Gold and silver investments provide protection from inflation while giving private investors an opportunity to diversify their retirement portfolios with tangible assets. The cost of physical precious metals IRAs depends on associated fees such as account setup or custodian charges; their price varies accordingly.
Physical gold does not generate dividends or interest like stocks, mutual funds or ETFs, so it must be stored and insured at an IRS-approved facility.
1. Self-Directed IRA
Self-Directed Individual Retirement Accounts (SDIRAs) provide you with an alternative means of investing, including physical precious metals. Through Madison Trust or similar custodians, SDIRAs allow you to expand beyond traditional Wall Street assets when considering your investing strategies.
First, locate a reliable IRS-approved SDIRA custodian who offers a selection of investments. Once found, instruct them to purchase gold from any dealer of your choosing. Be aware that scammers may use an SDIRA as an entryway into fraud; scammers could exploit its flexibility by investing in unproven investments with claims of unreasonably high returns and no third-party oversight as red flags for fraudulent investments.
Your SDIRA custodian then takes physical possession of the precious metal, before moving it to an approved depository for safekeeping until you are legally eligible to remove it from storage facility and liquidate or take possession in-kind.
2. Custodian
Custodians are trusted individuals or companies who safeguard assets on behalf of investors. They oversee legal ownership of schemes, record transactions in identifiable accounts, and execute documents.
Investment advisors frequently utilize custodian services to protect client funds. But these must comply with SEC custody rules.
When purchasing precious metals with your IRA funds, make sure that the dealer you select is part of an industry trade organization like the American Numismatic Association or Industry Council for Tangible Assets. This will ensure you find a reputable dealer dedicated to providing excellent service.
If you want to invest in physical gold, 8853 SPA offers custodian services to keep your investments safe and secure. Simply visit one of our locations or contact us online and request their service as custodian for your physical gold purchases.
3. Storage
Many investors choose to store their gold at home in either a safe or bank safety deposit box for convenience, affordability and easy withdrawal.
But this approach comes with risks. Many homeowners insurance policies don’t cover gold and silver investments, while their value-to-size ratio can quickly push them past an insurer’s cap in a bank safety deposit box. Furthermore, access to bank vaults is usually limited during business hours and can even be compromised by attempted robberies.
Some major bullion dealers provide storage vault services for their customers’ coins, rounds, bars and bullion items for a small fee. These dealers frequently conduct independent third-party audits as well as multi-redundant security systems with 24-hour surveillance cameras, armed guards, alarm systems and the option to borrow against your metals (though this may not always be available). Some also allow borrowing against these metals (though not in all 50 states).
4. Insurance
Some investors look to gold as an asset that can protect them in times of economic chaos, as well as an inflation hedge. Due to current policies like near-zero interest rates and government spending that drives up inflation rates, many see gold as a way of diversifying away from traditional stocks and bonds.
Investors looking to add gold or other precious metals to their IRA have various options available to them when adding precious metals such as bullion to their investment portfolio, including buying actual bullion and keeping it either at home or in a safe deposit box. However, for some investors a more hands-on approach might involve purchasing actual bullion directly and keeping it as an actual physical investment.
If you decide to invest in physical gold, it’s essential that you select a trustworthy partner who provides transparent pricing with competitive interest. Storage fees must also be factored in, since homeowner’s policies typically do not cover loss of bullion and coins.
