David Morey 
A gold IRA is a type of self-directed IRA that allows you to buy gold and other precious metals for your retirement. There are many rules that need to be followed, but precious metals are a great investment for many people. There are only four precious metals allowed in your gold IRA – gold, silver, platinum, and palladium.
There are many questions that go along with investing in gold for your IRA. The most common question has been, is a gold IRA tax deductible? That is a great question, and this article will attempt to answer that question.
This article will try and answer that question, as well as other questions that beginning investors would like to have answers to. You will also need to do more research to find out all the information. This is just a beginner’s guide to investing in precious metals.
Benefits of a Gold IRA
Tax Benefits
You will get tax benefits with your gold IRA, just as with any other IRA that you may invest in. There are some differences, but they are very similar. Just as with other IRAs, you can invest up to $6,000 per year or $7,000 if you are over 50. You will be taxed at the same rate as a traditional IRA unless you withdraw early. Check here for more IRS regulations. If you withdraw early, you will face penalties, just as with the traditional IRA.
More Control
Since the gold IRA is a self-directed IRA, you have more control over what you can put into it. At this time, you can add precious metals, real estate, cryptocurrency, and many of the same products as a traditional IRA. This gives you much more control over your IRA and helps you to become more familiar with what you have.
Portfolio Diversification
Gold and precious metals allow you to diversify your portfolio for your IRA. It gives you more protection against inflation and other economic downturns if you have more than one type of investment in your portfolio. If your stocks are not performing, you will still have your precious metals to provide a hedge.
Great Profit Opportunities
Although the price of precious metals fluctuates from day to day, it is amazingly steady in the long run. If you plan on keeping your precious metals for more than ten years, you will see a profit – even when stocks and bonds are falling behind. The point of having a gold IRA is to keep it until your retirement, so you should be able to make a profit if you do that.
Risks of Gold IRAs
Higher Costs
You must have a custodian for your gold IRA, and that is just one of the extra costs that you will have to deal with when you have a gold IRA. You will also need to have extra insurance that you would not otherwise need. You will also need to have a storage facility that you will need to pay for. You should not have to worry too much about the extra costs because of the extra profit that you will make with your precious metals.
Funding Restrictions
There are more restrictions that go along with having a gold IRA. For example, you may not hold your gold or other precious metals at your home. You will need to have an approved storage facility that will hold your precious metals for you: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_IRA#. You are also restricted to what kinds of precious metals you can buy – only gold, silver, platinum, and palladium at this time.
How Do You Invest in a Gold IRA?
Pick the Right Company
You will want to make sure that you pick a company that you can work with for the long term. You want wonderful customer service, assistance when you open your account, help transferring funds, assistance for buying and selling your precious metals, and finding just the right custodian to hold your metals.
Start Funding Your Account
After you have picked your company, the next step is to begin funding your account. There are a few ways to do this.
- Direct Account Transfer – You can do this step online if you are tech-savvy; it is as simple as transferring money from one account to another. It may take a few days to transfer, but it is the easiest way to add money to your gold IRA.
- Cash Contribution – You can add money to your account by check or cash, or even wire transfer. You may have extra fees involved by doing a wire transfer, so ask your company before you do this.
- Rollover – You can roll over your money from a traditional IRA or a Roth IRA to your gold IRA. You might have special requirements, so make sure that you do your research to learn all about them.
- Choose the Metals
You will want to choose what metals you want to invest in next. You need to check the IRS regulations about the metals that you choose. They have purity standards that you need to adhere to. Right now, you can invest in gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. There may be other metals that are approved; just ask your custodian.
Conclusion
Investing in a gold IRA is a great idea for most people, especially if you want to diversify your portfolio. Gold and other precious metals can be great investments when the economy is not doing well. It can also give you a large profit if you keep it long enough to see those profits. You will want to keep it for at least ten years to see the profit you want.
You need to be careful when choosing a company that can help you to start your gold IRA. They are not all the same, and some can be scammers disguised as legitimate businesses. You will want to check with the Better Business Bureau and your state’s attorney general’s office to make sure that they are a reliable business. You do not want to have all your hard-earned money going to a scammer.
