Why Everyone Should Own Gold
More than ever, the average saver should understand the benefits of gold as a vehicle for savings.
I recorded this video podcast on March 3. You can enjoy it at 1.25x the average speed.
One correction to the video: In the opening remarks, I mistakenly said that a gold price of $1840 per Troy ounce translates to a cost per gram of $65. The correct conversion price is approximately $59 per gram. The transcript below was edited to contain the right price.
The contents are not intended to be investment advice. I hope it is entertaining and interesting, but you should do your research and consult your investment advisor before making any investment decisions. Also, and I think many of you are already aware of this, I sit on the Board of Directors of Monetary Metals and Company, which offers a yield on gold paid in gold. This podcast is not a solicitation to engage with that or any company. Anything I say in the podcast is something I would have said even if I had no affiliation with a gold-based company.
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Thanks for watching and reading!
HardmoneyJim, March 3, 2023
I just rewatched this podcast again. In the podcast, you mention a 3 to 7% markup when buying a coin. When I go to Google today April 6, 2023, and search price of gold per ounce, I see Monex live showing $2,020.00. If I go to Apmex.com and look at a Buffalo coin, I see a price of $2,226.39, so closer to a 10% markup.
Assuming I have the above right, I wonder about holding the metal versus the GLD fund you mention later in the podcast. Following my first listen to your podcast, I did make a purchase of shares in that fund. I recall that you said that fees in the fund over time eat into profit and therefore you recommend holding the metal rather than the shares, though you sometimes temporarily buy the shares to lock in a price. Presumably the fund, though, doesn't have the 10% initial markup? Or do I have that wrong?
Then my related question would be on the sell-side. The podcast discusses how to buy, but if one later wanted to sell, the GLD fund would be easy and presumably there are no transaction costs other than taxes. When selling the physical gold, would one encounter fees?
Put differently, I understand your point when you talk about gold being HIGHLY liquid. I interpret that in the context of being accepted as a thing of value in every country for the last 4,000 years. Amazing! But on the other hand, the GLD fund shares can be liquidated by pressing buttons on a computer. By contrast, I wonder how long it takes, and what fees are involved, with the physical gold.
Thank you much!
Great podcast! A couple questions: (1) When you mention a target like 10% in gold, are you referencing 10% of net worth or 10% of investment portfolio? (For people like me with expensive houses that they live in as their residence, these can be wildly different numbers.) (2) It was interesting to me that you suggested coins as the entry point because buying the etf gld (one of your other recs) seems WAY EASIER. My assumption is you encourage the former rather than the latter because it's "outside of the system" and thus less subject to seizure by governments, creditors, etc. Do I have that right?