Retirement is a concern that most Americans worry about because of the unstable state of the economy. If things are difficult now, how much more difficult could it get when one retires? Just as well the government introduced Individual Retirement Arrangements or IRAs that allowed individuals to save for retirement while availing of tax breaks. It differs from other retirement accounts in the sense that there is flexibility in the types of assets one can invest in IRA.
The recent stock market crash resulted in many IRA account owners to re-examine the viability of investing in the traditional stocks, bonds and mutual funds. Many have lost considerable sums because of the volatility of the stock market. Stability is what people are after now-a-days and nothing beats a gold IRA investment as far as stability is concerned.
But in order to safeguard your retirement savings and its assets there are a few things you need to watch out for concerning your gold IRA investment. A gold IRA is allowed to invest in precious metals such as gold, silver, platinum and palladium. These precious metals are hardly affected by economic crises and its resultant ill-effects such as devaluation and inflation. In the face of such occurrences, these precious metals hold its own because of the limited supply and high demand.
Having an account custodian who allows https://us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/gold-ira-options/gold-ira-options.html the inclusion of precious metals in your IRA would be a good start. Otherwise you must establish a self directed gold IRA account find one that does. If you have the penchant for investing in physical assets such as gold and silver bullion bars or coins, it is imperative that you open an account with an IRS-accredited depository to keep your gold IRA investment. Care must be taken not to personally handle the precious metal asset as this is prohibited by the IRS. Your asset must be deposited directly into the storage facility in order to avoid being penalized.
Not all gold or silver bullion bars or coins qualify as gold IRA investment. There are IRS defined standards as to the fineness that your physical asset must meet to qualify as account investment. Gold and silver bullion coins are accepted as long as they are at least.995 fine and are accepted as legal tender. Few coins fit the criteria which include the American Gold, Silver and Platinum Eagles, the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins, the Australian Kangaroo Nuggets and the Austrian Philharmonics. Bullions are always a safe bet because they are 99.9 % pure.
To further protect your gold IRA investment, be sure to deal only with reputable precious metals dealers. This will help you avoid costly mistakes that would take its toll on your retirement account. Remember that it is the quality of your life after retirement that is at stake so it always pays to be extra cautious. Choosing precious metals as your preferred investment is a good start. Don’t endanger the stability of your account committing avoidable mistakes.