Gold and Other Metals – What can I buy with an IRA?
Most likely, you’ve seen the modern-day gold rush in everything from Super Bowl commercials and famous financial advisors encouraging you to purchase gold. We have been asked many times over the last six months whether retirement funds can be used for buying gold or other metals. Your IRA can be invested in precious metals if it is self-directed, such as the Entrust New Direction IRA. This article will answer the question: what type of gold is it? who has the best gold IRA?
There are so many options for metals and coins on the market, it can become confusing. This is a quick step-by–step guide that will help you decide if the metal of choice is appropriate for an IRA investment. You cannot hold the metal yourself, regardless of your choice. Metals will be held for you by your IRA custodian, or depository.
The basics. The only thing you can invest in with a self-directed IRA is Gold, Silver and Platinum. The key word is invest. Your IRA can’t buy collectibles – your IRA only invests in the metal, not rare or beautiful coins. The metal must have a particular form (usually coins, bars, or pure gold) and/or be of a certain purity. For your IRA, the quality of the metal will depend on its purity or fineness.
We all remember the 400 ounce bars of gold we saw in movies when we think about gold investment. The bars are extremely heavy at 25 pounds and quite costly, especially with recent gold price rises. However, IRAs are rarely priced in the gold bars market. Fortunately, there are still other options. Another option is to purchase smaller amounts of bullion as long as they meet the requirements for purity and fineness. There are also coins.
Initially, all coins were considered collectible by IRS. IRAs were not allowed to invest in coins. The IRS realized that a 400 ounce bar of bullion gold was too expensive for most IRAs. In the middle 1990s, Congress amended the rules to allow IRAs the right to own bullion and certain coins.