Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Buying Gold For The First Time

Many people do not realize how easy it is to buy gold and gold coins. Buying gold for the first time is actually quite easy.

Most people think in terms of the large solid gold bars. Although these are obtainable the cost and storage of such large solid metal bars is out of the range of most people who would like to own some gold.

It has also been traditional to purchase gold in the form of jewellery. This is fine except that the high cost and markup on jewellery make it a poor investment unless you know exactly what you are purchasing and can get the gold at the right price. Antique jewellery, for example is one way provided you understand the values of such.

A better and far simpler option is purchasing gold coins or small one ounce or 5 or 10 gram bullion bars. These are within the reach of most people and, in fact, one can purchase gold coins for as little as 40 US dollars and one ounce bullion bars for a little more than the current price of gold.

Gold coins and small gold bullion have the added benefit of being very easy to purchase and easy to store. One can simply hide them in the house somewhere, as many people do, or store them in a bank. In addition, gold coins are easy to sell in times of need and, provided you have kept them for a decent amount of time, you will get a good return on your gold coins. Anyone who purchased gold coins a few years ago, for example, will be please with the steady increase in gold value that will have given them at least a 30 percent increase in the value of their coins.

Best of all, gold coins and small bullion bars have a good investment value. The profit gold suppliers make on the sale of coins and small bars is marginal and, over the long term, does not really affect the investment value. The longer you keep your gold coins and small bullion bars the more stable your investment will be.

For people buying gold for the first time, it is probably better to start with the purchase of some Gold American Eagles or Gold Sovereigns. There is nothing quite like the feel of gold coins clinking in your hands and once you have experienced that you are quite likely to take up the very fascinating and profitable hobby of gold coin collecting.

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