It was observed that in the recent years there was an increase in investors wanting to buy gold coins. The dismal performance of the stock exchange during the past years has resulted in a lot of retirement account owners losing money from their investments in the stock market. Hence, gold in IRA has become a trend among account owners because of the stability it has demonstrated against economic and social crises.
Traditional, Roth, SEP, simple, and self directed IRAs have been allowed by the IRS to invest in gold. And owners of these types of accounts have seen reason to buy gold coins as an option besides traditional investments or as a way to diversify their investment portfolio.
When in the process of buying gold coins for your account, there are a number of things you need to remember to decrease the risks you might encounter during the transaction. Foremost is the risk of being victimized by unscrupulous individuals who victimize people who want to buy gold coins. Gold continues to be one of the precious metals chosen by investors among its kind because of its beauty and value. Being familiar with your gold can prevent you from being taken advantage of.
When you buy gold coins for your IRA, examples of which are the Gold Buffalo or the American Gold Eagle, make sure about their authenticity. Normally, it would only be the weight, quality, and daily price of the precious metal that is used to determine the value of gold. On the other hand, minted coins are more expensive because of their premium value. For cases like these you will actually be paying more than its actual gold content and weight buying gold coins.
There are two criteria for your gold in IRA to qualify as investment asset: it must be at least 99.5% pure or .995 fine and, it must be legal tender. In other words, South African Krugerrands (91.67% pure), the Mexican 50 Pesos coins (90% pure) and old US gold coins (also 90% pure) are not qualified as gold in IRA. The government of Canada, China and the US guarantees official bullion coins' weight, content and purity such as in the case of American Gold Eagle and the Gold Buffalo for the US, the Gold Maple Leaf for Canada and the Golden Panda for China.
Instead of deciding to buy gold coins, some investors choose to buy gold bullion bars in place of gold coins because they do not pay premium prices. Gold bullions are considered by some to be more fitting for IRAs in view of the price difference with gold coins, the difference even bigger if buying bullions in larger denominations. However, care must be taken to transact business only with gold dealers because of the risk of fraud. In order to be safe, the authenticity of the gold should be certified by accredited assayers such as the NYMEX or COMEX.
Finally, whether you decide to buy gold coins or bullions for your IRA, keep in mind the IRS regulation about keeping physical gold assets in accredited storage facilities that are both secure and insured. One cannot keep gold in IRA in the account owner's possession or he will be liable to penalties. Such precautions have been put in place to safeguard your investment. Although annual fees need to be paid for storage, thus serving as added protection of your gold asset, this is a small price to pay considering the risk attributable to the easy transportability of gold.A word from the wise - "It is better to be safe than sorry".
Important Information When Buying Gold
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