Finance

What you should know before buying or selling gold bullion

A lot of people think buying gold is only for the wealthy but things have changed. Many people have become more financial savvy and understand the importance of investing their money in something more stable. Gold retains its value through the worst financial times and after the financial catastrophe of 2008, more people realized how fragile and unreliable fiat currencies are. Gold is a precious metal which is used in many important applications. There will always be a need for it.

Fiat currency can be easily destroyed and its value is never guaranteed. Stocks and bonds rise and fall all the time and the number of stock market crashes we’ve had over the years have proven that they are a big risk. People have become more weary of taking such risks with their hard-earned money and so they have turned to tangible assets like gold.

Gold cannot be created or destroyed, instead, it can be recycled over and over. Even gold that has been damaged is worth a lot when you sell gold for cash to gold buyers.

If you on the fence about whether or not you should buy gold bullion, then there are a couple of things you might be interested to know about this precious metal.

Since 2013, the premium rates of gold have been low which means that the period since then has been good for anyone who bought gold. Right now, those people who put away a little or a lot of their money in buying gold coins or gold bullion bars are finding out how their investment can get them out of the worst recession. Right now the economy is in shambles and people have lost their income because of the lockdowns brought upon by the Coronavirus pandemic.

So, what do you do with gold you have when you a little bit of money saved in your bank account? You might have seen how quickly fiat currencies can lose their value. Saving your money in the bank is  a good idea but with the unpredictability of today’s economy, the value of your money in the bank could diminish. The best thing you can do with your savings is to buy gold bullion? Find a trusted dealer in your area and see what they are offering. If it’s your first time, it is always a good idea to deal with buyers personally. Do your research on dealers in the area and make sure you get as many quotes as you can before you settle on a particular buyer.

What is better: coins or gold bars?

Bullion coins have legal tender because they are usually created by government mints, so it is easy to find out what their prices are. They are also more expensive to buy compared to bullion bars.

Gold bars have lower premiums compared to coins and might be easier to store, they are harder to liquidate quickly. You can carry a gold coin in your wallet, you might not like carrying a gold bar from store to store.

How much gold should someone have in their investment portfolio?

If you are new to gold investing, you might want to start small and give yourself time to understand how it all works. Experienced investors know the importance of not “putting all their eggs in one basket”. They know the value of assets changes a lot and will not put all their money in one type of investment. Prudent investors often diversify, by putting 5-10% in gold and at least 10% in silver. These two metals usually complement each other. But, truth be told, there is no magic number that you should aspire to. Gold is gold, you can never go wrong with it.