Knowing How to Buy Gold Bullion and Coins 

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Knowing How to Buy Gold Bullion and Coins 

Gold bullion and coins are a great way to diversify your portfolio, but it’s not as simple as picking up an ingot and stashing it in your safe. Not all bars and coins are created equal. Here is where you find out the lowdown on buying gold successfully. 

Bars and ingots 

Bullion bars don’t just come in those classic slabs that you see gleaming in a movie safe, they come in lots of different sizes. There’s the Troy ounce, the 10 Troy ounce, the 100 Troy ounce and even larger bars. You can even get half, quarter and tenth of an ounce bars. 

These smaller bars might seem like a good idea if your budget is small, but you’ll pay more of a percentage over the market price for the smaller ingots. It’s only people looking to buy large amounts of gold at once who will make the best deals. 

Bullion gold coins 

Nations and private bodies can produce bullion that looks like a coin but isn’t, as it has no monetary value. A few of these bullion coins can be legal tender, but their value comes from the metal itself and they’re not usually released into general circulation. These coins start at a gram and can go up to five Troy ounces. 

If you’re not looking for the numismatic value – the value a coin has because of its rarity – then you can buy gold bullion coins minted by a major country or a well-respected body. US Gold Eagles and the South African Krugerrands are good examples. 

Foreign gold coins 

This can be quite a lucrative field if you know what you’re doing as there have been a lot of gold coins circulated around the globe over the centuries. Of course, the value of these coins can change rapidly, depending on how many are available, how much gold is in them and how popular they are at the time. Ones to look out for are the Mexico 2 and 50 Pesos, the Austria 100 Corona and the Switzerland 20 Francs. You should read up on these coins first, however, to find out how much gold they contain and what the latest market values are. 

Choosing the right dealer 

It’s as important to know how to choose a good dealer as it is to be able to spot a good coin. You want an honest, reliable coin dealer and it’s quite easy to spot them. You need to look for experience – both individual and collective, ethics, industry reputation, the size of the company and their guaranty. Once you’ve found someone you like, ask about what forms of payment they accept, whether they have minimum order sizes and how long it’ll take to get your gold. 

Dealers to avoid 

There are lots of unscrupulous and downright dishonest dealers out there, so these are the ones to watch out for: 

• online dealers with huge discounts; 

• jewelry shops; 
• anyone advertising on TV; 
• pawnshops; 
• anyone on Craigslist; 
• any dealer who only has an email and/or phone number but no physical shop, and 

• anyone who only accepts cash or wire transfers.