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Ask three people on what their opinion is on the value of gold or silver being valuable investments and you'll get three different answers. It's a common topic of fanning flames around here so BE CAREFUL asking that question!
That said, gold and silver are like any other commodity - large price fluctuations are not unheard of and you should not be surprised if over a period of time you LOSE money. Gold fans will say it's a hedge against inflation, and will point to the 2000-2010 period where on average 401(k) accounts lost value but gold rose and (barely) beat it.
You also do not seem to have asked the right questions. The right questions to ask yourself are, "What are my short term and long term goals?" and "What is my tolerance for risk?"
If you are looking short term, I wouldn't advise on gold. Neither would I advise gold for anyone who cannot lose any money. It's not for everyone. Long term, sure, it'll gain value most likely, but again, it's a commodity, so be careful! And you may not see a rise in value the same as if you invested in growth stocks or international funds/ETFs.
So before any of us give you any coherent answers, you need to ask the right questions first. If you do not know what those questions are, you need to read up on the basics of investing, and either put all your money into an S&P 500 fund and let it GO, or get into a trust / annuity / GIC.
Yes, I bought maple leaf 1 ounce gold coins back in year 2001 at around $217/each. Current price is around $1100/each. I bought more of them along the years and I have made money more than I could imagine. Unlike stock/mutual fund investments talking about 5% or 10% return, gold coins have given me 2-4 times of return. I have no complain.
I suggested some of my friends to buy gold a few years back when gold price was around $700 and they made some profits. A friend bought the wrong type of "gold", which is mutual funds holding gold mining companies and she lost some money on that.
I think anyone who buys gold has to have a strong stomach to tolerate the volitality of gold spot price because gold can drop $50+/day.
Do your won research because there are so much to learn about this metal. Once you know what you are bying and why you are buying, then you will feel more comfortable of owning it. When price drops, you will know why - and there are usually good reasons for gold price's ups and downs.
Currently there is a support of gold price around $1100. IMHO, it will take a major event to drop gold prices to be under $1000.
At least, it feels good to "physically" play with the heavy yellow metal. You can just buy a few to feel it. If it drops in value significantly, which I doubt it, at least you can give it to your grandkids as a nice gift or used for their education fund.
Yes it is as their prices keep on rising day by day. But before taking some action you are advised to do some research and get in talk with some investment advisory, may be they could tell you about the benefits of doing the same or let you know about some other option.
Gold is a more conservative investment than Silver. Silver has a lot more volatility as it is both a precious and industrial metal. I would say invest in gold at the very least to preserve your wealth i.e. inflation.
I am hearing allot about investing in Silver right now. The depletion of available silver, the high use of silver in all types of electronics and the recent manufacturing and change in laws concerning the purchasing of precious metals in China. Is this a good time to invest in Silver?
I will invest in luxury goods. Luxury watches, great paintings and so on. No mater what happens with the economy people will always want to buy something beautiful. No mater what happens with this world always will be a need for rare metals. Don't look at the nominal value!
Ask three people on what their opinion is on the value of gold or silver being valuable investments and you'll get three different answers.
eskercurve,
I thought that you were going to say "Ask three people, and you will get four different answers."
When everyone is talking about buying gold and silver, it may be time to go the other direction.
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