Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA Review

When it comes to retirement savings, you have a long-term horizon. However, anything can happen to the markets during that time. So to hedge against volatility, many experienced investors like to allocate a percentage of their portfolios to gold and silver. But if you want to take advantage of the stability of precious metals as part of your retirement plan, you need a special kind of account that’s set up for custody of physical metals.

Silver Gold Bull, a precious metals dealer, can help you set up a precious metals individual retirement account (IRA) through which you can purchase and hold precious metal investments. If you've been wondering whether you should get a gold IRA, read this Silver Gold Bull review for an in-depth analysis of what the company offers.

Best precious metals for collectors

Silver Gold Bull isn't just for those looking to bolster their retirement plans. It's also a haven for collectors. Boasting gold and silver bars, coins and collectibles, as well as platinum bars and coins, Silver Gold Bull offers an array of precious metal products for its clientele. Whether you're wondering how to invest in gold or have been a collector for some time, Silver Gold Bull has a wealth of choices.

Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA pros and cons

An IRA specializing in precious metals isn't the most common investment vehicle for retirement planning. Investors interested in using Silver Gold Bull for an IRA won't find the same level of financial information typically available via online brokerages. Because of that, precious metal IRAs are an investment niche and aren’t for everyone. However, if you’re interested in them, you may want to seek out professional guidance on whether or not gold is a good investment fit for your retirement goals.

In this section, we will survey the pros and cons of using Silver Gold Bull for its IRA services.

Pros explained

Silver Gold Bull has some undeniable advantages that set it apart in a market bustling with precious metal companies. It also offers a military discount, but you have to contact the company to find out the details. Silver Gold Bull also accepts multiple forms of payment. Beyond credit cards or checks, it accepts PayPal, Venmo, cryptocurrencies (bitcoin and bitcoin cash), ACH and wire transfers.

The following are additional pros the company features for investors.

Variety of products to choose from

Silver Gold Bull offers something for all levels of precious metals investors — from fractional purchases and full bars to American Buffalo gold coins and American Eagle silver coins — in case you want to build your own Fort Knox within your retirement account. The company also offers platinum options, including bars and coins; collectibles, like Queen Elizabeth II coins; and copper, including rounds and bars.

With Silver Gold Bull, investors can begin adding precious metals to an IRA for less than $100. And because of the company’s offerings, investors have a variety of options to choose from to help diversify within this asset class.

Agents don’t work on commission

Unlike many precious metal dealers, agents at Silver Gold Bull don't work on commission. This means they aren’t incentivized by any bonus structure to get you to purchase products offered by the company.

You may be under the impression that the price of gold products is equated to the price of gold per ounce. However, when you buy physical gold, there’s a premium above the spot price. For example, some collectible coins might sell for hundreds or even thousands above the metal’s spot price due to perceived rarity or importance.

But for long-term precious metal investors, the best option is typically to buy something as close to the market price as possible. Silver Gold Bull agents help you with this rather than trying to push you into an expensive product to bolster their commissions, since they don’t work on a commission-basis.

Best price guarantee

One thing you should always look for in the best gold IRA companies is a competitive edge. That’s something Silver Gold Bull offers with its pricing. If you place an order over the phone, the precious metals provider will match competitors' lower prices for the same product, including shipping, insurance and taxes. However, to qualify, the better price can't be the result of any special conditions like competitors’ coupons, promotions or limited-time offers. The seller whose price Silver Gold Bull will match must also be an authorized precious metals dealer.

Cons explained

No company is without its flaws. Some users have highlighted certain areas where Silver Gold Bull could potentially improve. One commonly noted point is Silver Gold Bull’s lack of readily available online resources for beginners. Its website provides FAQs and an Education Center with articles focusing on beginner’s topics, but some of the content isn’t routinely updated and could be more comprehensive.

The following are additional cons the company presents for investors.

Doesn’t offer an in-house IRA

Though Silver Gold Bull advertises IRA services on its website, its agents will help you set up IRA accounts with external brokerages, or you can find your own. That’s because the company's principal business is buying and selling precious metals. In the same vein, it also won't manage your IRA account or act as a custodian for your metals.

New to IRAs

Helping investors set up precious metals ownership in an IRA is a new service the company offers. As such, according to an agent at Silver Gold Bull, there’s a slight risk of early mistakes being made due to the lack of experience in helping customers set up gold IRAs.

Lack of information on its website

The Silver Gold Bull website doesn't offer much information on how its IRA offering works, nor on the fact that its agents don't work on commission. Calling and speaking to someone is currently the recommended way to get the information you want about the company's IRA offerings.

Silver Gold Bull IRA offerings

Investing in a gold IRA requires a precious metals dealer, a custodian and a storage facility. Silver Gold Bull is a dealer whose primary function is to buy and sell precious metals. The custodian — which manages the IRA and reports holdings to the IRS — is necessary because of the tax implications of investing in a Roth IRA or traditional IRA. The storage facility will house and protect your physical precious metal purchases. You can choose from non-segregated storage, meaning the company stores your metals with others, or segregated, where it’s separate.

For investors interested in precious metal IRAs, Silver Gold Bull provides two pathways. First, you can find your own custodian and storage facility, upon which Silver Gold Bull can advise you while also acting as the dealer. Secon, you can purchase precious metals from other dealers with Silver Gold Bull then helping you set up an account with Equity Trust to serve as your custodian. Once your account is set up and funded, you can buy your gold through the account, and the dealer will send it to the storage facility you chose.

Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA pricing

Affordability and transparency in pricing are essential for trust in the precious metals market. Silver Gold Bull ensures that potential investors are not left in the dark with hidden fees or ambiguous charges. As an investor, you have two main categories of pricing to consider with a precious metals IRA: (1) the cost of the investment and (2) the cost of the account.

Silver Gold Bull handles the pricing of the metals you buy. One general downside to investing in precious metals is that when you check the spot price for gold, for example, that price applies to paper certificates of gold ownership. It's the equivalent of buying a stock. However, when it comes to purchasing physical gold on the premium market, the price can fluctuate because there are costs associated with minting, shipping, insuring and storing these metals, among other contributing factors.

The second aspect of pricing is how much it costs to maintain your IRA. The IRA component is a self-directed individual retirement account (SDIRA) that allows you to invest in alternative assets like real estate, crypto and precious metals that aren’t available via traditional or Roth IRAs.

No matter which company you choose as your custodian, you should expect fees. For example, if you open a gold IRA with Equity Trust, you can expect the following:

• $50 setup fee

• $150 for segregated storage or $100 for non-segregated storage

• $225 annual maintenance fee for accounts valued up to $14,999 (fees increase depending on the tier of your account value)

• Other fees associated with trades, shipping and closing the account

Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA financial stability

In the 12 months that ended March 31, 2022, Silver Gold Bull generated sales of $633 million and gross profits of $41.2 million. The company sold 9.1 ounces of silver (a 47.5% year-over-year increase), 160,000 ounces of gold (a 29% year-over-year increase) and processed 244,200 orders (a 15% year-over-year increase). During the same period, it acquired 77,600 new customers, bringing its total customer base to 270,100.

Also in 2022, A-Mark Precious Metals — a publicly traded Fortune 500 company with a footprint in the precious metals sector since 1965 — expanded its investment in Silver Gold Bull by $44 million to increase its direct-to-consumer presence in the marketplace, bringing its total investment in the company to $110 million.

Regardless of its sound footing in the precious metals sector, if Silver Gold Bull was to fail, you wouldn't be too exposed to financial risk. That’s because after purchasing the precious metals for your IRA, it’s the company offering the IRA — such as Equity Trust — with whom your risks will be aligned. The custodian managing your account and the storage facility holding your physical metals should have their own safeguards to protect your investments. It is also important to note that gold IRAs are not FDIC-insured. However, reputable custodians should be insured against fraud and theft, offering gold IRA account owners some comfort.

Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA accessibility

In today’s digital age, one of the hallmarks of a reputable company is seamless accessibility. Prospective investors and customers need to know they can access services, information and support when they need it.

Availability

Silver Gold Bull operates in the U.S. and Canada, though anyone can buy its products from anywhere. The company will work with any SDIRA custodian set up for precious metals.

Contact information

If you're interested in learning more about physical precious metal investments or want to learn more about Silver Gold Bull's products, you can reach the company by phone at (877) 646-5303 or email (sales@silvergoldbull.com). For those interested solely in gold IRAs, you can call that department directly at (877) 300-4205. Agents are available from Monday to Friday between 7:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. MST.

User experience

Navigating the world of gold IRA investing can be daunting for newcomers. As mentioned in the cons above, Silver Gold Bull could improve the information available on its website. It's difficult to tease out the fact that they only provide the function of selling you physical metals and can help you set up IRA accounts with other companies. However, the company does provide FAQs and an Education Center to help investors who are new to precious metals get acclimated with cursory subject matter.

Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA customer satisfaction

Silver Gold Bull's website boasts over $3 billion in transactions and over 335,000 verified five-star reviews. Indeed, the company scores relatively high ratings on multiple online review sites. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) gives the company an A+ rating. Out of 31 reviews on the BBB website, Silver Gold Bull averages four out of five stars. Numerous reviewers weren't happy with the quality of the pieces they received. In those instances, it appears the company offered refunds, and in some cases, additional credits. Other reviewers complained about shipping times.

How we evaluated Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA

The following factors helped us determine the quality of Silver Gold Bull's IRA capabilities:

• Product offerings: We looked at what you can buy from Silver Gold Bull to ensure the company has sufficient options to satisfy a range of investors.

• Pricing transparency: We scrutinized pricing to make sure there were no hidden charges and that potential investors received a clear breakdown of costs when purchasing.

• Accessibility: We assessed how easy it was for clients to set up an account and get support.

• Customer feedback: We analyzed Silver Gold Bull customer feedback to determine recurring themes and overall satisfaction metrics.

Summary of Money's Silver Gold Bull Gold IRA review

If you’re interested in using precious metals to diversify your retirement savings plan, Silver Gold Bull has etched its name as one of the formidable contenders providing physical gold, silver and more. The company offers a diverse range of precious metals products, transparent practices and attentive customer service.

Silver Gold Bull can help you set up a gold IRA — a long-term retirement investment that can help minimize the impacts of market volatility through the incorporation of precious metals investments. The company can also help you choose a custodian and storage facility for your gold IRA. Silver Gold Bull has carved out a niche for itself in the precious metals industry. Whether you're a seasoned investor or just getting started, the company can assist you in how to best incorporate gold, silver and other precious metals into your retirement plan.