Starter’s Guide to Gold: How to Invest in Gold

When you think of owning physical gold, you probably picture gold miners or the world’s wealthiest businesspeople standing over a 10-foot-tall pile of gold bars. But you might not realize there are numerous ways to invest in gold, and almost anyone can do it. You could become a successful precious metals investor with just a little know-how.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to invest in gold and make the most of that investment. We’ll cover topics like where to buy gold, its benefits, and how to store it securely.

Is Gold a Good Investment?

Before diving into the nitty-gritty of gold investments, you may wonder if investing in gold is worthwhile. Why not choose other investment options like real estate and stocks, which pay more immediate and consistent dividends? It’s a good question, and you should ask it if you’re a novice investor looking to enter the world of precious metals.

Gold is an excellent investment because of its phenomenal track record as a tradeable asset. People have revered gold as the most valuable material on the planet since the dawn of human history, using it for currency as early as 550 B.C. While paper money and alternative assets like cryptocurrency rise and fall, gold has stayed relatively consistent. You can depend on gold to accelerate your wealth.

Is It Safe To Invest in Gold?

Gold is a safe investment. It’s been around for thousands of years, and its value has only increased over time. Even during times of global strife and economic crisis, the price of gold has stayed rather consistent.

Now is a better time than ever to invest in gold. You can track the price of gold on gold price charts to spot trends and learn about the ideal window in which to make purchases and sales. Gold investments are a safe way to diversify assets and guard against financial hardship.

Ways To Invest in Gold

stack of gold bars of various weights

You don’t need to feel tied to any type of gold while investing. Gold coins and bars are classic forms, but you have a wide variety of available options. Each one has its own benefits.

Gold Bullion

Simply put, gold bullion is any type of pure gold. It includes bars and ingots with specific gold purity, size, and weight. Many novice investors prefer physical gold bullion because it offers the lowest price of gold and you can easily manage it.

Gold Coins

Are you looking for a more elegant, eye-catching form of gold? Consider investing in gold coins. Because of their aesthetic appeal, the price of gold bullion coins is usually higher. However, they have a high numismatic value—in other words, they could be highly sought-after as collectible items.

Gold Jewelry

You might not consider buying gold jewelry an investment, but it is. Purchasing gold jewelry has helped many people get into the gold investment game and expand their wealth. The downside to this type of investment is that it’s often challenging to resell jewelry for a sizable profit.

Gold Futures

gold bar on gold futures chart

Gold futures refer to specific agreements between a buyer and seller. In a futures contract, the two parties agree to exchange a set amount of gold at a fixed price on a specific date. Gold futures aren’t necessarily better or worse for either party, as the profit margin depends on how the market fluctuates in the future.

Gold ETFs and Mutual Funds

Gold ETFs and gold mutual funds are other excellent investment methods for people learning how to invest in gold. ETF stands for exchange-traded fund, referring to a brokerage account that handles all the gold purchases, storage, and exchanges for you. Gold mutual funds and ETFs don’t necessarily work with physical gold, and often lead to diversifying your holdings with other assets.

Gold Mining Companies and Gold Stocks

Gold mining stocks merge the stock market with the gold market. You can buy stocks in a gold mining company or multiple gold mining companies like you would with other organizations. Investing in gold mines and gold miner stocks is a great way to strengthen your portfolio and increase your wealth.

What Is the Best Gold Investment for You?

businessman making a research about best gold investment

Choosing which gold investment works best for you can be a challenge. As you think about the best gold investment for you, consider factors like the following:

  • Appearance: If you place a high value on aesthetics, you might want to buy gold coins, rounds, or jewelry. You should avoid popular gold ETFs, mutual funds, and stocks in gold miners if you only want to hold physical gold.
  • Gold price rates: A gold bar doesn’t look as great in a display case, but the price of gold bars is typically cheaper than collectible gold bullion. If you’re concerned about the price of gold, investing in gold bullion bars or gold mining stocks might be the way to go.
  • Investment management: Do you feel confident handling gold mining stocks or physical gold investments? The process can be intimidating, but gold ETF investors and mutual fund owners avoid that problem. These accounts take responsibility for your investment and allow you to focus on what you do best.

Where Is the Best Place To Buy Gold?

If you’re new to the world of precious metal investments, you may wonder how to buy physical gold. Your best bet is to buy gold through an online dealer.

Successful gold investors recommend buying gold from an online source. It doesn’t take long to locate a well-established, reputable store that offers the kind of gold you want. Buying gold online has many benefits, including:

  • Product availability: If you visit a bank or boutique coin shop, you might find some gold products. Emphasis on the word might. However, highly respected online stores like JM Bullion and Oxford Gold Group will have almost every form of gold imaginable.
  • Investment advice: Established online gold dealers have specialists who can help you with the investment process. You can ask them about products, rising gold prices, storage options, gold content, best practices for selling gold, stocks in gold miners, etc.
  • Convenience: Convenience is a big reason to buy physical gold online. You can browse the product catalog at your own pace whenever you feel like it. You don’t have to worry about store hours and can buy gold bars and coins at your leisure.
  • Affordability: Online stores show you pricing options upfront. You can compare costs and purchase gold at the lowest possible gold prices.

Gold Investment Tax: How Much Does It Cost?

gold bars with calculator and dollar banknotes

As with any investment (whether large or small), you’ll want to understand the tax implications. The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers physical gold investments as capital assets—collectibles, to be exact. This makes your holdings subject to capital gains tax.

According to the IRS, you could pay up to 28% in capital gains tax for long-term gains. Regular income tax rates apply to short-term gains from precious metal sales. Taxes applied to gold ETFs and mutual funds may fall under the short-term or long-term categories.

Pros and Cons of Investing in Gold

A wise investor understands the pros and cons of every business opportunity. You don’t want to launch your gold investment campaign blindly and rethink everything when you face adversity. Investing in gold has many advantages and a couple of disadvantages.

The pros of buying physical gold include the following:

  • High liquidity: It’s easy to liquidate your physical gold funds into cash when needed. This is especially helpful if you invest in other areas or make a big purchase.
  • Tangible asset: Physical gold isn’t a number in your online bank account. It’s something you can actually touch and look at. The tangibility of gold is one reason why many investors gravitate toward it.
  • Excellent ROIs: If you’re serious about investing, you must be serious about return on investments (ROI). Gold has had historically excellent ROIs, meaning you will likely make a significant profit when you sell your gold.
  • Protection against inflation: Inflation is a major concern for everyone these days. Dollar values have plummeted recently, which means that those with paper currencies aren’t as rich as they used to be. However, gold can protect against inflation because its market value rarely fluctuates dramatically.
  • Portfolio diversification: Owning gold helps diversify your investment portfolio and safeguard your assets from economic instability. Stocks, paper currency, crypto, and other markets tend to be volatile. But the stability of the gold market can set you up for a bright financial future.

Of course, every coin (even a pure gold one!) has two sides. The cons of gold investments include:

  • Unfamiliar territory: You probably aren’t as familiar with gold as you are with other assets. This can be scary. However, you can navigate your investment skillfully with help from precious metals experts like those at Learn About Gold.
  • Slower value increases: Are you looking for a get-rich-quick investment scheme? Gold might not be your number one choice. Gold takes longer to increase in value, so you may need to wait a few years before selling it for a sizable profit.

Should You Have Gold in Your IRA?

golden egg among other normal white eggs

Individual retirement accounts (IRAs) offer an ideal solution for people who want to let their wealth grow until they reach retirement age. A conventional IRA deals with traditional assets like paper currency, stocks, and bonds. However, you should consider opening self-directed gold IRAs for gold investments.

Being rich is great, except when tax season rolls around. With gold IRAs, you can contribute gold and enjoy tax breaks both now and in the future. You can allow your wealth to accumulate without the IRS getting involved.

Where Should You Store Your Gold?

To protect your gold stock, you’ll need to keep it in a secure location. The more gold you own, the more you need to consider threats like fire, theft, and cyberattacks. Choosing the right storage location can keep your gold safe for when you need it most.

Is It Safe To Store Gold at Home?

In terms of safety and security, there’s no place like home. However, storing your gold at home might not be the best option. Here’s why:

  • Protection: Your home probably doesn’t have a world-class security system and armed guards to protect your gold from attempted robberies. It might not even have the proper environment to keep your gold from corroding.
  • Insurance: You’ll need specific coverage to store your gold at home. A basic homeowner’s insurance policy likely won’t cover a closet full of gold bars.
  • Awareness: You need a certain level of privacy to keep your gold safe. With it in your home, people will quickly learn about it and increase the risk of break-ins and theft.

Where Is the Safest Place to Store Your Gold?

The safest place to store your gold is either in a safe deposit box or a secure vault. Safe deposit boxes can keep your gold safe with high-end security systems and allow you to access it during bank hours. However, insurance plans can be pricey, and your investment still won’t be 100% safe from bankruptcy.

Your other option is a secure vault. Although secure vaults don’t allow you to access your investment directly, they ensure maximum security protection and well-rounded insurance coverage. You can also have your gold delivered anytime and resell it whenever you see a sales opportunity.

Conclusion

Are you interested in learning more about how to invest in gold, the price of gold, and the gold industry in general? At Learn About Gold, our team can help you design the perfect investment strategy to make the most of your assets. We can assist you in creating goals and finding ways to achieve them.

Owning gold doesn’t have to be complicated or nerve-wracking. Contact us through our online form to get started today!

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