Why do you buy PMs

I'm sure there are plenty of reasons, but I have a couple.

The first one is I'm trying to put something away for my children and hopefully grandchildren. One thing that hasn't happened to them so far is they haven't been taxed to the point that I cannot afford them, unlike many other methods of savings. I'm sure some of you will have a field day with this, and that's ok, to each their own.

The 2nd one is I use it as a kind of savings account. When I have extra cash that I might be tempted to blow on the "latest and greatest" or something else I don't need, I just buy metal because it's harder for me to blow it. Then, in Jan when I need cash I'll usually cash in what I feel is an amount that will get me the currency that I need to buy inventory and other stuff that I do at that time.

I have other reasons, but these are the 2 most basic, other than I like having PMs around. Every once in a while, I lay them out on my bed and roll around in them, it makes me feel like Scrooge McDuck. (I kid)

 

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shiny......

 

I am buying PMs for my heirs, whose assets are currently 100% in paper dollars. If I can save them any hardship, it's all worth it; they are clueless.

I have no children or grandchildren, and all my relatives are gone. My heirs are the friends who stood behind me, all the way, going back as long as 50 years.

I like to tell them the "loaf of bread" analogy (without revealing my plans, that is). I tell them right now a silver dime ($1.60 or thereabouts) will buy a loaf of bread. Hyperinflation comes, and a silver dime will still buy a loaf of bread, maybe a loaf and a half. The ONLY way to preserve the purchasing power of your savings, and the highest liquidity of all the hoarding strategies, except perhaps ammo (which the Feds would surely confiscate if they knew about it, plus it takes up a lot of room, so no thanks).

 

I like one ounce art bars. They are what I first collected before I got to coins. And I just like the color of silver.

 

My broker recommended it to keep the portfolio in balance. The color of it has no meaning to me but it seems to in the rest of the world. I use it to store some wealth.

 

So I have a reason to peruse this wonderful forum..

 

I do not have any silver or gold bullion anymore. I sold it all when the market peaked a couple years ago. I do have bullion as part of my business inventory but I wouldn't consider that personal.

Once you have a few bars of gold and silver you start to feel pretty rich. because you are. if any catastrophe be it by man or mother nature that gold and silver will gain a lot of purchasing power. those paper bills will not buy much if anything in a crisis. That is why I stacked but the temptations of the market bubble made me sell it all off.

 

Yes, and they don't talk back...lol.

 

Unless they are filling dental cavities or superficially worn over the teeth as a so-called, "grill", then they appear to be talking back.

 

I just wanted to let you know - although I haven't agreed with you 100% - I've always stood behind you 100%.

 

For bullion-grade PM, same ideas as the OP. Numismatic silver is different - for example I don't consider my toned ASE collection or Lunar Series rounds as "just PM".

1) "forced savings" since I know I'll blow the $20 bill in my pocket on nothing of value, but won't go through the effort to liquidate the bullion, so I have some saved.
2) Wealth preservation as I personally believe over time it will keep up with inflation so it's better to have sitting around than cash.
3) Emergency fund. It's part of my overall plan to keep some physical assets around in case of emergency - job loss is the big one right now.
4) Nest egg for my kids/grandkids. If not needed, great, it'll keep building. If needed, it could be the down payment on a house for someone someday.

And the best reason of all - I just plain like it. There's just something neat about these shiny hunks of metal that attracts me to them.

 

I also use it as tool to help educate my daughter about investments. It holds her attention more than talk about stocks and so forth. She enjoys different US and foreign coins but also understands that aside from the enjoyment the fallback is the value of the PM itself. She is now a freshman in college and we still discuss coins on occasion. Hopefully she passes this knowledge onto her children and so on, as then the family silver stack will continue to grow until someday it is needed.

 

I absolutely buy PM as a forced savings too. Hopefully I never need to cash it and my son passes them along or gets some money for them.

And shiny.

 

1. I just needed a new hobby that puts a smile on my face because the Sports Card hobby was not doing it anymore.

2. It is a fun way for me to save money.


I also find that it is easy to sell Silver, so if I need money I could easily sell the silver and buy what ever I want.

 

Fun to look at and I sleep better at night owning some.

 

Because coins are beautiful; gold and silver, and it's good to own things of value and beauty.

 

I started out as a hedge against inflation back in the early 2000's, and then got bitten by the numismatic bug. I think of myself now as mildly numismatic. I like coins that I can get at around their melt price, which might have some more value in the future. For example I like Walking Liberty half dollars.

 

I buy it simply because I like it. It is gratifying to hold something of value in my hand. But, when I look at how far under water I am with most of it I want to kick my self for becoming attached to an investment. Had I put that money in the stock portfolio I would have made maybe 40%. As it is I lost 40%. So I consider my stacking days over, yet will continue to buy a numismatic piece for the collection. I will try not to decieve myself by calling it an investment though.

 

Be patient. Probably something under 2% of the population stacks silver, and when the dollar tanks, you and your fellow stackers will be at the top of the heap. It IS an investment, and you ARE an investor, holding one of the few assets which will protect the purchasing power of your current net worth. I'm down about 7% overall, and it doesn't bother me a bit.

You don't trade silver, you hold it forever, it's the LAST thing you sell, and then only in a dire emergency. Yes, I'll take all the depreciating Federal Reserve notes you want to give me, but I recycle them into gold, silver, coins, and a food supply. Disclaimer -- this won't save me if I'm cut off from my prescriptions; without them, I'd last about a month, getting sicker and sicker along the way. So I'm not really a survivor. But it's better than not preparing at all.

 

95% of my investments are stocks and mutual funds coupled with my pension. The other 5% of play investment money is cash, gold, silver. I like to keep about $10K cash on hand just for fun. It's a nice little stack of $100s. Hate cash all you want, it's still king and comes in handy at times.

I've also got a few hundred ASEs all in mint tubes. I buy a roll at a time as I feel the mood. The pure weight of them makes you feel like you've got something. I usually trade a coin I bought online for them so I don't pay sales tax. My local guy gives me way better prices than APMEX or Provident. I have found that ASEs are probably the worst investment ever though. Even when I only buy at about $2.50 to $3 over spot the market has to go up at least 5% before I even break even.

I've never bought gold bullion. I buy XF to AU pre 33 gold. I can pick it up from my dealers at about 5% over spot and sell it back if wanted for the same. I love love love my pre 33 raw gold. I've sold most of my graded gold though.

But if the price of any of them jump like it did a few years ago, it's gone. I'll take the profit and run. If I need it for doomsday I'll just rob it from the rest of you.