While many people are familiar with traditional retirement account options, the idea of a gold IRA is not so popular. Be that as it may, those who have decided to invest in gold IRAs see it as a lucrative option to protect themselves during their years of retirement.
Precious metals are not new as a way of diversifying your investment portfolio, however, there are several different ways to go about it. You could purchase precious metals in the form of gold coins, silver bars, etc. Investing in mutual funds, stocks, etc. that are backed by gold and other precious metals is another way to go about it.
Of course, there is also the option of going the gold IRA route. Later on, you’ll learn exactly what a gold IRA is, as well as a couple of other crucial details to get you started.
What’s important for you to know now is that gold IRA investors need to choose the right company if they’re going to venture down this investment path. Goldco, Noble Gold Investments, and Augusta Precious Metals are a few of the biggest names in the space.
While there are a lot of things that will determine what the best gold IRA companies are to you, promotions are always interesting to know about, and that’s where things will start.
This is a good time to say that information such as this is time sensitive. A reputable gold IRA company will evolve to stay relevant and maintain service delivery to its clients. Therefore, the promotions discussed here may continue to exist, be gone, or be updated at the time of your reading.
With that said, after reading the information below, you are advised to head to the various pages of the gold IRA companies listed to get their information kits where available. Additionally, you may reach out where possible to get an idea of the kinds of promotional offerings that are available.
As subjective as the topic is, if you look at just about any listing of the best gold IRA companies out there, Goldco will likely pop up, and this trend is for good reason. First, there is the matter of the firm’s ratings. It’s hard to deny a company that can boost a AAA Business Consumer Alliance rating and an A+ Better Business Bureau rating.
There are a lot of factors that go into this, which include a very notable customer focus, as well as several very appreciated educational resources. Those who decide to start gold IRAs with Goldco will find that they never really feel lost at any step of the way, thanks to the knowledge and approach of the staff.
Additionally, Goldco claims to have the best buyback rates on the market. Even if the rates themselves may need verification, gold is traditionally not one of the easiest investment vehicles to back out of. Therefore, it’s nice to know that you’ll be able to convert your gold coins and gold bullion to cash if you so desire later.
As far as being a contender for the title of best gold IRA company goes, the guided signup process is complemented by free silver at signup. Of course, this will only apply to qualified purchases.
If an IRA is opened and funded with precious metals, there is 10% back offered in silver. Now, this may not sound like a lot off the bat, but you would be surprised. Imagine opening an account with $100,000 in this manner. It doesn’t take expertise to tell you that $10,000 worth of silver is quite a lot.
Next, there’s Birch Gold Group, which is a pretty solid gold IRA company in its own right. As you’ll see below, your precious metals IRA account can be funded by rolling over your existing IRA or 401(k). If you should go this route, you can get up to $10,000 in free precious metals from Birch Gold Group.
You’ll notice that this offer is figure-based and not percentage based as the Goldco option is. To be fair, getting the whole $10,000 takes a lot more here.
To put it into context, you will need to invest no less than $1,000,000 via the rollover method if you wish to be eligible for the full amount. Anything less will not cut it. So, you may be wondering how deep the value cuts get. Well, you get the same amount of free precious metals for investments between $250,000 and $999,999.99, which is $2,500.
That’s quite a steep cut considering the difference between $999,999.99 and $1,000,000 is $0.01.
As far as reputation goes though, no one could fault you for going with Birch Gold Group. The reason it’s one of the best gold IRA companies out there is its A+ BBB rating, a AAA BCA rating, and the fact that it makes the details potential investors need clear and easy to find.
Finally, large investors with huge balances will benefit greatly from going with the gold IRA company, since it uses a flat-rate fee structure, which is always going to be more beneficial the more you have to invest.
Patriot Gold Group is a unique option. Most gold IRA companies, while they do ensure that their customers are treated well, will have agents or account managers that you will work with for the tenure of your precious metals IRA.
However, one of Patriot’s commitments is that every customer works directly with an owner. Now, of course, this is incredibly difficult to imagine, but it actually goes quite well. The idea is that the owner will answer all your queries about gold IRAs, as the person wishes to ensure that you are prepared to go this route for your retirement.
Now, what’s the actual promotion? Well, if you have $100,000 in your gold IRA, all fees will be waived. While it’s true that this amount is not a ton, it does add up over the years. For reference, gold IRA custodians will typically run you somewhere between $200 and $300 annually.
At the lower margin, that will be $2,000 over the first 10 years. Being able to invest that extra money sounds like a win.
You’ll also likely enjoy the relatively fast setup process that Patriot is known for. Not every precious metals IRA company can say that it will have your account up and running in 24 hours.
The one problem you’ll probably have is the lack of price listings on the website. While you can just talk to the company to find out the prices, the lack of a display makes it slightly harder to verify the guarantee of never having to pay retail.
As stated before names such as Noble Gold and Augusta Precious Metals will come up in these kinds of conversations. They’re not listed here because while they do have a horse in the “best gold IRA company” race, there were no active promotions at the time of writing.
Again, you are strongly encouraged to visit the sites and reach out to the companies when you are interested in a gold IRA to see if there are any promotions or offers available that you may wish to capitalize on.
You’ve seen this retirement account being mentioned quite a bit since you started reading, and it’s about time you understood it a bit more. A traditional IRA is an investment vehicle that is backed by mutual funds, stocks, or bonds.
A gold IRA is the same kind of account, except that the backing asset would be physical precious metals. That’s why you may find some forums using the term “precious metals IRA” while others will say “gold IRA.”
Realistically, physical gold is not the only thing that can be used to back these investments. While some companies will only allow you to invest in physical gold in this way, others will also allow for investment in silver, platinum, and palladium.
Bear in mind, however, that there are IRS regulations on the kinds of coins and bars that can be used for a precious metals IRA. However, the company will usually be well aware of this and guide you.
Note that just as you have traditional and Roth IRAs, there are traditional and Roth gold IRAs too with the same tax advantages being applied to each account type.
When you’re ready to set up a gold IRA, it will start with the opening of the account and the buying of whichever precious metal is applicable. You can usually fund the account outright with new funds or you can roll over funding from an existing retirement account if you have one.
While there are different ways to handle the transfer of funds, the standard rollover process tends to be recommended since you get the assistance of the gold IRA company and you don’t need to handle the movement of money yourself.
There will also be a financial firm that takes on the role of custodian, as well as an institution known as a depository, which is where the gold and silver will physically be held.
IRS regulations exist that prevent you from keeping the precious metals associated with a gold IRA investment. The likely reasons for this are the fact that nothing would physically be stopping you from taking and using the gold that should be backing your investment and the fact that you likely cannot provide the security needed to hold that much gold.
Some gold IRA companies will leave the choice of custodian and depositories to you, while others will require you to use one that they have designated.
If you have a financial advisor, you will likely be advised of the different ways in which you can go about investing in precious metals such as gold and silver. This person may be the reason you hear about a gold IRA in the first place, assuming what you’re reading here is not your introduction.
Alongside the IRA option, however, you’ll also find that there are other alternatives to consider such as gold-based stocks, mutual funds, futures, etc.
There’s also simply buying the precious metals yourself and keeping them. Some people choose to invest in gold this way, and while it may seem like a good idea as a hedge against inflation since it retains its value so well, you may run into one big problem, which is resale.
In some cases, finding a buyer for gold is a difficult process. Additionally, there’s no guarantee that even if you do find a buyer, the price will be fair.
That’s not to say that buying gold is a bad idea. However, you may want to weigh how advantageous doing so is based on the percentage of your portfolio it is intended to make up.
Whether it’s Goldco, Augusta, American Hartford Gold, Noble Gold, or one of the other options out there, you have a choice to make, and you need to think about the parameters being used in that choice. Here are some of the considerations you want to be making.
Are there any beneficial promotions such as the ones highlighted above? Are they relevant to you? Can you reach whatever thresholds are necessary to capitalize on them?
Always consider the BBB and BCA ratings as well as the general reviews out there about the company. For our money, the best place to invest is with Goldco.
Find out about the fee structures and ensure that they appeal to you.
If you want to roll over your existing IRA or 401(k), ensure that’s a supported process, and it would be a good idea to see if buyback is a thing too!
Especially if you’re new to gold IRAs, you must have a company that is willing to guide and support you every step of the way.
A gold IRA can be an excellent investment to protect yourself from retirement, but you do need to find the right company to work with. Consider the promotions available such as those listed above and the other factors highlighted!
