To invest in gold with an IRA, you must follow two IRS guidelines. First, you can only invest in IRS-approved gold. While the list of approved options is changing, the IRS says it must be “highly refined precious metal.” Specialized custodian banks such as Fidelity, Schwab or TD Ameritrade do not manage physical gold in an IRA.
So if you want to keep gold in your IRA, you’ll need to set up a self-directed IRA first and then you’ll need to find a custodian that specializes in self-directed gold IRAs. A quick search on Google for “self-directed Gold IRA” yields numerous results. I know that American Bullion has been around for years, and so has APMEX. The ETF is also able to buy, store, and insure gold at a much lower price than you or an IRA custodian bank.
Required minimum distributions Once you reach the age of 70½, your Gold IRA is subject to a required minimum payout (RMD), just like any other non-Roth IRA account. Gold IRAs have higher maintenance fees than other types of IRAs because of the additional costs associated with investing in gold. As soon as money is available in the new IRA account, a customer service representative reviews the current precious metal options that a consumer can buy. My precious metal IRA costs 45 basis points per year (0.4, including fees, storage) AND ONE million dollar insurance for one million dollar gold bars.
Some IRA companies guarantee that they’ll buy back the gold from you at current wholesale prices, but you could still lose money if you close the account, which is not usually the case when opening and closing regular IRAs. What is confusing and frustrating is that some gold coins and types of gold bars are allowed, others are not. Gold bars and round gold and silver coins are also allowed in an IRA if they have a fineness of 99.9%. Alternatively, you can handle all of the paperwork yourself or find a Gold IRA company that specializes in this process.
In the situation addressed in the written decision, shares of a gold fund (presumably an ETF) were sold to the public, including IRAs, and were traded on a stock exchange. Only a few companies are willing to act as trustees for self-governing IRAs that hold eligible precious metal coins or bars. If this is the only IRA account or if there isn’t enough liquidity in the other accounts, you’ll also need to sell some of the gold to raise the money to make the RMD. Record gold sales combined with the appearance of many more companies processing and simplifying transactions have made investing in a gold IRA a one-stop shop.
