Investors wanting to move beyond traditional investments in their retirement funds are looking at gold and other precious metals as a way to diversify their portfolios. With a self-directed IRA (SDIRA), it is possible to own certain gold, silver, platinum, and palladium products that meet specific standards. For example, your SDIRA can own American Gold Eagle coins, Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins, American Silver Eagle coins, American Platinum Eagle coins, and gold and silver bars (bullion) that are 99.9% pure or better.
If owning precious metals in your retirement funds fits your investment goals, then you will need to find a trustee or custodian willing to work with you to establish the proper account, handle the transfer of funds, and undertake the physical transfer and storage of the precious metal products. Remember, the coins or bullion are held by your trustee, not you personally!
Like all investments, it is important to understand the risks and rewards possible with precious metal investments. Volatility can affect any investment, but since precious metal prices do swing over time, you will want to evaluate such volatility in relation to your preferred retirement age and, of course, the required minimal distributions to be taken from the accounts once reaching certain ages.
For investors concerned about the storage and transfer of precious metals, shares of an exchange traded fund (ETF) are available. These funds track the value of particular precious metal. Again, tax benefits and IRS rules are important to any decision-making regarding ETFs in your IRA. If you have doubts about your IRA being allowed to own a particular precious metal ETF, review the tax section of the fund’s prospectus.
Precious metals offer investors a way to diversify their portfolio and not be entirely beholden to the stock and bond markets. Interested investors should do their due diligence on the best way to add precious metals to their portfolio. With proper research and timing, your retirement may be golden!