved to Austin on November 27, 2023.

Check the name "STRATA Trust Company" in the Texas Department of Banking's entity search. Search its 2008 to 2017 name, Self Directed IRA Services, Inc., too, because older reviews use it.

Who owns and runs STRATA Trust?#

Texas banking records name Kelli Click as STRATA's chief executive but do not name an owner, as of September 29, 2026. The 2017 charter order allows audits "of its parent company" but names no parent.

STRATA's website code lists "Horizon Bank, SSB" as its founder. Advantage Gold's FAQ calls STRATA "a wholly-owned subsidiary of Horizon Bank". SafeOunce has not confirmed that ownership in a state filing.

STRATA's about page names five leaders. They are Kelli Click (President), Jeff Thompson (Executive Vice President) and Michele Maruri (Chief Financial Officer). The other two are Will Pascarella (Chief Technology Officer) and Jamie Reed (Chief Operating Officer, joined 2024).

What STRATA does and does not do for a gold IRA#

STRATA holds your IRA, pays the dealer on your written instruction, arranges storage and sends statements and tax forms. It does not choose, check or price the metal you buy.

The four jobs STRATA does are listed below.

• Custody: holds the IRA, which the tax code treats as a trust (26 U.S.C. 408(h)).
• Payments: pays the dealer from your IRA when you sign a purchase direction.
• Storage billing: bills the vault fee "in conjunction with your STRATA annual IRA fee".
• Reporting: values your metal at the spot price (today's market price for an ounce of raw metal) and files Forms 5498 and 1099-R.

The four things STRATA does not do are listed below.

• Dealer selection: STRATA "does not select or endorse specific dealers, metals, or pricing".
• Advice: it gives no investment, legal or tax advice.
• Metal insurance: the depository, not STRATA, carries the insurance.
• FDIC cover for metal: FDIC insurance covers only uninvested cash (money not yet spent on metal), up to $250,000 per depositor. Interest on that cash is "determined at STRATA's sole discretion" (fee page, September 29, 2026).

The SEC and NASAA investor alert on self-directed IRAs says the same of the industry: custodians "generally do not evaluate the quality or legitimacy of any investment".

No custodian checks gold IRA markups. The price you agree with the dealer carries the largest cost, explained in gold IRA markups and spreads.

Is STRATA Trust IRS-approved?#

No: STRATA is not on the IRS list of 73 approved nonbank trustees (as of April 1, 2026). It may hold IRAs because it is a state-supervised trust company, which the tax code treats as a bank (26 U.S.C. 408(n)).

STRATA's own fee page (read September 29, 2026) says its metals tier lets you "Hold IRS-approved gold, silver, platinum, and palladium coins and bullion". The IRS approves no coin or bar. The tax code instead lists which metals are IRA-eligible under 26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3).

What the IRS list covers is explained on our page about IRS-approved gold IRA custodians.

STRATA Trust Fees in 2026: The Full Precious Metals Fee Schedule#

STRATA charges $150 a year for a metals-only IRA, plus $115 for shared storage or $175 for segregated storage. It adds $75 each time metal is bought or sold (fee page modified August 31, 2026). Yearly fees are charged when the account opens and on each anniversary, and they are not prorated. Prorated means charged only for the part of the year you used.

The STRATA fee schedule calls the metals-only plan the Precious Metals Tier. Commingled storage keeps your coins with other owners' identical coins, still recorded as yours. Segregated storage keeps your coins apart and returns the same pieces.

The table lists every fee on STRATA's public fee page that applies to a metals-only IRA, read September 29, 2026.

These STRATA fees are custodian fees only; the dealer's markup never appears on this schedule. STRATA's $265 to $325 sits at the lower end of published gold IRA custodian fees ($215 to $656 a year at $50,000, September 29, 2026). It is above GoldStar and Equity Trust's metals-only schedule and below all-asset custodians.

STRATA's summer 2026 fee increase: $125 to $150 a year#

STRATA raised its metals-only annual fee from $125 to $150, and its shared storage fee from $100 to $115, between July 10 and September 7, 2026. Archived copies of its fee page in the Wayback Machine date the change. The live page shows a "modified" date of August 31, 2026, but no change date.

The table compares STRATA's fee page before and after the change.

The annual fee alone rose $25, or 20%. The $175 segregated fee did not change, and the $40 + $35 trade charge was the same before and after. The $35 handling fee has applied since May 1, 2024.

If a gold company quotes $125 or $100, ask whether that is STRATA's old public schedule or a dealer schedule. Then get the current one in writing.

$75 per trade: the fee that sets STRATA apart#

STRATA charges $40 plus a $35 depository handling fee, $75 in all, every time metal is bought, sold or exchanged. GoldStar charges no trade fee (GTC Rev. 01/2026), and Equity Trust's metals-only schedule (Rev. 081726) charges $30 per sale and nothing to buy, both read September 29, 2026. So the per trade cost is where STRATA differs most from Equity Trust and GoldStar.

The three worked cases below show what $75 means in dollars, on STRATA's fee page modified August 31, 2026.

• Monthly purchases: buying $500 of metal a month, $75 is 15% of each purchase, or $900 a year.
• One yearly Roth contribution: a full 2026 contribution for someone 50 or older is $8,600 ($7,500 plus the $1,100 catch-up, IRS Notice 2025-67). Adding it once a year, $75 is 0.87%.
• Four trades a year: they cost $300, more than a full year of segregated storage ($175).

Fees to leave STRATA or switch custodians: closure, transfer and re-registration#

Leaving STRATA costs $325 if you sell the metal and close the account. Moving the metal to another custodian costs $350 plus third-party fees, on the public fee page of August 31, 2026. Moving metal in kind means moving the actual coins and bars instead of selling them. Re-registration means retitling the metal to a new owner or custodian.

The table adds up the exit fees on STRATA's public fee page for each way out.

Leave before your account's opening anniversary. STRATA bills its yearly fees on that date and does not prorate them, so leaving just after it costs another $265 to $325 for a year you will not use.

STRATA's termination fees are the $250 closure and the $100 re-registration. Every custodian's exit charges are compared on gold IRA termination fees.

One 2025 Trustpilot reviewer reported paying $446.57 to close: $121.57 shipping, $250 termination, $40 liquidation and $35 wire. Each line matches an item on STRATA's schedule. The bill is the reviewer's statement; SafeOunce has not seen the invoice.

Whether the $100 re-registration ("due to transfer out, distribution, or reinstatement") also applies when metal ships to you is not established. Ask STRATA in writing first.

Switching gold IRA custodians in kind keeps the metal inside the IRA, so the move is not taxed. The steps and timelines for switching gold IRA custodians with metal in kind are in our transfer guide.

Why your gold company may quote different STRATA fees#

Five websites quoted five different STRATA prices on September 29, 2026, because some pages are out of date and STRATA keeps separate fee schedules for large dealers.

The table shows what each source says STRATA charges a metals-only IRA.

STRATA's fee page explains part of the gap: "STRATA maintains other institutional fee schedules for large-volume business providers." Large dealers can therefore sit on prices that no public page shows.

A fee that differs from the quote you were given is one of the hidden gold IRA fees to watch for. Charges that never reach the sales summary are listed in hidden gold IRA fees.

What a STRATA Gold IRA Costs at $50,000 and $250,000#

A metals-only IRA at STRATA costs $265 a year with shared storage or $325 with segregated storage, whether it holds $50,000 or $250,000 (fee page modified August 31, 2026). The flat fee does not grow with the metal's value. So the cost as a share of your STRATA gold IRA falls as the balance rises.

The table shows STRATA's yearly cost as dollars and as a share of the account.

Small accounts feel the flat fee most. STRATA's $325 segregated total is 6.50% a year of $5,000, 3.25% of $10,000 and 1.30% of $25,000, before any dealer markup. GoldStar's $215 shared-storage total is 4.30%, 2.15% and 0.86% of the same balances (September 29, 2026).

A gold IRA fee calculator shows how your own numbers compare. Test your own balance and trading plan in the gold IRA fee calculator.

STRATA 10-year cost with one purchase and one exit#

Over 10 years, one purchase, ten years of fees, one sale and closure cost $3,650 with segregated storage and $3,050 with shared storage at STRATA. The total is the same at $50,000 and $250,000, because every fee is flat.

On the schedule STRATA showed in July 2026, the same path cost $3,400 and $2,650. The summer increase adds $250 (segregated) and $400 (shared) over 10 years.

The example holds the metal price flat and leaves out wires, shipping and paper statements. It is arithmetic on the current schedule, not a forecast of future fees.

STRATA vs Equity Trust vs GoldStar at the same balances#

STRATA costs more each year than Equity Trust's metals-only schedule and GoldStar's shared storage, but its segregated storage becomes cheaper than GoldStar's above about $130,556.

The table compares three metals custodians' yearly and 10-year cost on their published schedules (read September 29, 2026).

Equity Trust fees on its metals-only schedule come to $235 or $285 a year. Equity Trust's four schedules are explained on our page about Equity Trust fees.

STRATA costs $30 to $40 a year more than Equity Trust and $50 more than GoldStar's shared storage. Its $75 trade charge widens the gap for anyone who trades.

GoldStar Trust fees for segregated storage rise with value. GoldStar's segregated fee (GTC Rev. 01/2026) grows by $1.80 per $1,000 above $125,000, so it matches STRATA's $325 at about $130,556 and reaches $540 at $250,000. How the value-based segregated charge works is on our page about GoldStar Trust fees.

Large segregated accounts are where STRATA beats GoldStar. At $250,000 over 10 years, GoldStar's segregated storage costs $5,660 against STRATA's $3,650, a $2,010 difference. Equity Trust's metals-only schedule stays lower at $3,180.

STRATA Storage Options: Delaware Depository or Texas Precious Metals Depository#

STRATA stores IRA metal at two vaults: Delaware Depository, in Wilmington, Delaware, and Boulder City, Nevada, and Texas Precious Metals Depository in Shiner, Texas. A depository is the vault that stores IRA metal for the custodian.

The table compares STRATA's two storage choices as listed on its metals page (read September 29, 2026).

STRATA bills storage "in conjunction with your STRATA annual IRA fee": $115 shared or $175 segregated a year.

These are flat gold IRA storage fees at any balance. STRATA's flat charge is compared with every custodian's on gold IRA storage fees.

Ask your gold company which vault it will ship to. Then confirm the account at the vault is titled to your IRA.

TPMD belongs to a company that also sells metal, which is worth knowing before you choose it. The Shiner vault's fees, insurance and ownership are covered on our Texas Precious Metals Depository page.

Commingled vs segregated storage at STRATA#

Segregated storage at STRATA costs $60 a year more than shared storage, $1,200 over 20 years, and returns the exact coins you bought. Commingled metal is still allocated to you, which means the vault records it as yours.

TPMD, which offers only segregated storage, puts it plainly: "When you later decide to sell, exchange, or take an in-kind distribution of your precious metals, you will receive the exact metals that you initially purchased."

Segregated vs commingled storage matters most for proof coins and rare dates, where the exact piece counts. The trade-offs are explained in segregated vs commingled storage.

Silver cannot be segregated at Delaware through STRATA#

STRATA's segregated storage at Delaware Depository covers gold, platinum and palladium but not silver. A silver owner who wants segregation through STRATA must store in Shiner, Texas. STRATA's metals page marks Delaware's segregated option "Yes (except silver)". Its fee page says segregated storage "applies to gold, platinum, and palladium".

Other custodians have similar limits. GoldStar segregates silver at Delaware only as 1,000-ounce bars.

TPMD segregates all four metals, including silver coins, "segregated, marked, and stored with your name and IRA account number". Insurance, audit and fee details are on our Delaware Depository page.

How STRATA storage is insured and audited#

The vaults, not STRATA, insure IRA metal: STRATA says its depositories are responsible for "carrying insurance, and conducting authentication testing". An all-risk policy covers every cause of loss that it does not exclude by name.

The three layers of protection are listed below.

• Delaware Depository: $1 billion all-risk plus $100 million contingent cover, per its FAQ (read September 29, 2026). It pays spot value, not premiums, and excludes war, terrorism, cyber attack and government confiscation. Exchange-grade metal alone at Delaware (about $1.77 billion, September 28, 2026) exceeds the $1 billion limit, so the cover is not a full backstop in a total loss. It has a SOC 1 Type I audit.
• TPMD: Lloyd's of London cover on "full replacement value", marked daily to the LBMA price, and a yearly audit by ADKF of San Antonio (2025 archived page; limit not published).
• STRATA itself: its 2017 charter order requires annual unqualified audits and bond coverage. STRATA also says it carries fiduciary liability, D&O and cyber insurance, a company claim.

Gold IRA storage insurance differs by vault. What the vault policies pay and exclude is explained in gold IRA storage insurance.

What Metals STRATA Accepts: Coins, Bars and Proofs#

STRATA accepts gold of at least 99.5% purity, silver 99.9%, and platinum and palladium 99.95%, plus the American Eagle coins the tax code names. Fineness is the share of pure metal, so .995 fineness means 99.5% gold.

The table lists STRATA's purity rules and examples from its allowable-metals page (read September 29, 2026).

The gold, silver (1 oz) and platinum American Eagles qualify by name under 26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3)(A); the Gold Eagle does so although it is only .9167 fine. The other products on the list are among the precious metals the tax code allows by fineness, under 408(m)(3)(B). Our page on the precious metals the tax code allows explains the legal test behind these lists.

Bars must come from refiners approved by bodies such as NYMEX, COMEX, LME, LBMA or ISO 9000, or from a national mint. ISO 9000 is a general quality certificate, not a refining accreditation.

Proof coins must be "encapsulated in complete, original mint packaging, in excellent condition, and include the certificate of authenticity". A proof coin is a collector finish struck with polished dies. What custodians accept for proof coins in an IRA, and at what markup, is on our proof coin page.

Products STRATA refuses, even when a dealer sells them for IRAs#

STRATA refuses rare or collectible coins, the Krugerrand, the British Sovereign, pre-2013 Britannias, LBMA Germania Mint products and "Mexican Peso and Onza" coins, among others.

The main products on STRATA's refused list are listed below.

• Rare or collectible coins of any kind
• South African Krugerrand (.9167 fine, not IRA-eligible)
• British Sovereign
• British Britannia struck before 2013
• Austrian Corona and Ducat
• Mexican Peso and Onza
• LBMA Germania Mint products
• Old national coins, such as Belgian, Chilean, Colombian, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian and Swiss coins

In a February 25, 2026 BBB complaint, STRATA refused a customer's NTR Metals silver bars. It cited a "conservative approach" that requires visible mint marks. The customer said the bars met the purity rule, and STRATA kept its policy.

Whether the "Mexican Peso and Onza" exclusion covers gold Libertads is not established. Ask STRATA before buying gold Libertads.

The legal rules on coins and bars you cannot hold in an IRA apply at every custodian; STRATA's list adds its own refusals.

STRATA's Complaint and Legal Record#

STRATA's record shows 9 BBB complaints in three years, a 4.8 Trustpilot score and no regulator action found, as of September 29, 2026. The one federal lawsuit SafeOunce found naming STRATA, filed in 2021, was dropped by the plaintiffs 36 days later. For STRATA Trust Company reviews, this complaint record is the part most readers want first.

The table sums up STRATA's complaint and legal record.

BBB and Trustpilot numbers, and what they miss#

STRATA has an A+ BBB grade without paid accreditation and 9 complaints closed in three years (September 29, 2026). On Trustpilot it scores 4.8 from 1,866 reviews on the same date. The BBB complaints split into service (4), customer service (3), billing (1) and product (1).

On Trustpilot, 73% of reviews give five stars and 10% give one star, or about 190 one-star reviews. Trustpilot marks STRATA as a company that asks customers for reviews, which can lift five-star shares.

The BBB grade mostly measures how a company answers complaints, and accreditation is a paid membership. For scale, Equity Trust has an A+ with 139 complaints and GoldStar an A+ with 3 (September 29, 2026).

Trustpilot ratings and BBB grades are signals, not verdicts. Why Trustpilot ratings and BBB grades mislead is explained in our ratings guide.

What unhappy STRATA customers report: slow exits and exit fees#

In STRATA's 19 most recent one-star Trustpilot reviews, 14 (74%) are about slow sales, transfers and closures or the fees charged on the way out. SafeOunce counted them on September 29, 2026. The four patterns below are reviewer and complainant statements, not findings.

• Slow exits: reviewers describe a transfer taking a month and a four-month inherited-account liquidation. In a November 2024 BBB complaint, a $14,195.30 check arrived after six weeks of daily calls.
• Exit fees: reviewers name the $250 closure on a liquidated account and the $446.57 closing bill.
• Service: reviewers describe condescending or conflicting answers.
• Access: reviewers report login problems and a depository visit blocked by vehicle rules. STRATA's pickup rules ask for the vehicle make, model and plate, a driver's license and at most one guest.

At least three BBB complaints ended in the customer's favor. A late fee posted before its due date was waived. A closure fee was cut to a promised $150, and a $100 transfer fee was refunded.

You can protect yourself against each pattern. Get the exit fee quote in writing, and send transfer paperwork by trackable mail and email. Download your statements before you start, and keep dated notes of every call.

Court cases and regulator actions involving STRATA#

SafeOunce found one federal suit naming STRATA as a defendant and one Texas order naming it as custodian in a case against a gold dealer; neither found wrongdoing by STRATA.

George v. Strata Trust Company, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, No. 1:21-cv-00404, was a contract claim filed June 14, 2021. It named STRATA and "Vault Metal". The court granted the plaintiffs' own motion to dismiss on July 20, 2021, and no court ruled on the claims, according to the Justia docket.

Texas State Securities Board v. GSI Exchange: Emergency Cease and Desist Order ENF-21-CDO-1844 (July 22, 2021) targeted dealer True Bullion LLC (GSI Exchange), covering more than 450 investors in 44 states and more than $32 million. It found investors were told to buy metals "through self-directed individual retirement accounts at STRATA Trust Company". STRATA was the custodian, not a respondent.

STRATA's year-end 2020 records valued investor R.H.'s 413 gold coins at $473.03 each, against $647.20 paid. That is a $71,932.21 (26.9%) paper loss. GSI had paid $503.00 a coin, so its margin was 28.7% over its cost. GSI's consent order (ENF-23-CDO-1875, effective September 15, 2023) offered refunds, and GSI neither admitted nor denied the findings.

SafeOunce found no CFTC, SEC, Texas Department of Banking or Texas State Securities Board action against STRATA in searches on September 29, 2026. The GSI Exchange case and every other we track are in our list of precious metals IRA enforcement actions.

Which Gold IRA Companies Use STRATA Trust?#

At least five gold IRA companies and dealers name STRATA as their custodian on their own websites, and American Bullion says it works with STRATA exclusively (September 29, 2026).

The table lists companies that name STRATA on their own pages.

Some review sites also link Goldco to STRATA. Goldco's site does not name a custodian, so SafeOunce does not list it.

How does an account open through one of these companies? The four steps are listed below.

1. Apply online: the gold company or you apply, and an online application waives the $50 setup fee (fee page, August 31, 2026).
2. Fund by direct transfer: ask for a trustee-to-trustee transfer, which has no 60-day clock, no once-a-year limit and no withholding. A 60-day rollover is limited to one per 12 months across all your IRAs (Bobrow v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2014-21; IRS Announcement 2014-15).
3. Sign the purchase direction: STRATA then pays the dealer from your IRA.
4. Start the fee clock: the first $75 trade fee is charged, and your opening date becomes your yearly billing date.

American Bullion offers "Free Storage and $0 Custodian Account Fees: for the 1st Year!" on rollovers of at least $50,000. Its offer page says "Your total savings will be $350", and its STRATA plans ($25 setup plus $160, $200 or $275 a year) differ from STRATA's public schedule. Against a hypothetical 5% dealer spread on $50,000 ($2,500), $350 covers 14% of it. The waiver does not change what you pay from year two, or at exit.

No-fee gold IRA offers cover year one, not the exit. What free-year and fees-paid promises are worth is covered in no-fee gold IRA offers.

The "designated representative" clause in Advantage Gold's terms#

Advantage Gold's terms say that when you open an IRA at STRATA, Advantage is "initially appointed as your designated self-directed individual retirement account representative, subject to your removal". The same terms call STRATA "a directed (passive) custodian". They add that Advantage Gold "is not an affiliate of either STRATA or Horizon Bank".

If you do not want it, remove the designation in writing and ask STRATA to confirm. SafeOunce read only Advantage Gold's terms, so do not assume other dealers use the same clause.

Taking Metal Out of STRATA: Sales, In-Kind Distributions and Statement Values#

You can take value out of a STRATA IRA in three ways: sell the metal, take the coins themselves, or transfer them to another custodian. Each route has its own fees on STRATA's fee page (modified August 31, 2026), listed below.

1. Sell through a dealer: pay $75 per sale, then take a cash distribution or transfer the cash. The dealer, not STRATA, sets the price.
2. Take the metal in kind: pay $35 handling, $10 and the shipping cost, and ask STRATA whether the $100 re-registration also applies. An in-kind distribution means taking the coins instead of cash, and it is taxed like a cash withdrawal.
3. Transfer in kind to another custodian: pay $250 plus $100 re-registration plus third-party fees. A direct transfer is not taxable.

STRATA values distributed metal at the "spot value of the metals on the date the assets leave the account". Your statements show that metal value, not what you paid. Why a gold IRA statement shows less than you paid is explained in our statement guide.

STRATA reports each distribution on Form 1099-R, the tax form for money or metal taken out of an IRA. Distributed metal can also move into a personal vault account at Delaware Depository or TPMD as a "reportable distribution".

A metals-only IRA holds no cash, so no tax can be withheld from an in-kind distribution unless some metal is sold first, at another $75. The taxable value is set on the day the metal leaves, and it can move in a fast market.

To undo a distribution, "the exact metals originally distributed must generally be returned ... within 60 days". Claims for lost packages must reach STRATA within 7 days. Taxes, withholding and the steps are covered in gold IRA distributions.

STRATA Trust Pros and Cons#

STRATA's six strengths are its state charter, flat published fees and storage choice; its six weaknesses are trade and exit fees, a 2026 increase and customer-reported slow exits. The table sets each strength against a weakness, from the fee page of August 31, 2026 and records read September 29, 2026.

Who STRATA Trust Suits, and Who Should Choose Another Custodian#

STRATA suits someone who buys metal once, holds it for years and wants a flat fee. It does not suit monthly buyers, small balances or anyone likely to leave within two years. The table matches six reader situations to a verdict, using published schedules read September 29, 2026.

Should you still choose STRATA? You should if your gold company uses it, you buy once and you plan to hold for 10 years or more. At that pace, trade fees are $150 of a $3,650 segregated total.

Under $25,000, a gold ETF held in an existing IRA avoids storage and trade fees. For small balances, see gold IRA vs gold ETF.

You should ask five questions before your account opens at STRATA. They are listed below.

1. Ask which STRATA fee schedule your account uses, with its date.
2. Ask which vault the metal goes to, and whether it is segregated.
3. Ask for the total cost to leave, in writing, by sale and by transfer, and note your billing anniversary.
4. Ask whether your gold company will be your "designated representative", and what that allows.
5. Ask for the depository's holdings list after your first purchase.

How Does STRATA Compare With Other Gold IRA Custodians?#

Among the three metals custodians compared here, STRATA costs the most for shared storage, and for segregated storage below about $130,556. Above that balance, GoldStar's value-based fee passes STRATA's flat $325. Equity Trust's metals-only schedule stays lowest for segregated storage at every balance.

Which self-directed IRA company is best? The cheapest custodian depends on your balance, storage type and how often you trade. The best gold IRA custodians for a monthly buyer charge no trade fee, as GoldStar does (September 29, 2026). A large segregated account does best with a flat storage fee, as at Equity Trust or STRATA. Rankings by real cost are on best gold IRA custodians.

IRA Financial vs STRATA Trust#

For a metals-only IRA, IRA Financial charges $495 a year plus storage it does not publish, against STRATA's $150 plus $115 or $175. IRA Financial's price includes unlimited purchases, on its fee page effective January 1, 2026. Its termination fee is $250, the same as STRATA's.

The "IRA Financial vs STRATA Trust Company" page that ranks for STRATA searches was written by IRA Financial's founder, Adam Bergman (August 25, 2026). It prices STRATA at its $395 Flex Tier, not the metals-only tier.

IRA Financial fees suit frequent buyers better than STRATA's $75 per trade. The all-asset custodian's schedule is on our page about IRA Financial fees.

How to complain about STRATA or report a problem#

Complain to STRATA in writing first, then to the Texas Department of Banking, which supervises Texas trust companies and asks them to respond within 10 working days. The department's Consumer Assistance office is at 2601 N. Lamar Blvd., Austin, TX 78705-4294. Its toll-free number is (877) 276-5554, and it takes complaints online.

Send copies of your statements and dated call notes with the complaint.

A gold IRA company that sold you the metal is a dealer, and dealer problems go to a different agency, such as a state securities regulator. Which agency handles dealer problems is on how to report a gold IRA company.

Is STRATA Trust Company legit?#

Yes: STRATA is an operating Texas-chartered trust company (charter 1047-29) supervised by the Texas Department of Banking, with no regulator action found as of September 29, 2026. Legit does not mean cheap: its $75 trade fee is higher than GoldStar's ($0) or Equity Trust's ($30 per sale) on schedules read September 29, 2026.

What is STRATA Trust's phone number and address?#

STRATA's BBB profile lists (866) 928-9394 and 7901 Woodway Dr, Waco, TX 76712. Texas banking records list its home office at 600 West 5th Street, Austin, TX 78701 (September 29, 2026).

Is STRATA Trust the same as Strata Corporation or a strata title?#

No: STRATA Trust Company is an IRA custodian in Texas, not Strata Corporation, Citi Strata credit cards or a strata title property. A strata title is a form of property ownership in Canada and Australia.

Can you keep STRATA IRA gold at home?#

No: IRA bullion must be in the physical possession of a trustee under 26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3)(B). Keeping it at home counts as a taxable distribution (McNulty v. Commissioner, 157 T.C. No. 10, 2021).

The court case is covered on home storage gold IRA.

What was Self Directed IRA Services, Inc.?#

Self Directed IRA Services, Inc. was STRATA's name from 2008 until it became STRATA Trust Company in 2017 under its new Texas trust charter. Reviews written before 2017 use the old name.

Other custodians' old and new names are listed in our gold IRA custodian guide.