 But the difference was my 401k a la rent house paid me rent every month for the entire 35 years I was a real estate investor. Your 401k paid you squat. And you know it. So now people ask me, and this is what turns out. I got an email the other day. A lady asked me, should I take my money out of my 401k and put it in a self-directed IRA? No. That's exactly the same thing.