Traditional IRAs are normally handled by brokerage houses or banks. They will usually tell you that you can invest in stocks, bonds or savings accounts (money markets, treasuries or CDs). This is true in that the only investment vehicles that they have to offer are the above.
There are other options that are available for IRAs. Two easy options are Gold Star Trust (www.goldstartrust.com) or Checkbook IRA (www.checkbookira.com). Both have A+ ratings at the BBB.
For more modest IRAs you may want to consider Gold Star Trust. Simply set up an account on line and then roll over some or all of your funds into the new account. Gold Start Trust was formerly American Church Trust and specialized in Church bonds. I have been associated with them for almost 20 years. After you account is funded simply call your favorite precious metals dealer (yours truly for one) and you can purchase precious metals for your IRA. The metals have to be held in a 3rd party depository which is where Gold Star Trust comes into play. Your metals dealer ships the precious metals to Gold Star and they pay directly from your IRA account. There are a few restrictions on allowed metals but most popular forms of precious metals are allowed in the IRA. Storage costs are reasonable.
Another more interesting option is found at Checkbook IRA (www.checkbookIRA.com) and is suitable for a more broad range of investments. Their website goes into pretty good detail on what is allowed such as: income producing real estate, precious metals, stocks, bonds, etc. They will help guide you through setting up your IRA, LLC and the reporting on IRS form 5498. After the LLC is set up and you open your account at the bank you can simply roll over your IRA into the new IRA, LLC and you are set. Just call your metals dealer of choice (www.silvertrading.net is but one example) and order your metals. With checkbook IRA you decide where and how to store your metals.
Of course you can always contact your CPA and see if he can set up your own self directed IRA, especially if he has had experience in retirement accounts and profit sharing plans and sets them up for his clients on a regular basis.
For storage I recommend a private, non-bank, insured, segregated depository that holds your metals in bailment. This simply means that the storage facility does not have a claim on your metals but is simply storing your metals for you. This is unlike a bank deposit where you are literally loaning the bank your money and it becomes their asset upon deposit into your savings account. If a bank goes broke then you have to get in the back of the line along with the other creditors to try to recover your “loan” to the bank. This is why they came up with FDIC insurance because after you make the deposit into the bank it technically is no longer your money as you have loaned it to the bank and it becomes their asset. If the depository goes broke with your metals held in bailment, your metals still belong to you.
If you have questions about storage, just give us a call or send me an email and perhaps we can help.
With the stock market in flux and overdue for a correction, you should think about an alternative investment far away from Wall Street. While the US market may continue to go up for another year or so (or not) the long over due correction will arrive as all bull markets end in bear markets and thus the cycle begins again.
Protect your nest egg and invest a portion in precious metals. Make the move this week and save yourself some worry.
Cheers,
Larry LaBorde
Larry LaBorde owns Silver Trading Company, LLC (www.silvertrading.net) and has sold gold, silver, platinum and palladium around the world since 2001. Larry travels the world meeting with customers, investors and interesting people from almost everywhere. Contact him at llabord@gmail.com.
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