subject: Ira Investment Options [print this page] There are many investing options in the self directed IRA. The owner of the IRA has the control to choose which investing options to participate in. One option that is rising in popularity is precious metals.
Precious metals are a growing investment option in the self directed IRA. It is growing because it is a safe investment. Precious metals have and will always be something of great value.
Only certain precious metals will qualify as an investment in the self directed IRA. There are requirements on the metals to equalize the values from the many various degrees of purity. These requirements are within the IRS and IRA regulations.
Once the precious metals are in the IRA they are an investment not a collections. Because they are an investment, the owner of the IRA should not have them in their possession. They metals can be kept by a depository or the custodian.
Precious metals that qualify as an investment are gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. The metals are generally in coin or bar form. They should not be in a collectible or decorative object.
IRAs generally do not have Gold bars as an investment because they are too expensive. Gold in IRAs is usually in the form of coins or bullions. Each metal even in coin and bullion form needs to meet the specified purity level to make it into an IRA investment.
Originally coins were not considered an investment for IRAs. Congress changed this ruling in the 1990s. Some of the minted USA coins include American Gold Eagles, American Gold Buffalo coins, American Silver Eagles, and American Platinum Eagles.
Not all coins are specified as an investment because some are rare. As long as the rare coins meet the following requirements then they qualify: gold .995+ note, silver .999+ note, platinum .9995+ note, and palladium .9995+ note. Custodians can help investors figure out which coins qualify and which do not.
