Is silver a foolish buy right now?

Discussion in 'Bullion Investing' started by Jeepfreak81, Mar 7, 2022.

  1. Jeepfreak81

    Jeepfreak81 Well-Known Member

    So I've been planning to buy a little bit of silver every year starting this year. I'm about to get my spring bonus at work and I had thought now's a good time to pick up a little bit of silver. But that thought came a couple weeks ago, now with world events as they are and silver jumping up a bit....is it foolish to buy into any silver right now?

    I don't have any experience with PM's other than I have a couple ounces worth of silver. I understand basic investing principles, but also at the same time I know PM's aren't for getting rich and that's not my intent anyway. I think of it more as a low yield savings account I can hold. :)

    So I guess I'm looking for some opinions, Is it silly to buy right now, or is this price poised to keep climbing? I know it's all an educated guessing game. Also I'm not talking about gettiing any huge dollar amount here. A Benjamin or two is about all I will throw in at the moment.
     
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  3. longshot

    longshot Enthusiast Supporter

    Inflationary times...if you don't have much metal I'd think buy some.
     
  4. SensibleSal66

    SensibleSal66 U.S Casual Collector / Error Collector

    This is what I do.
    1) Ask wife first!
    To answer your questions:
    Not if you can't afford it. Silly, Nahhh! Never too late for a "Lil 'ole bit of Silver".
    What exactly are you looking for and are you looking for errors?
    2) If your confused, see the Wife or GF (or both, HeHe!)
     
  5. mpcusa

    mpcusa "Official C.T. TROLL SWEEPER"

    Silver is at the high end of its value, I dont think there is much left in the tank at $25 an once, but I still like it to store wealth, but not so much in having it grow
    there other vehicles for that.
     
  6. Jeffjay

    Jeffjay Well-Known Member

    If you can find it near melt I would. The premiums people are tacking on are crazy high.
     
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  7. Eric the Red

    Eric the Red Well-Known Member

    I purchase a little bit each month regardless of price, as a log term savings plan. I try to buy the dips that occur frequently due to volatility. Given the current world situation and global economic issues I would not hesitate to add at these prices to get the ball rolling:)
     
  8. potty dollar 1878

    potty dollar 1878 Well-Known Member

    Near melt?i get mine for face:):).
     
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  9. Jeepfreak81

    Jeepfreak81 Well-Known Member

    Ok so I think you guys mostly verified my line of thought on this one, thanks!

    For me it's just a way to store wealth that I also enjoy from a numismatic stand point. I just like to make smart decisions when it comes to my money. I'll save the bad decisions for when I'm on my dirt bike :)
     
  10. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    You'd like to buy when the time is right. Problem is, that requires knowing the future.

    When I was buying a lot of silver, I looked for opportunities to get it right at (or of course below) melt. That didn't always save me; getting silver for $20/oz when spot is $25 isn't "profitable" if you hold it while silver drops to $15. On the other hand, I'm not super-interested in making a business of it, where I'm always buying and selling, and enforcing a margin between the two.

    I still think we'll see silver a good bit higher than $25 in the intermediate term. We'll certainly see it in the long term, but I don't think it'll keep ahead of inflation long-term. For long-term and the bulk of my nest-egg, I'm strictly conventional - stocks, bonds and stuff. (I'm never gonna be in the "rare art" tier.)
     
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  11. Mr. Flute

    Mr. Flute Well-Known Member

    I've been buying foreign silver (50%+ purity) right now and generally getting the coins for melt or a small (~5%) premium.

    I wouldn't buy any US junk or bullion right now due to the premiums I've been seeing, but I'd probably sell into it if Silver hits $30/oz.
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2022
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  12. Falconetti

    Falconetti Member

    What premiums ae you guys seeing on junk silver now ?
     
  13. Jeepfreak81

    Jeepfreak81 Well-Known Member

    Funny I was just browsing some junk US silver and came to that conclusion myself. I should educate myself on world silver a little bit, at least so as to keep my eyes peeled for it.

    Still hoping to find a big jar of silver coins buried in the woods with my metal detector this year, but I won't hold my breath :)
     
  14. fretboard

    fretboard Defender of Old Coinage!

    Yes, it's a foolish buy, that said if you can buy some with a tiny premium, go for it! :) If not, don't buy it!
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2022
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  15. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    I sold a bit of 90% at the local show Saturday. My buyer (who generally has the strongest offers on 90%) was giving 20.2x, when Coinflation was reporting something like 18.6x as melt value. That corresponds to $27.92/oz, almost 10% over melt.

    I was on the fence about selling, but with an offer like that, I decided to take some profit.

    Unfortunately, I didn't make a note of what dealers were asking for 90%. :facepalm:
     
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  16. medoraman

    medoraman Supporter! Supporter

    Premiums are high, that is for sure. Sucks to buy, makes me feel good about what I own.

    My question is more:

    Op, you mention just a few Benjamins. Do you have a car loan? Do you have any credit card balances? Student Loans? Do you have a few months minimum of emergency savings in case something happens? Until you have those things cleaned up, I wouldn't worry too much about pm balances. Now, if you are a collector, and you spend your HOBBY MONEY on coins versus going to bar/concerts, etc then enjoy yourself and not really worry about pm prices too much. I am just saying pm INVESTMENT should be reserved after your financial life is "cleaned up" and you get out from under the "bad debt" umbrella.

    Just my opinion. When I was young I bought silver dollars and other things as a hobby, and waited to buy gold, platinum etc once my finances were much more secure and I no longer was paying others to use their money, but collecting money from others for using mine.
     
  17. Collecting Nut

    Collecting Nut Borderline Hoarder

    Store wealth? PM’s are not a good way to do this. If you buy low and it goes up what are you going to do? What if it drops? Please take a good hard look at your age and your goals. If you buy in today’s market and pay today’s prices you should be willing to hold for a long, long time. I’ve been holding my silver, which is in many forms, for a long long time. When I bought and it dropped I didn’t sell, I bought more. That’s called price averaging. Buying PM’s to store wealth is a long term goal.
     
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  18. Mr. Flute

    Mr. Flute Well-Known Member

    I just bought $148 worth of various foreign junk silver (all at melt) - 50%, 72%, 80% & 83.5% purities (GB half crowns, Dutch 2-1/2 guldens, Spain 100 Peseta, Italian 500 lire, French 2 francs and Swiss 5 francs)

    The key is generally knowing the purity of a relatively wide range of different nations' coins. It's part bullion buying and mostly for fun variety.

    Also, I think it's easy to sell all/many of these for decent margins over melt/cost if one wanted to step into the retail arena (ie retirement activity selling at local shows, etc).
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2022
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  19. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    My (very limited) experience is that you get a reverse premium when you go to sell foreign silver, at least in the US -- dealers never want to give you anywhere near full melt.

    Of course, if it's fun, it's fun, and if the dealers don't know foreign silver but you do, it's cherry season... :)
     
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  20. Mr. Flute

    Mr. Flute Well-Known Member

    I'm 100% aware of both sides of this market segment and it's possible advantages. :)

    If I wasn't, I'd avoid the 50% GB stuff like the plague, but then I wouldn't be able to play Scrooge when counting and stacking and recounting and restacking my piles of 'wealth'. ;)

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2022
  21. Jim Dale

    Jim Dale Well-Known Member

    My father started his collection when he was 15 in 1940. When WW II started, he left his coins with my grandfather. While my father was away in a sub during WW II, my grandparents would put a silver dollar in a bowl in the kitchen until he finally came home in 1946. My father forgot about it or didn't know what my grandparents were still depositing a silver coin, but not for him..for each of the grandchildren. There were 4. My father died in 1996 and my grandfather died in 2000. After my grandfather died, each of his grandchildren got a fourth of the silver dollars. My share was 34 Morgans, of which, most were pretty nice. My brother tried to buy out my 2 sisters and me, but none of us sold out and he hasn't talk to me in years. Anyway, mine are in a safe with most of my own collection.
     
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