How to Buy Silver

With a wide variety of uses, silver is a popular precious metal for investors. From jewelry to auto manufacturing to the electronics industry, silver is often seen as a metal that will continue to be valuable for years to come. As an investment option, silver helps precious metals investors diversify their portfolios–and at a comparatively lower cost to gold and palladium.

When buying silver, there are a few factors to consider:

Purity Rating

Also called fineness, this number indicates what percent of the product is actually silver. It’s not possible to manufacture 100% silver; silver that is rated .999 (99.9% silver or higher) is the most common type used for investment purposes, although .925 can also be seen in jewelry.

Mint or Manufacturer

Especially true for coins, bars, and rounds, it’s important to know where the silver is manufactured. If you’re buying silver for use in a precious metals IRA, you must purchase silver made by a government mint or an approved manufacturer. Even if you’re buying silver to keep at home, buying silver from a well-recognized source means that it will be easier to sell that silver than silver products produced by a lesser-known company.

Premiums

A premium is the amount you’ll pay for a piece of silver on top of the price of the raw material. Although you can (and should) look up the current price of silver on the market–called the ‘spot price’–it’s unlikely that you’ll find someone willing to sell you silver without some kind of markup. Markups can include the cost of manufacturing, transaction fees, and whether the silver product you’re purchasing has novelty or artistic value.

Just like when buying a piece of silver jewelry, you’re paying for the price of the silver material, the craftsmanship that went into making it, and any artistic value, some silver products cost more not because they have more troy ounces but because of artistic or novelty value.

Types of Silver Products

When buying silver, you’re likely to come across these four terms:

• Silver Coins are produced by government mints and include American Silver Eagles, Canadian Silver Maple Leafs, and British Silver Britannia coins.
• Silver Rounds may look like coins, but they’re produced by private manufacturers, not governments. As a result, they come in a wide variety of shapes, colors, and styles.
• Silver Bars are, as the name suggests, bars. They can either be minted or poured, and are produced by both government-backed mints and private manufacturers.
• Junk Silver usually refers to U.S. coins that were made with 90% silver. Half-dollars, quarters, and dimes minted before 1965, as well as a few other historical coins.

So, How Do You Know Which Silver to Buy?

Although what silver is best varies by situation, there are a few general guidelines to consider. First, if possible, buy silver manufactured by a well-known mint or manufacturer with a fineness rating of .999. When it’s time to sell your investment back into the market, you’ll have an easier time finding a buyer when your silver comes from a highly-recognized institution.

Second, try to avoid products with a high premium–which can be easier said than done. Although it’s tempting to buy silver that has an impressive design or a unique style over a simple bar or a standard coin, you’ll pay a higher premium for these products. That’s not a bad thing if you intend to hold onto it, but it’s rare that an investor can include the cost of this higher premium when selling their silver.

If you have or are planning on opening a precious metals IRA, you’ll see these guidelines reflected in the IRS’ requirements for silver. To deposit silver in a precious metals IRA, it must meet these conditions:

• Silver must be at least 99.9% pure (.999 fineness)
• Coins, rounds, and bars must be produced by an accredited or certified manufacturer or by an approved government mint.

Additionally, the IRS has specific requirements for proof coins, bullion, and silver bars. If you’re purchasing silver to fund your IRA, make sure to consult with your broker and/or seller to make sure the silver you’re buying meets these requirements.

Buying silver is a great way to start investing in precious metals. To learn more about precious metals investments, read on.

An Overview of Gold IRA Companies

A gold IRA is a specialized Individual Retirement Account (IRA) in which an investor holds gold as the invested asset.

A gold IRA is similar to a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA. In a traditional or Roth IRA; future retirees invest in stocks, bonds, index funds, and other common assets to grow their retirement savings. With a gold IRA, retirees invest in their retirement with genuine gold and precious metals.

Gold IRA companies help everyday people transfer their retirement accounts to the gold standard. Future retirees can fund their gold IRA in two primary ways:

• Retirement Account Rollover: Gold IRA investors can rollover a portion of their existing retirement accounts into a gold IRA. Most investors rollover part or all of their 401(k), traditional IRA, or Roth IRA.
• Savings Investment: Customers can also fund their gold IRA account with a transfer from a savings account, cash, or other forms of liquid savings.

How to Sign Up for a Gold IRA

Signing up should only take a few minutes. Start with these three, simple steps:

• 1) Click through our list of vetted, top-rated gold IRA companies and see which companies appeal best to you. Click here to navigate to our list.
• 2) Request a quote from your favorite gold IRA companies through their website links, listed as “VISIT SITE” buttons on our list. Quoted information may include pricing and transfer minimums, and will help you make an informed decision.
• 3) Contact a company agent through the contact information listed on their website.

You Can Invest in More than Just Gold

Your gold IRA can include more than just gold. In fact, a better term for the investment would be “precious metals IRA.” The most common assets used to fund a precious metals IRA are gold and silver.

When choosing the asset products for your precious metals IRA, speak to an advisor affiliated with your company of choice.

Note: The IRS requires that precious metals meet purity specifications in order to fund a specialized IRA account. When planning your investments, the agent who works for your chosen precious metals IRA company should exclude assets that do not meet the purity standards of the IRS.

Buy Gold Direct

Gold, silver, and other precious metals can do more than fund your retirement account. Many gold IRA companies also sell precious metals for direct purchase.

In direct purchase, precious metals are shipped directly to the customer. The customer can request that the precious metals be sent to a vault or depository for professional safekeeping.

Customers may directly purchase gold and other precious metals for a variety of reasons. They may want to:

• Protect their savings against inflation
• Diversify their investment portfolio
• Safeguard their wealth from geopolitical crises (such as war)

If you have an interest in the direct purchase of precious metals, click below:

Shop Direct Gold Companies