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Buying gold?

duckhunt

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Does anyone buy gold? I have a financial advisor taking care of my investments but I have always had gold in the back of my mind. It seems it always increases in value over time. What are your thoughts for a long term investment in the gold industry.
 
I don't personally buy barrels of crude oil but I buy things that deal with it. Refining, distribution, transportation, ect. That's how I would look at gold also. Having a bar or coins would be cool but I sure couldn't tell the quality by looking at them.

Just my thoughts.
 
Gold is very risky as an investment. It definitely doesn't always go up. In fact, long term it doesn't perform that well with gains mostly determined by when you happened to get in/out - look at the chart here (adjusted for inflation).

Basically, it is best used as a hedge against disaster. Very wealthy people often buy it because, if the U.S. collapses, the dollar will be worth nothing, but gold will always be worth something. It is said only half in jest that stockpiling cigarettes and bullets would be a better strategy.
 
Gold is very risky as an investment. It definitely doesn't always go up. In fact, long term it doesn't perform that well with gains mostly determined by when you happened to get in/out - look at the chart here (adjusted for inflation).

Basically, it is best used as a hedge against disaster. Very wealthy people often buy it because, if the U.S. collapses, the dollar will be worth nothing, but gold will always be worth something. It is said only half in jest that stockpiling cigarettes and bullets would be a better strategy.
Add .22lr to that jest and I think you're on to something.
 
Buy it if you are worried about a collapse of the economic markets. think crash of '08. Many buy it for piece of mind. lately funds are picking up more and more of it.
Barclays came out with an estimate that 54 Billion dollars have entered the commodity market so far this year. the highest level since the peak in '09. most of the money
has gone into energy and metals (gold). You have company. :hump:
 
If you had bought $100 of gold each month for the past 50 years and then put the same amount in the Fortune 500 corporate stock index each month, you would be cussing your gold investments.

I assume you are wanting to buy actual gold you store in a safe at home. You risk getting a gold-plated lead coin or having your safe compromised. Investments all have a spread between what you pay to buy vs what you are paid when sell, even if minutes later after purchase. Extreme spread is when you buy a new car and sell a week later. The spread on buy/sell of $100,000 of gold is more than for $100,000 of a stock index. Spread lowers your return.

http://www.fool.com/investing/mutual-funds/2007/09/28/gold-vs-the-sp-500.aspx

I have heard of families that pass gold coins between generations as attempt to escape inheritance tax code impact. Gold coins, bought with cash in small amounts over time, do not leave a paper trail as does property or stock transactions. Not properly disclosing gifts and the actual value of estates is fraud. Not everyone is a Boy Scout. I like sleeping in a room without bars. I like a hotel with a bar, though.
 
Gold is very risky as an investment. It definitely doesn't always go up. In fact, long term it doesn't perform that well with gains mostly determined by when you happened to get in/out - look at the chart here (adjusted for inflation).

Basically, it is best used as a hedge against disaster. Very wealthy people often buy it because, if the U.S. collapses, the dollar will be worth nothing, but gold will always be worth something. It is said only half in jest that stockpiling cigarettes and bullets would be a better strategy.

If society collapse due to invasion or epidemic and our factories grind to a halt, our stores empty and gas tanks are empty...where exactly do I go with the gold? I understand gold has value at that point in time but how would you find a stable market to exchange the gold for food, gas etc? Me thinks if society craps out, only the nastiest people will be gathering up things from anyone not willing or able to be just as brutal.
 
If society collapse due to invasion or epidemic and our factories grind to a halt, our stores empty and gas tanks are empty...where exactly do I go with the gold? I understand gold has value at that point in time but how would you find a stable market to exchange the gold for food, gas etc? Me thinks if society craps out, only the nastiest people will be gathering up things from anyone not willing or able to be just as brutal.
I agree with what you say here, but the bigger problem will be the the sexy gal who stockpiled Jack Daniels will get you plastered and you will wake up in a tub of ice missing your kidneys, and your gold. Happened to a friend of my cousin ;).

I see very little reason to own gold as an investment, and even as SHTF insurance it isn't very practical. They guys who make money on it are the dealers.
 
When they have to run paid tv commercials for an investment on FNC, I would say it's not in your best interest.
 
Don't forget to add Jack Daniels to that jest

I agree 100% with this one.
If you are worrying about when SHTF gold will be worthless. Tradable commodities like booze, cigs, ammo and fuel will be very valuable.
As was said above the only ones making money on gold are the ones selling it.
Just look back a few years ago when ostriches were the next big thing. The people selling them make a killing, the people who bought them lost their butts.
 
I agree 100% with this one.
If you are worrying about when SHTF gold will be worthless. Tradable commodities like booze, cigs, ammo and fuel will be very valuable.
As was said above the only ones making money on gold are the ones selling it.
Just look back a few years ago when ostriches were the next big thing. The people selling them make a killing, the people who bought them lost their butts.

You can read stories about the ordeals encountered on the Oregon Trail. Food, medicine, shoes and wagon repair parts were the "gold" and a player piano was worth not a grain of wheat until were near the end of the journey. You can't eat gold or cash. Most people would not know gold from gold-plated coins so will you trust the guy wanting to trade a bag of gold coins for your barrel of food?
 
For me, Gold, guns, guitars, and oil go up at 3% compounded annually, as that is background inflation.

I have made over 20% compounded annually since 1994 by investing in MSFT, GOOG, AMZN, AAPL, NFLX, etc.

I have grandkids, and one of their other grandparents is a liberal from the NYC upper West side that invested in FB at the IPO. She is doing just as well as I am. I don't like Face Book and did not understand it enough to invest in it.
 
If you really want to invest in gold to balance your portfolio, 5-10% is what I've always heard is a good percentage. In general when stocks are up, gold is down and vice versa.
 

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