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How to Invest in a Gold or Silver Backed IRA

May 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment

 


 

Recently I went through the process of converting one of my traditional IRA’s (Individual Retirement Account) to a gold and silver backed IRA.  With the state of the economy today, I felt it was important to diversify my portfolio so I took the plunge and did it! I was a little nervous at first, since after all I had no clue what I was doing! But the process was pretty simple an straightforward. If you are looking to diversify your portfolio, take a look at a gold and/or silver backed IRA.

What is it

Let’s first talk about what a gold / silver backed IRA is and isn’t. A typical IRA usually consists of stocks, bonds or mutual funds that you have invested in. A gold or silver backed IRA is basically your IRA that consists of actual physical gold or silver (or both). You don’t actually take possession of the gold or silver, that is stored for you by the company who you buy the gold or silver from.

The process

I had one IRA account that I managed on my own. (If you have your IRA with a broker, you will need to contact them about doing this.) I contacted Goldline to start the process but there are other companies like GoldSilver.com or Lear Capital that do the same thing. Goldline then got me started on opening my IRA with GoldStar Trust (who they recommend).  Once that was opened, the money from my previous IRA was transferred to my Goldstar Trust IRA account. After that was complete, Goldline contacted me to purchase my gold and silver.

That was really it. It was actually a pretty simple process and Goldline was very good to work with. The process took about 3 weeks to complete because I had to wait for the company I had my original IRA with to complete their paperwork.

Final Thoughts

I really do think investing in physical gold and silver are a great way to diversify your portfolio. Here are some things to consider in the process:

  • The recommended holding period of precious metals is 3-5 years
  • The recommended amount to invest in gold/silver is 5-20% of your portfolio
  • The ratio of gold to silver is recommended at 60% gold 40% silver
  • Make sure you don’t put all your eggs in one basket and that you have other backup funds
  • If you don’t understand the fees, ask! There are fees for storing the gold and silver and transaction fees so make sure you understand that up front. Goldline was very good about explaining the fees and what I was buying and I had to verify it with 3 different people before it was complete.

Investing in gold and silver can be a great way to diversify your portfolio. Don’t be afraid to try it on your own if this is something you are interested in. If I can do it, you can to!



Sponsored Link: DiscountDiscount.co.uk



Filed Under: Blog, investing, Retiring Tagged With:

Special Call Tonight to Update You on the Status of The Economy & How You Can Protect Yourself

May 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I hate to admit it, but in the past I never much cared about trying to figure out my investments, I just handed it off to my broker and let him take care of it. Boy, was that a mistake! For the past year, I’ve been trying to take a more proactive approach to my investments. Afterall, I worked to build that money up!

In the past 6 months I’ve managed to get set up with a gold backed IRA and manage one of my smaller IRA accounts on my own (more about how that works later). I did this all with the information I received in the Vertical Research Advisory (VRA) newsletter which is apart of Crashproof Prosperity.

Tonight, Kip Herriage, the founder of Wealth Masters International (WMI) and author of the VRA newsletter is happening an open call to discuss the current state of the economy and how to protect yourself. From what I understand, Kip is going to tell us how to grow your money ten times, thats right 10 TIMES it’s original amount.

WMI is not an investment company, it’s an educational company. Kip provides you with the educational information and it’s up to you how you use it. I personally manage my IRA account through Scottrade and use Kips advice to guide my decisions.

If your curious and want to know more, get on the call tonight, you won’t regret it. I also think there will be some special discounts at the end of the call. Here is some more information from Kip himself:

Urgent Global Update -Special Open Call
The Next Shoe is About to Drop

Thursday, May 26 – 8 pm Eastern
+1 (605) 475-4445, access code 964#

We will host an international call this Thursday night at 8 PM EST, and invite everyone interested in the REAL STORY about what’s coming next to join us. The coming one month to three years will bring a sea-change to the global economic landscape unlike any the world has seen before. For those who wish to survive and thrive in the years ahead, the time has come to deal with reality as it IS, not as we wish it would be. Get the straight story this Thursday night so you can be among those who are taking informed action. The largest transfer of wealth for mankind is underway…on Thursday night we will show you how to ensure you are on the right side of history.

- Kip Herriage
WMI CEO

IMPORTANT: This conference bridge can only hold 1000 callers – last time we maxed out the lines 5 minutes before the call started. Feel free to forward to anyone that you believe should have this information. Dial in early to ensure your place!!

Thursday, May 26 – 8 pm Eastern
+1 (605) 475-4445, access code 964#

 

If you have any questions after the call, don’t hesitate to email me and let me know how I can help! If you want to learn more, visit Crashproof Prosperity and opt-in so you are notified of special events like this.

Filed Under: Blog, investing, Personal Finance, Retiring

Goal Setting: Discover What You Want in Life and Achieve It Faster than You Think Possible

May 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Last year, I wrote a post on how Amazon regularly gives away Kindle books for free. The nice thing about it is, you don’t have to have a Kindle to be able to enjoy the books. In my article, I wrote step by step instructions for installing the Kindle to your computer. By now, you probably even have that app on your phone so you can read the books directly from there.

I was looking through the list today and found the book  Goal Setting: Discover What You Want in Life and Achieve It Faster than You Think Possible. I’ve been on a real kick lately trying to make sure I stay on track with my goals so this book looks like a good read.  Be sure to check it out before it’s off the free list :)

One of the other tools I have been using to track my projects is called Many Moon. This is a free project management tool and the good thing about is you can sync it with your Google tasks. This works really well because I can access it from my phone. If you are feeling overwhelmed and want to try something that will help keep you organized, I definitely recommend giving it a try.




Filed Under: Blog, investing, Personal Finance, Retiring Tagged With:

Create a Wealth Building System: – 3 Tips to Survive Financially After the Recession

March 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Have you thought of creating a wealth building system for yourself? There was an interesting article on Newsweek recently called How Americans Will Build Wealth After the Recession which got me thinking. Do most Americans really worry about how they will build wealth? Or are most people just so focused on the day to day, paycheck to paycheck lifestyle that the thought of building wealth is just something for the future, which they feel they will probably never actually obtain?

As the article points out, the weak housing market and volatile stock prices aren’t going to help anyone build a nest egg anytime soon. Building wealth is going to come from cutting back in our day to day life so we can start contributing towards our own financial future.

What is a Wealth Building System?

A wealth building system is a plan you put in place to start preparing and saving for your future. The most important word in that last sentence is plan. Without one, how will you know what you need to do to reach your future financial goals? If you don’t believe me, try this retirement calculator to see what you should be saving each month to reach your retirement goals. Are you saving close to what you need to be ‘set’ in your retirement years? If not, it’s time to implement a wealth building system.

Where do I start?

I’ve always said, you can’t get to where you want to go in the future if you are struggling with where you are today. If you can’t manage your day to day finances, you will never be able to save for the future.

Step 1 – Get your monthly finances in order – Sites like this one offer tons off resources and tips for getting your monthly finances in order. My ebooks also offer some great ways to manage your personal finances.

The main purpose of this step is to start paying attention to the way you spend your money so you can start making better decisions for your future.

Step 2  - Get Educated - If you are new to the area of personal finance and building wealth, start reading as many books as you can on the subject. The library is a great FREE resource for all kinds of information. There are also many classes on the subject of budgeting, investing and overall personal finances at most community colleges. Most of these classes are pretty inexpensive and extremely valuable.

Research what you can online, but remember to take it one step at a time. Instead of trying to read everything on every subject, get really good at one subject (such as budgeting) and then move on to the next step.

Step 3 – Seek help when necessary - The subject of personal finances can be tough to take on alone. If you are having trouble in one area or don’t feel comfortable, seek out professional advice when necessary. If you have specific questions, feel free to email me as I’m always glad to help.

The purpose of a wealth building system is to get you to start thinking about building wealth for your own financial future. Unless you want to work until your 100 years old, implementing small steps towards this goal can bring you big rewards.

Filed Under: Blog, investing, Personal Finance, Retiring Tagged With: , , ,
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