What Types Of Precious Metals Should You Buy?
This is really two questions; which kind? and in what form can/should you purchase precious metals? Wikipedia has a good explanation of precious metals and it explains bullion as:

“Precious metals in bulk form are known as bullion, and are traded on commodity markets. Bullion metals may be cast into ingots (bars), or minted into coins. The defining attribute of bullion is that it is valued by its mass and purity rather than by a face value as money.” The (bars) was added by me.

To answer the first question about the kinds of precious metals that are available to purchase, there is gold, silver, platinum, rhodium or Icantafforditium to name a few. For a few reasons it is my opinion that silver and gold are the best choices. They are easily recognized, so that the layman can recognize them and have some idea as to their worth. Secondly, until this year, when the price of gold skyrocketed, they were much more affordable. Silver is still considerably cheaper. In my opinion gold has enough other reasons to make it a better choice than platinum or rhodium.

The second question is in what form should you purchase bullion? I have read opinions on preparedness sites and forums and have seen people say they are storing gold and silver jewelry, bars and coins. When it comes to coins there are two types of denominations. The first comes in tenth ounce, quarter ounce, half ounce and one ounce. Then there are pre-1965 coins. These coins were 90% silver. I have seen pre-65 coins available in a wide range of options.

Unless you’re wealthy and going to invest in large amounts and buy bars, from a preparedness standpoint coins make the most sense to me. They are easily bought and sold both on-line and in coin stores. One of the reasons prepper’s buy PM’s is in case the economy fails.

One of the questions I have seen asked is “what do we do with it then?” It’s a fair question and in part my answer will be conjecture, as, in our modern economy American’s don’t (in large part) use gold and silver as currency. However, I have read a few articles written by people in other countries whose economies have collapsed and often gold and silver are used for barter. I read an article from a gentleman in Argentina that said that after the collapse of their economy (after 2002) there were black markets where you could trade in PM’s. As things stand right now, I know I could take a gold Eagle and sell it at a pawn shop, take it to one of many “I buy gold” stores, a few jewelry shops that buy gold and a coin store. Silver might be harder to sell, but not much.

It can also be used as currency itself. Let’s say that the economy is really bad and the dollar is worth 25% of what it is today. You own a potato farm and I own a chicken farm and you come to me with potatoes wanting to trade. I don’t want any potatoes but if you happen to have an ounce of silver. I can trade for it and use the silver to get .22 ammo or something else I need.

The other benefit of coins is that, because they are minted, it’s harder to counterfeit them. I read a story about gold bar’s being hollowed out and filled with another metal. A one ounce gold coin is pretty small so I’m not sure that would be possible. If it was, would it be worth it for the small amount of gold you would be able to hollow out? I’m not sure this is a huge worry for bars but just another small point for coins in my mind.
 
 
Dangers of Owning Precious Metals

Precious metals like any investment can lose their worth. As I have mentioned, they have always had some value. I have covered confiscation and not being able to use it as currency above and in part one of this article.
 
 
Hyper-Deflation

Since gold is a hedge against inflation or hyperinflation, in a hyper-deflation scenario, the gold is worth little and cash is strong. I’ll be the first to admit that I am no economist, but this scenario doesn’t seem likely.
 
 
How Much Should I Invest In?

That is something you are going to have to answer for yourself Here are a couple things to think about. How are your other preps? Do you have at least 3 months “eat what you store” food put up? What about water purification, BOB’s, self-defense or other preps? I do think having PM’s is a good idea, but not at the cost of your overall preparedness.

If your other preps are squared away and your family can afford it, I think 5-10% of your overall investments are a good idea. As far as kind, at the time I am writing this article gold is at $1663 an ounce and silver is at $32 an ounce some of both is a good idea, but silver is so much cheaper.
 
 
Gold and Silver Parity

Gold and silver have usually gone up or down at a fairly close pace to each other. If gold goes up 10%, silver does too. A year or so ago, gold started climbing and silver only rose slightly. That can only mean two things; either gold is overvalued and will come down or, silver is undervalued and should go up. Take this with a grain of salt; I have seen predictions of silver being over $200 an ounce. Even if it doesn’t go that high, in my opinion, silver is a safer option.
 
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A reader and new friend recently asked me about precious metals. I don’t claim to be an expert in PM’s (precious metals). In fact, I have only recently begun to invest in them. However, I have been researching them for some time, mostly so that when I did purchase them, I made informed decisions. As I said, I am not an expert in PM’s or in the economy in general If I make any misstatements please let me know and I will correct them.
 
 
Why Invest in PM’s?

There are many reasons people invest in PM’s. One such reason is that precious metals have always had a value as currency. Many people use PM’s as a hedge against inflation. The value of gold is static. As an example; 100 years ago, an ounce of gold could buy a high quality suit. Today you could still get a high quality suit for that ounce of gold. The value of the gold remained the same. However, the value of the dollar is worth less today than it was 100 years ago.

Another reason some people invest in PM’s is that gold and silver coins are universal. Whether the coin is an American eagle, South African Krugerrand, Canadian Maple Leaf or another countries’ currency, an ounce of gold is an ounce of gold. If you have to go to another country, you could easily carry a small fortune in gold coins relatively unnoticed. The ounce of gold will have value, even if it is in another countries’ denomination, whereas the paper dollar might not.
 
 

Things to Consider

Ways to Invest In Precious Metals

There are ways to invest in gold; ETF (exchange traded funds), mining stocks, IRA, etc. The purpose of this article relates to ownership. If you buy gold take ownership of it. Don’t just get a certificate saying that you own it. I have read about companies that were selling gold certificates for gold that they did not have.
 
 
Online or in Person

Since you’re going to take possession of it, should you purchase it online or in person? This is a personal choice. I suggest you research the company you plan to purchase from. There is one reason to purchase in person and that is paying cash, if you can find a local dealer that will take it. The reason for this is the lack of paper trail.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6102 forbidding the Hoarding of Gold Coin, Gold Bullion, and Gold Certificates within the continental United States.” There are individuals who think that since it was done once, it could be done again. I don’t know if this is a rational concern or not, here are my thoughts;

We live in a different age. I can’t see many Americans today selling their gold at a debased rate of possibly 10-25% of the price they paid for it. I however would like to see them try to get it out of all those gangsters’ teeth! (haha)

For confiscation to be effective, they would have to count on Americans turning in the gold. The last time, many people sent their gold to other countries to protect it. It would be much easier to go after people’s 401k’s or other electronic investments. They could implement a tax on retirement funds and your investment company could send them the payment, all without your being able to do anything about it.
 
 
IRS Form 1099

There is a post on the Investing Blog that explains this better than I could. It says that “Starting after December 31, 2011, the 1099 will function as a tax form for ALL business to business transactions of over $600.”

Here is why this matters for precious metals:

“One industry was quick to turn against the new 1099 provision, the physical gold bullion dealers. And while they may have been very loud, and very “extreme” about the law and its effects, they did have a very good point: this law affects individuals as well.

You see, any and all transactions with a business are to be documented with a 1099-Misc form. Thus, if I were to walk into a coin shop after the law takes effect, it would be required of me to fill out a 1099-Misc and leave my tax identification number (my social security number) to sell the proprietor a single Krugerrand.

And while it is easy to defend the law on the basis that many companies and sole proprietors do have a “DBA” (Doing Business As) tax identification number, individuals are almost always dependent on their social security number.

To further drive the point: a number of states and municipalities require gold dealers and coin shops to copy the license of anyone selling gold or silver of a certain threshold value.

Consider, for just one moment, the possible dangers of giving someone your license (which has your address) and on a 1099 your social security number. Sounds like identity theft.”

After this change takes place, fractional gold coins or silver with a cost of less than $600 or silver might be your best option.
 
 
Spot Price

The spot price is the current price at which a commodity such as PM’s can be bought or sold at a specified time and place. You can expect to pay a bit over spot price, for handling fees, etc.

Primer for Precious Metals (part two of two)

 
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