At any stage of life, it is important to be thinking of the future and investing with your mind focused on this. To that end, the vast majority of people whether they are traders or not, will have an IRA. This is an individual retirement account geared toward exactly that, your retirement.
These types of investment accounts typically come with all manner of rules and regulations around how much you can contribute, and in what. Recently, there has been a surge in a particular type of individual retirement account. That is, the Gold IRA. Here we will delve deeper into the finer points of IRAs, what exactly a Gold IRA is, and how you can get started investing in your own.
Basics of an IRA
To form a very broad overview, an IRA is a special type of investment account that you can open through your broker specifically to begin saving and investing in your retirement. There are several types of common IRA accounts that people typically invest in. The most well-known of these are the Traditional IRA, and Roth IRA although nowadays there are more types growing in popularity, and you can even find Bitcoin IRAs to invest in.
The basic benefit, and reason why many people choose to invest in IRAs besides the necessity of saving for retirement, is due to the fact you can make a tax saving. A traditional IRA can allow you to defer your tax liability and increase tax deductions, while a Roth IRA can allow you to grow your investment tax-free since you will invest funds on which you have already paid tax.
Some limitations also apply to your contributions to an IRA. The main limitation here is that you cannot contribute more than $6,000 per year to your IRA. This amount increases to $7,000 if you are 50 or older and it is a rule that also applies to Gold IRAs.
How is a Gold IRA Different From Others?
Now that you have an understanding of what regular IRAs are, it is important to focus on the similarities and differences between those we have mentioned and what you can expect from your Gold IRA.
The first important points to mention are that the same contribution limits broadly apply, though you can check the finer details with your IRA broker like iTrustCapital who are a popular choice for Gold IRAs as well as Bitcoin and others. Also, you should note that you are not allowed to have Gold in your regular IRA like the Traditional, or Roth IRAs we have mentioned above.
With a Gold IRA though, these assets are permitted. More specifically, this would be a precious metals IRA and allow the holding of gold bullion, that is, physical gold like bars and coins. You will also be able to hold other precious metals as well as Gold ETFs, funds, or certain gold-related stocks.
This basically means you have more options with a Gold IRA if you are interested to invest in the sector. This is something that usually attracts many investors given the historical returns from Gold and the fact it is one of the most secure safe-haven assets in the world.
How to Open Your Gold IRA
If you have decided that a Gold IRA is the best choice you can make for your retirement investment, the next step will be to find an approved broker. These brokers are typically extremely well-regulated and approved by the IRS to offer IRAs.
Once you have done this, you will need to ensure the broker or financial institution you choose will allow you to open a self-directed IRA. Luckily, brokers such as iTrustCapital are available, and very well-regarded to take care of everything for you. Their self-directed Gold IRA is one of the best in the business and can be set up in just a few simple steps.
Once you have made your broker choice, ideally one which offers an all-in-one service to set up your Gold IRA, you will simply need to complete the broker application. This means entering all of your personal data, along with verifying your account, and paying any startup fees required.
With these steps complete you will be ready to invest. On platforms like iTrustCapital this means you can have total control over your portfolio and with very low fees to decide which gold or other precious metal investments are most suitable for your IRA, overall adding even more flexibility and transparency to the process.
Benefits of a Gold IRA
Just as with other types of IRAs, there are several reasons why starting a Gold IRA can be beneficial particularly over the longer term.
Tax Advantages: Just like a regular IRA as we have already discussed, a Gold IRA brings you the same tax benefits. This means a certain amount of tax-deductible, or possibly tax-free or deferred investing in your future. It is a very important feature for longer-term investing and data shows that the value can really mount up particularly if you begin investing in your IRA early.
Increased Flexibility: Since Gold IRAs are all self-directed as a requirement of being available, it means you can have much better hands-on control of your own portfolio. This is excellent if you like to monitor and make changes to your portfolio while the nature of gold investments also means you should not have to make frequent investing decisions but that choice is yours to make.
Reliable Returns: Nobody can predict future returns, but given Gold prices at present, and looking at the historical charting data, it is clear to see that the precious metal can provide a very consistent return. This can be extremely valuable when you are looking at a long-term investment horizon such as retirement in particular.
If you are feeling ready to open your own Gold IRA then iTrustCapital is a great choice with the lowest fees in the industry, and a highly-secure trading platform to help you get started.