How to start investing in gold?

How to investing in gold?

Gold has maintained the real value of assets for several thousand years, especially in times of crisis. This is its basic economic function.

Why is this happening? Gold is the only type of investment that has no risk of insolvency or bankruptcy. It is a currency accepted on every continent, in every country, under all conditions.

Gold is worth being kept in the portfolio when real interest rates are low and other safe-harbour assets (e. g. bonds or bank deposits) do not offer high returns. Such a period was the 1970s and the current period since 2001.

Do not invest in gold jewellery

First of all, if you think about buying for investment purposes or to secure your property, don't consider jewellery. The reason for this is the margin. It is usually high, which means that only a fraction of the price of pamphlets, earrings or rings is the price of the bullion contained in them.

Even in the case of simple gold rings, the price of a gramme of pure gold is about 100 USD. In the case of more complex products or in reputable jewellery shops, significantly higher prices are expected.

Investing in gold numismatics

Another category of products that should be avoided are numismatics. They are often emitted in short series, so unit design and beating costs are higher than in the bulk product of bullion bars and coins.

The more gold, the better

The price of gold contained in numismatics is therefore not favourable - especially if we consider that the more gold we buy, the better price we should receive. This may be truism, but it is interesting to note the scale of potential savings, which you can count on when buying a larger piece of metal at once.

The longer the delivery period for gold, the lower the price

Another way to reduce the purchase price is to have greater patience. Simply if we agree to delivery in two, three or more weeks, we can count on a lower price. The cost is, of course, the additional risk of a coin or a bar not reaching us. That's why it is crucial to choose trustworthy, proven large companies that inspire greater trust.

How will you check the authenticity of gold?

However, the advantage of bouillon coins - especially those produced by well-known mints - is the possibility of easier verification of their authenticity. Fisch lines are available at affordable prices to check the diameter, thickness and weight of the coin. Special lines are dedicated for coins minted by the most popular mints. This is a simple way to avoid the purchase of counterfeit coins.

However, reading online forums for numismatics tells us that the line is not a 100% safe solution. However, if you are not afraid to buy a counterfeit, you can buy bullion not at the cash desk of a large distributor, but from the second hand. The saving potential can be several percent. However, the risk of buying counterfeit products should not be underestimated.

Select your gold supplier

So if you want to reduce this risk, you can use the offer of the largest distributors of gold coins and bars. Check at least a few of them or use the available comparison engines. The result? A unitary coin bought in a reliable shop can be 10-12% cheaper.

And a cheaper mint....

The same is true of the mints themselves, who make gold coins and bars. Their prices for products weighing one ounce can vary by 2 - 3% in the offer of one shop. In the selection, it is worth not only to pay attention to the price, but also to the later marketability of a given product. Make sure that our bullion is in certified packaging or is accepted by LBMA.

Don't buy all the gold at once....

Even if we have chosen the offer of a reliable company and we are satisfied with the price, it is worth considering the idea not to buy all the bullion at once. First, by dividing the purchase into several tranches, we average the purchase price. Moreover, if the decision was made for delivery some time before the next purchase, it is worth to wait for the first one to reach our hands. In this way, all the capital will not go to the distributor's account, which, despite being checked, may prove to be unreliable.

Where to keep gold?

But when you get gold, another important question awaits an answer - where to keep gold? The apartment is exposed to burglary, and then even the most thoughtful hiding place may turn out to be obvious for thieves.

Perhaps it would be worthwhile to consider storing our bullion in a banking box? When buying or storing gold, it is worth paying attention to the rule "not to keep all eggs in one basket".