Gold IRAs – Frequently Asked Questions

A Gold IRA offers you the opportunity to invest in gold in a very tax effective way and to protect your retirement plan from the ravages of inflation. It can provide the security you need not just for you but for your family and loved ones too.

Investing in gold is not a privilege confined to the rich and famous. Anyone can buy gold right now if they have the money to do so, but the only way you could do so as part of your retirement account is to have this very specific type of IRA that allows you to hold gold as part of your portfolio.

You’ll be able to hold other precious metals as well including silver, platinum and even palladium. So this account is not just for gold, and most experts recommend including at least gold and silver into this type of precious metals IRA because of the huge growth potential for both of these commodities.

What Are The Benefits Of a Gold IRA?

The main reason why you want to include  gold in your IRA is that it’s a fantastic way to protect your retirement portfolio and all of the investments inside of it from inflation and economic turmoil. The one thing that happens when our money gets inflated is that it becomes less valuable and this has a knock on effect on the value of all our traditional types of investments.

What do not become less valuable, or are never affected by inflation at all, are gold and precious metals. Precious metals and gold in particular typically go up in value when the economy is struggling and as the US dollar becomes weaker and weaker. So it obviously makes sense to want to have gold as part of your retirement plan and investing in gold is one of the best things to do when the economy struggles, as is the case right now.

As the value of gold goes up, so does the value of your gold ira. Gold has gone up in value for each of the last 11 years and with the global economy becoming more and more fragile it is becoming increasingly likely that this trend will continue for the foreseeable future.

Whilst most retirement plans have fallen in value or at best stood still over recent years, gold IRAs by comparison are a lot more valuable than when they were first set up.

Another factor not to be overlooked is the tax benefit. There are legitimately no tax consequences and no requirements to declare your precious metals IRA to the IRS. Plus there are no tax penalties or implications when you transfer assets to another suitable retirement or investment plan.

Should I Transfer Or Rollover My Existing Retirement Plan?

Irrespective of whether your existing plan is a 401k, 403b or any other type of IRA or retirement plan it could be transferred or rolled over to a Gold / Precious Metals IRA.

Option one is a ‘transfer’. Provided the assets go from one custodian to another custodian you can do this at any time with an existing plan. In this scenario the check or transfer is sent by the custodian of your existing account directly to the  custodian of your new precious metals retirement account. There is no limit on the amount of transfers you can do.

Option two is a ‘rollover’. This takes place when the proceeds of your existing retirement account are withdrawn and sent to you, and you then deposit these funds into the custodial account of another retirement account. Provided you redeposit the funds within 60 days there are no tax implications or penalties on the withdrawn money. The same money can only be rolled over once in any 12 month period for the tax deferred status of your retirement fund to be preserved.

Don’t worry if all this sounds a bit complicated. Just read on because further down I’ll be informing you about who can guide you through all this plus I’ll be giving you a step by step walkthrough of how I set up my own gold IRA so that you will be familiar with everything that is involved.

Do I Have To Transfer Or Rollover The Whole Of My Existing Retirement Fund?

You have the option of making full or partial rollovers or transfers. The choice is yours.

What Kind Of Investments Can I Include?

This is basically going to be a self-directed IRA, so you will have the flexibility to invest in any type of company or stock that you want, as well as precious metals. You don’t have to just buy gold and put it in this IRA. You can put all of your investments in this vehicle. This is the only type of retirement account that lets you keep gold and other precious metals as part of your holdings.

You won’t be able to buy gold as a retirement option any other way, so don’t let this confuse you at all and think that you are only opening this because you’re specifically going to use it just to buy gold.

What most people like to do when setting up this type of retirement account is to buy their gold from a reputable online dealer who also specialises in retirement investing. Having just one party to deal with everything makes the whole process much quicker, more convenient and more straightforward. So this is certainly something you want to keep on the lookout for, and to help you with that I’ve given details at the end of this article of the company that I use for all my gold and precious metals dealings and who I used set up my own gold IRA.

What Types of Bullion Can I Include?

You are permitted by the US government, under the terms of the 1997 Tax Payer Relief Act, to hold certain types of bullion and rare coins in a gold / precious metals IRA. The requirement is that the bullion you hold is at least 99.5% pure and that it is held in an approved depository which is in a different location to your IRA custodian. Below is a list of what is eligible to be held in retirement accounts.

Which Gold IRA Companies Can I Trust?

When I first looked into including gold in my IRA I was uncertain of what I was supposed to do. I researched and contacted a number of different companies and the one I felt most comfortable with was called Regal Assets. The representative who helped me was extremely knowledgeable about gold investing and the mechanics of setting up gold IRA accounts. He helped me out through the entire process and the information that he provided me with was extremely invaluable and I probably wouldn’t have made this happen without his assistance. In fact I’ve used Regal for all my gold and precious metals dealings ever since and have never looked back. The representative I first spoke to became my Account Executive and I now consider him as much a friend as a business contact.

Regal Assets are also recommended by Columnist, talk show host and actor Alan Thicke. You can watch his short video here:

What Is The Process For Setting Up a Gold IRA?

When I set up my own Gold IRA with Regal Assets this is how the process worked:

1. I requested a free Gold Investment and Retirement Kit which they sent to me. Also one of their representatives gave me a call at that point and answered all the questions I bombarded him with!
2. In the kit they sent me I got a 1 page setup form, which was really easy to fill out.
3. Once I’d filled out the form I scanned it and emailed it back to them. From that point on they pretty much took care of everything.
4. Once they received my form they emailed me all the paperwork, which they had already filled out for me. All I had to do was print it out, sign it, scan it and email it back to them.
5. Once they got my signed paperwork back they set up a self directed IRA with Sterling Trust for me and advised me the account number as soon as they had it.
6. Once I had my account at Sterling Trust they worked with my existing custodian to transfer my funds from my existing retirement plan over to Sterling Trust. All that was tax free and with zero penalties.
7. Once my money was at Sterling Trust a broker let me know and then I had to decide what kind of metals I wanted in my portfolio. I wasn’t too sure about that so I spoke to the Regal Assets Account Executive they allocated to me and he gave me some good advice and answered all my questions.
8. Once I chose the metals I wanted Sterling Trust sent the money to Regal Assets and in return Regal Assets sent my chosen metals to the depository I nominated (which also they helped me with).
9. Since my metals have been at the depository I’ve been getting quarterly statements. I can also check the progress of my account 24/7 online.

One other thing worth mentioning is that because I had more that $10,000 in my existing retirement account Regal Assets took care of the setup fees and the first year’s storage charges. That saved me about $300 compared to what I would have had to pay to other companies.

How Do I Get Started?

If you would like to talk to Regal Assets about opening up a new gold IRA account or about transferring or rolling over your existing retirement plan, then use the form below to request one of their free Gold Investment & Retirement Kits just like I did. Make sure you include your phone number then one of their knowledgeable representatives over there will get right back to you. The Kit they send you will include the 1 page setup form which is all you will need to complete to start the simple process.

Filed under: Retirement Accounts & Planning