Silver Eagles VS Silver Rounds which is a better investment vehicle ?

Well this is very surprising, I guess I have been away from silver to long...LOL, as iam trying to get several tubes filled but at least two of my local dealers quoted the same price of $34 but strange, the same price applied to both, I always assumed that the eagles would have at least a $5 premium on the buy back average price for an eagle is about $46 and the round is about $39 so at least a $7 difference
will investigate more tomorrow.

 

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I'm not sure if there is a "better", but I do know that generic rounds are much more popular right now because of the lower premiums.

 

If the same price out the door, go with the eagles.
People tend to collect eagles more like coins rather than bullion, makes sense because of the mintage numbers compared to Buffalo's.
Also I have heard the premiums go away as the spot silver price goes up.
Last I looked spot was $36& change, not sure where you are going to buy below spot on eagles?
Got a link?
I may know someone else who is interested.

 

Below spot for Eagles? Caveat emptor for fakes. Reputable dealers are all charging about $40 or so for Eagles right now. $34 would be less than what authorized dealers can source Eagles from the US Mint.

 

A physical bullion stash is all about potential future value and 'value' is determined by easy liquidity and recognizability/reliability.

So, I choose US junk silver and ASEs, then Silver Maple Leafs or UK Britannias.

The hedge, for me, is more about maximizing wealth retention/preservation then profit.

 

A few weeks ago, I had a chat with my local dealer. On a sealed monster box of silver eagles, he would pay a few dollars over spot per coin. It was hard to not take his offer.

This same dealer did not care much for proof or UNCs in mint packaging. He already had more than he wanted, on hand. I can understand that but that's what I really wanted to sell.

 

I just took a peek at Provident Metals and compared the Q1 bid/ask spread on three different products:

1 ounce silver rounds -- $7.39
1 ounce silver coins (random mint) -- $6.49
Silver American Eagles -- $4.39

So at least today, if you want to get the most physical silver for your money, go with rounds. If you want to get the highest expected payout for your purchase of physical silver, go with SAE's.

A silver trust or ETF gives you far lower transaction costs and greatly reduces the risk of physical theft, but in exchange you have to accept counterparty risk.

 

Update: I checked out my personal LCS, this is where I go when I both want to buy and sell, he use to be my source for 1OZ GOLD EAGLES and BUFFALOS and BARS
he has the lowest premiums but still almost double what Costco charges so I just go to St George and get my GOLD there, its also a great place for 10 oz silver bars.

So back to the debate Eagles or rounds ? on a strictly bullion situation you have to like the buffalo rounds my LCS says unless the silver eagles are of a tough year
the value or buy back is almost identical but the rounds will cost you less from the start.

 

American Silver Eagles will sell far better than silver rounds, period!

 

The issue is they also cost more, you have to weigh the differences and what any particular shop is paying.

 

I would say neither coins no rounds are the way to go for investing. The lowest premiums are always going to be on bars. Kilo bars have really damn low premiums, so if you can swing a couple you're going to get way more silver than if you buy it by the ounce with coins. If you can't swing kilo bars, 10 oz bars will give you the next best premium, which will still be better in the long run than buying silver individually by the ounce.

But I suppose if I just want individual ounces in case I ever have to liquidate for small amounts of cash, generic rounds will always have the lowest premiums (ie. More silver for your money). I would probably stick to rounds from a well-known brand though. Something like ASAHI, APMEX, etc.)

 

You always get a better price break the more you buy, like the single onces the best
just because there more liquid in a small size you dont have to give up a full 10 oz are more as you can't part out the weight.

 

But then you've got trust issues, don't you? If the bar is big enough, the only way to tell whether it's real through and through is to drill it, right?

At a recent show I saw a 100oz bar that was obviously hand-poured, and probably home-poured. The dealer said the guy who sold it to him said it was .999. It probably was - but I'd have a hard time trusting it to the tune of $3k+...

 

While it's true that the lowest premium is on bars, that only tells half the story. The other half is what you get when you sell.

I just surfed over to provident metals and compared their bid and ask prices for kilo bars and 32 random date silver eagles. For the bar, you received 84.84% of the selling price. For the coins, you received 85.86% of the selling price, and you have more options and an easier time selling the SAEs.

If you look at a different site or on a different day, you might get a different result, but the point remains. You have to take liquidity and resale into account as well.

 

If all you care about is getting the most mass or volume of silver for your money, bars are the way to go. But nearly everyone cares at least a little bit about resale value.

If you're truly interested only in hoarding the biggest pile of silver possible by size, go for silver pots and cups and bells, since they're mostly hollow. If you're interested in the biggest pile of silver possible by weight -- candlestick holders, maybe? Since they usually have non-silver weights added to make them more stable?

 

It is true that when you go to sell, you're going to get slightly less per ounce on silver bars than coins. But many times you get far better deals when you buy bars versus coins, and that can add up to a lot of extra ounces that you can purchase.

Ultimately there's no right or wrong, I have silver in every form factor from 1 oz to kilos. Buy what you think is best or you can get a better deal on at the time of purchase.