If you’ve always lived on one of the two great coasts of the United States, chances are that you’ve embraced the gateway cities. Large cities like New York and Los Angeles are obvious choices for retirement and commercial real estate investing for their massive populations for the simple reason that a lot of people live there—and a lot of things tend to happen in large gateway cities. Whether you’re using a Self-Directed IRA or not, living in a gateway city often means you’ll enjoy staying in a gateway city as well.

But what about the rest of the country? The truth is, you don’t have to abandon the idea of living in a big city just because you don’t live in one of the major “gateway” cities. And if you want to get the most value out of your Self-Directed IRA dollar,  you’ll want to know where you can find them! Recently, NREIOnline offered their choices for the best non-gateway cities to invest in commercial real estate. I agree with some of them—and I’ll tell you why here—but I also have a few of my own to recommend.

Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina

The home of Raleigh-Durham International Airport, this is a larger metropolitan area than you might think—especially since so many people outside of the state assume that North Carolina is home only to Charlotte. But this major sports center is home to excellent home values, high-quality education, and some of the best scenery along the eastern seaboard. Raleigh, as the capital of North Carolina, is far from a gateway city—but for those considering retirement with a Self-Directed IRA, it might represent one of the best ways to get the most for your investment dollar.

Charlotte, North Carolina

We’re not quite so ready to exit North Carolina just yet. Charlotte is the largest city in North Carolina, to be sure, but that doesn’t make it a gateway city. It does, however, warrant your consideration for retirement if you want to live in a high-quality metropolitan area with factors that factor Self-Directed IRA holders. For instance, the quality of real estate you can acquire in the Charlotte area remains high if you’re investing in real estate through your IRA.

Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

Okay, you got me: Dallas/Fort Worth is large enough to be considered a gateway city. But when it comes to “Flyover country” between the two coasts, there may be no bigger market. The Dallas and Fort Worth metropolitan area isn’t just large in terms of population—like the rest of the state, the commercial real estate is bigger here. There’s plenty of wide-open space to be found and plenty of opportunities if you want to look for commercial real estate to use in your Self-Directed IRA. NREI’s staff gave it a weighted score of 89, far outpacing even other high-quality metropolitan areas like Atlanta (58).

Nashville, Tennessee

Outscoring even Dallas/Fort Worth on the NREI list, Nashville, Tennessee is one of the best places to consider for Self-Directed IRA retirement—period. So it’s not a surprise to see Nashville on the list of best places to invest in commercial real estate. With the favorable tax environment of the state of Tennessee, all sorts of economic activities have plenty of breathing room—and that includes commercial real estate. Nashville is also a cultural center that hosts an SEC school and an international airport, which always keeps commercial real estate in high demand.

What about my own suggestions? Let’s take a look at another non-gateway city for anyone investing in CRE with their Self-Directed IRA:

Phoenix, Arizona

How do people keep forgetting about Phoenix? It’s one of the largest cities in the United States and features strong demand for retirees, but many people forget all about it when they talk about gateway cities as well as commercial real estate. The Phoenix-Scottsdale metropolitan area is not only large enough to host just about any retiree’s greatest dreams, but represents plenty of opportunity for anyone investing in commercial real estate through their Self-Directed IRA.

Las Vegas, Nevada

No one forgets about Las Vegas, but when it comes to non-gateway cities, it might be one of the most intriguing markets out there thanks to interesting commercial real estate property values—not right on the strip, of course—and plenty of good weather.

If you’re interested in making the most of your own real estate investments, it’s time to learn how you can use a Self-Directed IRA to invest in commercial real estate. Keep reading our blogs here at AmericanIRA.com or get involved by phoning us at 866-7500-IRA to learn all about how a Self-Directed IRA can help you learn all there is to know about your financial future—and how to take control of that future.