An individual retirement account, or IRA, is an account that allows you to invest and deposit retirement funds. It provides a reliable source of income for account holders (after retirement) or designated beneficiaries (after death).

A Precious Metals IRA is simply a Traditional, ROTH, SEP, SIMPLE, Rollover, or Inherited IRA that owns precious metals and may include gold, silver, platinum, or palladium. IRA Holders have been allowed to use funds in their IRA account to purchase approved precious metals since 1998 after the passage of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. This act expanded the investment options for IRAs beyond paper assets.

A Precious Metals IRA is an individual retirement account that allows you to hold some forms of gold, silver, platinum and palladium. It is no different from other IRAs, except that it allows you to add these metals, and it is a “self-directed” account, which means that you maintain control over your investment decisions, while your IRA custodian facilitates the management of your account on your behalf.

1. You may benefit from tax breaks. Depending on the type of IRA, you can save on your taxes now with a deduction or save later with a tax-free withdrawal.
2. Grow your account with income from interest, dividends, and capital gains that can accumulate each year without an end of year taxable event.
3. Greater investment flexibility. Most 401(k)s and other employer retirement plans only provide a limited selection of investment choices. With an IRA, you can pick from a wider range of investment options.

• Am I timing the market wisely?
• Am I getting a fair price?
• Is the buyer giving a fair appraisal value?
• Do my coins have any collector value that should be considered?
• Should I sell my coins at an auction?

While your metals are owned by your IRA, they are securely stored in a depository. Once you are eligible to begin taking distributions at age 59 1⁄2, you can choose to take your distributions either as a cash payment or in the form of precious metals.

Precious metals like gold and silver are part of a truly diversified portfolio. They preserve your purchasing power and protect your savings from loss during periods of inflation when the dollar is devalued. By placing some of your nest egg into a Precious Metals IRA, you are protecting yourself against market and currency crashes. This is because gold and silver tend to go up when markets go down. Even better, a Precious Metals IRA allows you to buy and store real gold with pretax money.