The physical precious metals industry is becoming more popular each day. Physical gold, for example, is currently one of the top assets to invest in if you want to protect your investment portfolio for certain economic scenarios.
One of the safest ways to invest in physical gold and silver is to find a precious metals dealer and open a precious metals IRA.
Gold IRA companies will help you find appropriate storage and insurance solutions for your precious metals, which will ensure that you can withdraw those assets safely once you retire.
Currently, there are dozens of different places where you can buy precious metals, so how do you choose the right gold IRA custodian? There are several factors that can affect your decision, and one of those is experience and longevity.
One of the companies that have these factors is Birch Gold Group. Established back in 2003, it has become one of the best precious metals companies in the US market.
Now, is Birch Gold Group a legit option as a precious metals dealer? Yes.ย ย
Inย my full review, I share more.ย In this article, I will talk about why Birch Gold is legit.
Let’s kick off these Birch Gold Group reviews by answering the main question: Is this precious metals IRA company legit? The short answer is: yes.
Birch Gold Group has over a decade on the market, and its team is comprised of experienced brokers, financial advisors, and wealth managers. Moreover, this precious metals specialist has been featured in Fox Business News, Bannon’s War Room, and many more TV shows, meaning it’s a reputable option for those who want to make the most out of their retirement account.
While Birch Gold Group, in essence, is a legit company, you must still address if it’s the right option for you. Not all companies have attractive features for everyone, and that’s where we come in to help.
Below is a full Birch Gold Group review, so if you’re still wondering if opening precious metal IRAs with this company is good for you, keep reading!
Everything You Should Know About Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold Group started in Southern California, and thanks to its effort, it has become a leading company for those wanting to invest in gold and other precious metals.
Overall, Birch Gold Group has had an overwhelmingly positive reception from precious metal investors, but we’ll get into that later.
You can open gold IRAs with this company, which will allow you to invest in gold, silver, platinum, or palladium. On the other hand, if you have any of the following accounts, you can qualify for a rollover to a gold IRA:
Traditional IRA
Roth IRA
401(k)
403(b)
457
Thrift Savings Plan
What Does Birch Gold Group Offer?
Generally speaking, Birch Gold Group offers people a platform to invest in gold, silver, and other precious metals on the market.
It also gives people the ability to open gold IRAs or to roll over their funds from other traditional investment accounts.
What Can You Invest in with Birch Gold Group?
Once you sign up for this company, you can choose from a wide selection of IRS-approved gold IRA investments, including the following:
Platinum Bars and Rounds
Palladium Bars and Rounds
American Gold Eagle
American Gold Buffalo
American/Canadian Gold Maple Leaf
Gold Gyrfalcon
Gold/Silver Twin Maples
Gold Polar Bear and Cub
Valcambi CombiBars
If you’re planning on investing in gold or other precious metals for your gold IRAs, it’s essential you only purchase those approved by the IRS. Otherwise, you may have to pay taxes for them.
What Is the Pricing Structure for Birch Gold Group?
As with any other company on the market, you have to pay some fees for your gold IRA.
In the case of Birch Gold Group, there are certain fees you must be aware of before opening your retirement account with it. Here’s an outline:
Setup Fees
One-time account setup fee – $50
Wire transfer fee – $30
Management Fees
Yearly maintenance – $80
Insurance and Storage
Annual storage/insurance – $100
Minimum Investment
$10,000
Keep in mind that, if you invest over $50,000 in your precious metals IRA, Birch Gold Group will waive your fees for the first year.
An excellent thing about thisย gold IRA companyย is that, regardless of how much the value of your assets increases per year, you will still pay the same $180 every year.
How does this gold IRA company compare to the competition? Overall, its fees are fairly decent and affordable for most investors.
The $10,000 minimum investment is much lower than many competitors, and the fact that you won’t have to pay higher fees as your investment’s value increases is also great news.
Finally, keep in mind that Birch Gold Group isn’t known for being transparent in its pricing, so some fees could be subject to change.
You must consult directly with the company to determine how much you will truly pay.
Does Birch Gold Group Have Any Storage Solutions?
Yes! Birch Gold Group currently works with two third-party storage solutions. These include Delaware Depository and Brink’s Global Services.
Regardless of which storage company you choose to store your precious metals, rest assured that both of them have a great reputation.
Additionally, keep in mind that all the precious metals you send to your gold IRA will go directly to the storage facility you chose, meaning you don’t have to worry about transit problems. Finally, each of your orders will get insured.
An advantage that Brink’s Global Services storage solutions have over Delaware Depository is that your holdings will get audited regularly, which adds an extra layer of security to your precious metals.
Either way, both are great options for getting your precious metals stored, and both are approved by the IRS, so they’re compliant with all tax laws in the country.
How Does the Customer Support for Birch Gold Group Work?
Customer support is something that can make or break a person’s decision to invest in a company.
Thankfully, Birch Gold Group is known for having reliable and experienced customer support employees that will help you every step of the way.
As you’ll be able to see in the different Birch Gold reviews online, most people are happy with the way this gold IRA company handles complaints, concerns, and any other query the investor may have.
Considering how reliable Birch Gold’s support team is, this puts this company at an advantage over others that may not have such a good team for customer support.
Even if you’ve not invested in a precious metals IRA yet, the team at Birch Gold Group can give you all the guidance you need to ensure you diversify your portfolio with the right assets.
What Do the Reviews for Birch Gold Group Say?
If you look for Birch Gold Group reviews online, you will quickly see how many positive ones there are. Still, not all review websites are reliable, so how will you know which one is telling the truth?
It’s easy. There are some websites that are committed to rating these precious metals IRA companies.
In essence, those are the review websites with the highest reputation online, so most investors look up to them when deciding on which company to go to.
The BBB and BCA
First, let’s talk about the Better Business Bureau, which is one of the most popular websites on the review market. This platform gave Birch Gold Group an “A+ Rating” with an average rating of 4.84/5.
Even though Birch Gold has received about nine complaints over the past three years, the company has actively worked to solve these as quickly as possible, and the BBB website shows that commitment.
Next, we have the Business Consumer Alliance. This company gave Birch Gold Group an “AAA Rating” with several five-star reviews.
As opposed to the BBB website, this one has only had two complaints filed against the company over the past three years. Still, all of those issues have been resolved by the team at Birch Gold Group.
Other Reputable Review Websites
Even though the BBB and BCA are the two most reliable websites to check when you want to learn more about a company, there are a few others that you can also check:
Google Reviews – Birch Gold Group has currently over 222 reviews, which average a 4.9/5 rating.
Yelp – Even though Yelp has only five reviews available for Birch Gold Group at the moment, the gold IRA company averages 4/5 in the score.
Trustpilot – Trustpilot has over 120 Birch Gold Group reviews, and the company currently averages a 4.8/5-star rating.
TrustLink – Finally, TrustLink has a little over 126 reviews on its website about Birch Gold. The company has an average 5-star rating, which is the highest score among the rest of the websites.
An interesting thing about Birch Gold Group is that some of the complaints filed don’t even have anything to do with its service. I do believe they are aย reputable company.
Many investors have complained about the company’s partnerships with certain celebrities like Ben Shapiro,ย Ron Paul, and Steve Bannon.
Although several people currently criticize Ben Shapiro’s comments, for example, Birch Gold Group still keeps a solid relationship with him since 2016.
Birch Gold Group – Pros and Cons
Now that you know everything about Birch Gold Group, let’s summarize everything you just learned in a Pros/Cons section:
Pros
You can invest in different metals; this includes gold and silver, as well as several platinum/palladium options.
You can invest in hard asset IRAs.
Birch Gold Group has excellent reviews and a good reputation overall.
There’s a low minimum investment and lower fees.
There’s a wide range of educational resources.
Cons
There may be some hidden fees involved.
Bottom Line – Is Birch Gold Group Good for You?
Overall, Birch Gold Group is an excellent precious metal IRA company, and we highly recommend you go for it even if you’re a new investor.
This company has been around in the industry for almost two decades, and it has provided several solutions to people who want to open precious metals IRAs.
Moreover, there are many educational resources for those who want to learn how precious metals work.
Even though the fee structure hasn’t been fully transparent in some cases, we still believe that the average prices are much more reasonable than the ones competitors ask for.
If you’re looking to invest in a reputable company that offers a wide range of services and products, feel free to talk to a Birch Gold Group specialist today for more information.
We hope this review has helped you understand how precious metal investments with this company work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you want a bit more information about the precious metals market or Birch Gold Group? Make sure to read this FAQ section!
What Are the Benefits of Opening a Precious Metals IRA?
Precious metals IRAs are great for many different reasons.
In essence, you will get much more flexibility while managing your assets, as a precious metals IRA is a type of self-directed IRA.
Moreover, this kind of IRA will allow you to diversify your portfolio like you never have before.
Traditional IRAs will only allow you to invest in stocks, bonds, and other paper assets, whereas self-directed IRAs expand your selection to precious metals, real estate, and even cryptocurrencies.
A precious metals IRA account will also provide you with a type of insurance on your retirement. While stocks, for example, can be worth zero dollars from one moment to another, this isn’t the case with precious metals.
Precious metals like gold tend to hold their value even in times of economic turmoil, so many people are investing in those to ensure they still have a decent amount of money when they retire.
Aside from the control and growth potential these IRAs have, you may also enjoy certain tax advantages.
Depending on the tax bracket you’re currently in, some of your contributions to your IRA may be tax-deductible.
How Do You Open a Precious Metals IRA?
The process depends on the company, but generally speaking, it would be like this:
Find your precious metal dealer and custodian (Birch Gold, for example, offers both solutions).
Deposit your funds into your new account or make a rollover from your previous retirement account.
Decide what products you’re planning to buy.
Choose your preferred depository.
Finish placing your order.
Does Birch Gold Group Have a Buy-Back Program?
Yes, it does. Although some reviewers claim that the company doesn’t have a buyback guarantee, we found that you will certainly find a buyer for your precious metals once you’re ready to make the withdrawal.
