Has anyone here invested in Gold Bullion?

[Chris_]

I actually started looking at because Mrs. FD said she wanted to buy some Mexican Centinenarios (not a good idea IMHO -- you lose too much value from raw gold prices).

But that started me looking at gold in general and gold bullion.  Historically, gold had done pretty well -- it doubled in the last 5 years and even went up bout 20% in the 5 years before (not bad but a portfolio that did that well would b well-regarded indeed).

Has anyone here invested directly in bullion (I am too fiscally conservative to mess with futures and the like)?  Ins and outs?  I see you can buy it and get it stored but how can you be sure they did that if you never see the gold itself?

This would be for new investment -- I am going to stay the course on my 100.25K (I refuse to panic).

Thanks and maybe it would be interesting for others.

[bijou]

I'd certainly be interested in hearing about people's experiences with investing in gold. I have been toying with it but haven't had time to research it, so if you have links to good sites about investing it would give me a start at least to know the right questions to ask.

[Chris_]

Lets bump this and see if anyone responds.

I did a search on "Gold Bullion" and got a bunch of sites -- one of those "too much information" times.  Thus, my request for personal information.

[bijou]

Lets bump this and see if anyone responds.

I did a search on "Gold Bullion" and got a bunch of sites -- one of those "too much information" times.  Thus, my request for personal information.

I have pinned this, as it may take a while to find someone who can help.

[Thor]

Gold CAN be a good investment, but you really need to watch the prices closely and be able to sell quickly, if need be. A couple of months ago, it was around $750/ oz and now is right close to $900/ oz. Before it fell to $750/oz, it was above $900 per oz. All of this was in a six month window. It's fairly stable, moreso than stocks, but one can lose money in gold.

[Jim]

buy reliable gold, Krugerrand etc from a real person leaving you real gold to store in the safe deposit box.

its very expensive now, could go up, could as easily go down.

find the best respected guy in your area that you can and dela with him.

[Lacarnut]

Rather than buy bullion, I would buy gold coins from the US mint. They are selling 2009 double eagles which are priced a hundred to a hundred and fifty over the spot price of gold. The mint usually stops production after a year and the value of these coins have gone up. I bought a 2008 Buffalo and  two 2008 uncirculated gold coins from the mint. A 2009 gold eagle is on order. I would not buy coins or bullion from an individual. The price stability of coins is better than bullion in my opinion. BTW, only buy American gold coins.

Kitco would be my choice for bullion. They have pool accounts where you can buy small amounts with them. Rather than take possesion, they stay in their vaults at no charge to you. At any time you can sell the gold, silver, platinum back to them at a very small discount or you can have it delivered to you. You have to pay a processing fee along with shipping and handling. You can buy in any dollar denominations rather than specific weights. By building up a larger quantity, the processing fee and shipping is lessened when you decide to take possesion.

If you chart the price of silver and platinum opposed to gold, you will see that gold is approaching it's highest level whereas silver and platinum is only one half the way of achieving their highest level rate. They may be a better investment than gold.   

[Chris_]

Gold CAN be a good investment, but you really need to watch the prices closely and be able to sell quickly, if need be. A couple of months ago, it was around $750/ oz and now is right close to $900/ oz. Before it fell to $750/oz, it was above $900 per oz. All of this was in a six month window. It's fairly stable, moreso than stocks, but one can lose money in gold.

This would be long-term: 15-25 years.  I am looking at trends, not fluctuations.

[Chris_]

buy reliable gold, Krugerrand etc from a real person leaving you real gold to store in the safe deposit box.

its very expensive now, could go up, could as easily go down.

find the best respected guy in your area that you can and dela with him.

Every time I see info about the Krugerrand, I remember the SNL skit (you could NEVER do this today), made during the height of Apartheid awareness, about the "South African ******and -- the gift that keeps on grinning."

Even now I crack up over it.

[LC EFA]

I actually started looking at because Mrs. FD said she wanted to buy some Mexican Centinenarios (not a good idea IMHO -- you lose too much value from raw gold prices).

But that started me looking at gold in general and gold bullion.  Historically, gold had done pretty well -- it doubled in the last 5 years and even went up bout 20% in the 5 years before (not bad but a portfolio that did that well would b well-regarded indeed).

Has anyone here invested directly in bullion (I am too fiscally conservative to mess with futures and the like)?  Ins and outs?  I see you can buy it and get it stored but how can you be sure they did that if you never see the gold itself?

This would be for new investment -- I am going to stay the course on my 100.25K (I refuse to panic).

Thanks and maybe it would be interesting for others.

I have bullion bars and coins from this place http://www.ausbullion.com.au/bullion.html

I declined to have them store it for me, as it's something that one wants to have access to on a moments notice.

[Chris_]

At this stage in my investment plan, I'll have better success investing in lead, copper and brass than I will in gold.

[Lacarnut]

I think that Monex and Kitco are the leaders in the US for purchasing gold bullion. Note, there is a fabrication charge for converting the gold into bars. Like I said, gold coins from the mint will increase in greater value than bullion in my opinion. For example, the 4 piece set of eagle gold coins that the mint sold out of a week ago was priced around $2,500. It is selling on Ebay for $3.5k. The same thing is true of double eagle platinium coins which have increased greatly in value in the last couple of months.   

[bijou]

Thanks for all the input. I have done a little searching on the back of it and came across this article: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing/article.html?in_article_id=465509&in_page_id=166

But remember


Only do business with a reputable dealer. Check on the World Gold Councils – 'Where to buy directory' which can be found on its website at gold.org and the London Bullion Market Association members list which can also be located online at lbma.org.uk. Both list reputable gold dealers. And it is important to remember that you will also have to pay a fee to store gold with your bank or broker.

This link will give you the names of dealers in different countries so that you can make local enquiries. 

[Odin's Hand]

I am looking at buying bullion from goldline.com myself.

I wasn't aware, before perusing the site, that the benevolent "Uncle Franklin" had signed "The Gold Confiscation Act of 1933". I could see the current admin. as trying to emulate him in that capacity if wealth accumulation keeps moving towards the tangible.

[Peter3_1]

A few American coins and a few Canadian, bought direct. There are several sites like rthis:
http://bullionbargains.com/Silver-Bullion-Bars/Englehard-silver-bullion-bars

with prices and lists of availability. Engelhard bars are highly thought of.

[thundley4]

"Gold's Luster Outshines Rising Prices
The price of gold rose above the $1,000 mark on Feb. 20, a level it last reached in March 2008. And though prices have swelled 40% since a $712 low last November, now isn't the time to sell, according to David Galland, managing director of Casey Research. "You'll probably see $1,500 this year," he says, as investors favor the precious metal over paper currencies. "You can only mine so much gold in a given year. Dollars can be created in the blink of the eye and with the signing of the pen." Historically, $1,000 an ounce isn't even that high, says Galland. Gold's 1980 peak of $850 would equal $2,300 in today's dollars. That makes $1,000 gold seem cheap; a recent Bloomberg survey of traders, investors, and analysts found that 71% still say $1,000 rates a buy." Link

[rich_t]

I wish I had the funds to invest in gold right now.  But I don't.

[Lacarnut]

"Gold's Luster Outshines Rising Prices
The price of gold rose above the $1,000 mark on Feb. 20, a level it last reached in March 2008. And though prices have swelled 40% since a $712 low last November, now isn't the time to sell, according to David Galland, managing director of Casey Research. "You'll probably see $1,500 this year," he says, as investors favor the precious metal over paper currencies. "You can only mine so much gold in a given year. Dollars can be created in the blink of the eye and with the signing of the pen." Historically, $1,000 an ounce isn't even that high, says Galland. Gold's 1980 peak of $850 would equal $2,300 in today's dollars. That makes $1,000 gold seem cheap; a recent Bloomberg survey of traders, investors, and analysts found that 71% still say $1,000 rates a buy." Link

I think gold and platinum coins from the mint are great investments. They always sell out and no more can be made for that mintage coin. Silver is also a great investment. I inherited a nice collection of coins several months ago; had the inclination to sell but wound up buying more. The stock market because of the volatility is not for amateurs and the banks are not paying squat on Cd's and M.M. accounts.