11 Things You Should Know When Buying Gold Bars

Precious metals are deemed to be a lucrative investment if you follow the proper steps in acquiring, keeping, and managing them. Different precious metals, such as gold and silver, are believed to be good investment options by many. 

Is your greatest desire to own real gold? Do you want to be part of those making good returns from investing in gold, which is one of the lucrative investments?  All of these are possible. This blog will shed light on valuable information surrounding investing in gold, specifically gold bars, which are one of the many constituents of the highly prized product.

Here are a few things that’ll enlighten and help out in your decision of buying gold bars:

1. Why You Are Buying

Understanding why you want to buy gold bars is crucial in deciding various aspects that come with your purchase such as the number to acquire or where to store them. Acquiring gold bars is a good investment, especially in the long term. 

If you’re looking for high returns in the short term, purchasing gold bars is said to be not the route to take. Gold bars are a good investment if you want to hold tangible wealth and safeguard your wealth in a stable manner in the far future. 

2. Purity

Purity is the percentage of pure gold in a gold bar. Most gold bars have a purity of 99.5%. The remaining 0.5% is always copper or silver, that’s used to enable gold smelt. Gold’s purity is measured in karats (unit of measurement.) Most pure gold bars have karats of 24,22, and 18. The higher the percentage of purity a gold bar has, the more refined and expensive it is. 

Check the purity of the gold bars you want to purchase. Doing this is one of the ways you’ll know if the gold bars are fake or not, as well as their quality.

3. Available Denominations

Gold bars are melted into various quantities known as denominations. These denominations are often in 500grams and 1kg bars. Online sources such as https://learnaboutgold.com/blog/how-much-does-a-gold-bar-weigh/ and others like it are available for those who want to learn more about how gold is weighed.

Consider buying gold bars in small denominations rather than buying one big gold bar. Buying in small denominations will make the liquidation process more manageable when you need money. It’s easier to find buyers willing to buy in small quantities considering they can be pricey, rather than finding buyers to buy a 250g whole gold bar which could be going for several millions if not billions of legal tender. 

Also, with smaller denominations, you can sell only a few depending on the amount of money you want and still be left with others for future emergencies. With a whole gold bar, the only option is selling it at once and you’re left with none for later use. 

4. Price

Gold bars are expensive to acquire. Most sellers incorporate a lot of costs to the initial expense of fabricating them. Gold bar sellers have control of how much they want their gold bars to cost. The retail price of the gold bars also includes their desired profits, making it a more or less unregulated market regarding pricing. These associated costs are taxes, shipping, handling, profits, printing, mark-ups, storage, insurance, transaction, and authentication costs.

Compare the costs of various sellers before buying the gold bars. Look out for discounts they might be offering. Some offer discounts if you pay cash, which can make you save a little money. However, beware of prices that are too good to be true. The possibility of such gold bars being fake is high. Approximate a gold bar’s price range based on the average costs being displayed by various sellers.

5. State Of Current Economy

The state of the current economy will help you determine if it’s the right time to buy. Acquire gold bars if the economy is stable and there’s a possibility of a recession. 

Why is this? Most investments are portfolios, meaning the economy is controlling them. If the economy is failing, the value of most investments lowers, and the population tends to want to get rid of investments to acquire liquid cash. With more investments being sold and there’s a dire need for money, the market gets a surplus, making prices go low. Losses are experienced in the search for liquid cash. 

But with gold bars as an investment, you have the bars physically. The state of the economy doesn’t, therefore, control them. You control when you want to sell or buy more.

6. Liquidation Requirements

Gold bars can’t be used solely as a means of exchange like money, as it was a few years back. They’re beneficial to you when liquidated into money through selling. 

Know all the requirements by law when it comes to liquidating gold. The liquidation process could take time, especially as you look for potential buyers or a reputable seller to do the selling on your behalf. Acknowledging this will enable you to decide if you’re willing to undergo all that to access liquid cash. This will also tell you how the law handles investments, such as gold bars.

7. Associated Risks And Drawbacks

Gold bar investing comes with risks once acquired and has various drawbacks. These risks and drawbacks are discussed below.

Although precious metals such as gold bars are expected to increase in value with time constantly, it might not always be the case. There’s always a possibility, however minimal it is, of its value dropping. Consider this as you buy your gold bars to enable you to make intelligent investment decisions.

You have to have storage space for the gold bars. Gold bars are a high-value investment, making them susceptible to accidental loss by theft or damage. It’d be best to store them safely and there are various options available for you to choose from. 

You can keep them in a safety deposit box with your local bank, lock them in a safe at your house, or store them with a private non-banking institution. As will be later seen in this feature, all these options have associated costs, including tax.

Additionally, it’s advisable to insure gold bars once you acquire them. Gold bars are an expensive investment. Insure against damage, theft, natural disasters, among others.

Gold bars only generate wealth when sold. No passive income is accrued as with dividends or having a gold portfolio with an investment company. It can take time to liquidate gold bars since you have to find buyers or a reputable seller. 

8. Refinery

A refinery is where the gold bars are made. Various companies smelt gold into multiple forms and products. Check the credibility and certification of given refineries. Most of these refineries indicate their name on the gold bar. Make an informed decision on your preferred refinery. This ensures you’re buying from credible and certified sellers.

9. Certification

Most gold bars come with information imprinted on them. The information imprinted indicates the weight, purity levels as a percentage, the name of the refinery, and the gold bar’s registration number. Yet some gold bars don’t have this information. To prove their quality and know their purity, you have to conduct an assay.

Ensure the gold bars you’re buying contain this information. Having this information on the gold bars assures you of the purity of the gold bars. If the information isn’t indicated, it can be quite tasking to prove their purity when you decide to liquidate them moving forward. 

10. Packaging

Don’t remove the gold bars from their encasing if you’re purchasing them from an online source. Removing the packaging could potentially alter the purity of the gold bars. 

11. Return Policy

Buy your gold bars from a seller that offers a return policy. This is one way of ensuring you’re buying high-quality gold bars. It shows the seller’s commitment to making quality goods and satisfying their customers’ needs since they’re willing to take back their gold bars.

Conclusion

Acquiring gold bars can be a lengthy process since it requires a lot of research and make-or-break decision-making. This shouldn’t scare you from going ahead and acquiring the investment.

The guides given in this article will help make the process smoother if you follow them, letting you acquire gold bars as the best investment decisions you’ll ever make.