Q&A: IRA advisory fees

Q: An IRA I set up years ago now has a sizable balance, but I'm not sure the investments in it are still appropriate. If I have an investment manager review them and advise me, can I deduct the fees?

A: As long as the advisory fees are "ordinary and necessary" and you pay them separately rather than have the manager subtract them from your IRA assets, you should be able to deduct them. You can include the fees with your other investment-related expenses on Schedule A of your tax return and deduct the portion that exceeds 2 percent of your adjusted gross income.