Can an IRA Hold Physical Gold?
IRS rules regarding IRAs generally forbid certain investments, including collectibles such as gold. An exception exists however when they are owned and held by an approved custodian.
Most IRA providers charge fees for account setup, maintenance and storage as well as for mark-up on precious metal purchases made for an IRA.
Taxes
IRAs provide an effective tax-efficient means of saving for retirement. By investing your funds before paying taxes, an IRA gives you the potential to grow more money than would otherwise be the case if paid into traditional taxable accounts.
Asset allocation is crucial to securing a strong return at retirement. Studies have demonstrated that asset allocation accounts for as much as 90 percent of your portfolio’s total return.
As a business owner or self-employed individual, an SEP IRA allows for much larger contributions than what could be saved in a traditional IRA. Furthermore, SIMPLE IRAs – created for small businesses with few employees – permit savings up to 25% of salary – about 10x what would be possible through traditional IRAs.
Before choosing between rollover options, make sure you carefully assess them. Some plans have high fees and limited investment choices or a lock-in period which prevents you from moving money before reaching age 59 1/2.
Rollovers
If you’re moving funds from an employer retirement plan into an IRA, it is imperative that you follow Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations to prevent taxes and penalties. A direct rollover may be the safest solution as your old account administrator transfers it directly without you having to handle it at any point in the transfer.
An indirect rollover allows your plan or account administrator to liquidate assets and send you a check with any tax withholding amounts withheld; you then have 60 days to deposit those funds (plus withholding) into a new IRA in order to complete your rollover.
Indirect rollovers are used to move funds from an individual retirement account (IRA) into one that you control yourself, usually via self-directed investing or using an automatic advisor that automatically selects and manages your portfolio for you. You may still make annual contributions, though those doing so must abide by IRS limits on annual contribution amounts.
Limits
Understanding the rules surrounding physical gold in an IRA is important, but there are other methods available to you for adding precious metals to your retirement portfolio. One such means could be purchasing shares in an exchange-traded fund that tracks a particular precious metal’s price value.
However, it should be remembered that this approach comes with its own set of complexities and fees. Precious metals must be stored safely which may incur costs over time; furthermore, this investment entails significant counterparty risk.
An investment in gold requires careful coordination between investor and custodian, which can present several pitfalls for an unexperienced individual. One way to prevent them is working with an experienced precious metals IRA advisor who will handle all legal paperwork as well as purchase assets according to IRS requirements and your parameters – this helps minimize the risk of an IRS characterization penalty penalty.
Categorised in: Blog