Buying Gold

There is no easy answer.
It all depends on what you want to get out of it.

With gold coins you automatically know the weight and worth. With bars if they are not "professionally" bared then you might run into an authentication issue.

Gold bullion coins issued by a government(American Gold Eagles, Canadian Maple Leafs, Australian Nuggets, South African Kruggerrands, etc) will always be worth more than a similar weight bar due to the fact that the gold is backed by a government and they have a monetized face value.

I would go for the gold coins, nicer to look at. If you are interested in investment you might look at buying a couple high grade double eagles MS-65+ or other high grade U.S. gold.

If you're going to by gold as a investment then buy paper.

A friend of mine deals in gold bullion and coin, so I'll share some (incomplete) observations.
He's told me that BV gold coins are a lot easier to buy/sell because their details serve as authentication.
Bars and bullion coin are starting to be faked with a gold outer layer and tungsten core (same exact SG)
That's something to be very careful about--where you buy your bullion bars/coins.

I'm told that larger bullion bars can be harder to sell quickly. The other day, he handed me a 100oz AU bar--an amazing object to hold.

Okay, okay... I gotta get my 2 cents in as it were.

The answer is simple... buy the cheapest, recognized and marked stuff you can get. If you are an investor, the form of gold should not have any relevance.

If you are buying over time, say a monthly alotment... you should end up with an assortment of bars, rounds, coins, and possibly jewelry.

Krugerrands typically have the least mark up over bullion value as far as coinage goes. You may also find deals on gold coins like French roosters that are plentiful and can be had near spot by a shrewd eBayer... or find damaged gold coins at same.

The point is... that as an investment, you can still have a varied and interesting collection without spending too much over bullion value.

If you are considering a one shot large purchase, shop around for the best prices for your volume discount and always consider shipping costs as part of the costs. If you decide on, say a roll of Kruggerands, they may not pose much interest as a collection, but as an investment cost should be the only consideration.

The attraction of physical gold bought over a long term gives you the advantage of dollar cost averaging. Whereas a one shot purchase could be a real let down if the spot price plunges the next day.

As for ETF gold funds... If you are the day trading type these are a fanatastic investment opportunity for PM heads... but the gloom and doomers prefer physical holdings, not kept in a bank, because when a financial institution closes, it ALL closes.

I'm not a gloom and doomer, and I sorta fell into this collecting thing... seldom do I pay more than 5% above spot for anything. I can go weeks to a month or so without finding a good deal and then BAM!... I've found many deals (often just poorly categorized on ebay) below spot, but never brag... I just move on.

Do get yourself a decent book if getting into coinage, and if in doubt, ask questions... especially on this form.

The old saying... "Ask 3 professionals and get 4 opinions" still holds up as you can see, but the bottom line is cost... the absolute bottom line is your cost.

Brian 1315, by using words like "seems" and "should" I'm guessing that you have never bought and sold precious metals before so your naivete is refreshing.

The only way you can go wrong buying gold coins is if the movement in the price of gold isn't in your favor. The idea is to buy low and sell high obviously, but if it was THAT easy, everyone would do it and nobody would ever lose their shirt.

If you buy at $1000 and in 20 years when you are ready to sell to buy a home or finance college for the kids, if gold is back to $1,000.

You're investment wasn't really an investment was it?

If you buy at $1000 and in 5 years gold hits $2500 like some predict, if you sell, take your profit and pay the tax man his capital gains ...that's an investment.

If gold is in a slump when it comes time to send the kid off to college .. gold is $750 an ounce. Do you sell and take a loss or hold on hoping for better days ahead.

Gold can be a good investment and a terrible investment all at the same time. Not all gold coins are created equal.