Many investors place precious metals as tangible assets within their IRAs for long-term stability and growth potential. Physical precious metals offer such protection from an ever-depreciating dollar while offering potential long-term growth potential.
However, holding precious metals within an IRA may prove tricky. Most traditional IRAs only permit paper assets such as cash and stocks – however there may be ways of adding physical gold and other precious metals that conform with IRS regulations.
Custodians
When opening a precious metals individual retirement account with a reliable gold IRA company, their custodian purchases physical metals on your behalf and stores them at an IRA-approved depository facility. All IRA storage providers must comply with strict IRS regulations to protect and safeguard customers’ investments while keeping your precious metals separate.
This company will assist you with every aspect of opening an IRA and will ensure your investment complies with IRA regulations. In addition, they will inform you about annual fees charged by both your IRA custodian and depository provider for storage and insurance services.
Add precious metals to your IRA as a means of diversifying your retirement portfolio, but make them part of a greater overall strategy rather than the mainstay. Gold can be volatile like stocks but does not pay dividends so should only represent a small part of overall retirement savings.
Taxes
Be mindful when investing in precious metals of their potential tax implications. Like with IRA investments, gains won’t be taxed until cash distributions occur at which point it will be subject to your marginal rate taxation.
Precious metals are an attractive investment option due to their historical track record of weathering inflation. But investors should keep in mind that precious metals should only represent part of their retirement fund strategy.
Purchase of IRA-eligible metals requires assistance from an experienced dealer or firm that can guide you through the process, while storage in a safe depository is crucial to meeting IRS regulations. While your custodian may recommend one for you, do your own research to find one that meets this criterion; fees typically range between $150 to $300 annually for storage services and segregated versus allocated storage arrangements should also be discussed – segregated storage ensures your metals remain separate from others’.
Withdrawals
Precious metals such as gold, silver and platinum provide diversification opportunities similar to stocks and bonds. Investors believe these precious metals can protect against inflation and market volatility while at the same time maintaining their value over time.
Metal investments may not be suitable for everyone; they’re more costly than paper assets and require additional storage and insurance costs. Furthermore, the IRS requires that IRAs store precious metals at an approved depository facility – with some custodians using their own facilities while others working with third-party depositories that specialize in safeguarding them.
Investors can purchase gold and other metals through self-directed IRA accounts, although the IRS only approves of certain coins and bullion that meets purity requirements. While numismatic coins often carry higher commissions than bullion bars, only eligible bullion can be purchased. Those looking for exposure to precious metals without the hassle of owning physical bullion should invest in mining company stock or an exchange traded fund that invests directly in gold and silver bullion.
