Should I invest in silver bullion?

Hello, I am 12 years old and just starting investing in silver. I currently only have 8 ounces of silver and 20 grams of gold. I am thinking about selling my gold and just investing in silver. Right now I am only buying 1 ounce silver bars. I am planning on buying metals until I am at least 25 (I am planning to join the military and then make a business, but this can obviously change). I was wondering where you could sell a lot of silver. I was thinking selling them to a refinery when I'm ready. Also, the silver I am buying right now has those plastic capsules on them. I am keeping the capsules on but am wondering, theoretically if I had thousands on these 1 ounce bars, would the refinery buy my bars with the capsule on? It would be such a pain taking the capsules off. Are there machines that can do this, or should I just buy bigger bars? I am not worried about storage because I have more than enough space and can buy more safes if I need too. I am just looking for a "safe" investment. I think silver is safer than gold?

Also, if you live close to Toledo I highly suggest checking out Toledo Coin Exchange. They were very professional and they were very informed.

Thanks for the answers!
- Adam

 

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Well, if you are 12 year old you have a 50 year window ahead of you in which to sell. There is no guarantee that PMs will go up in any given timeframe (so planning on selling at 25 year old seem like a bad idea as it may not be the right time) but at some point you will be able to sell for a nice profit. Do NOT sell to a refinery - that will not give best value. Do NOT remove the plastic - that will lose value for the majority of your potential buyers. If you really must remove it to sell them as some point in the future then the time to do it will be minimal for the profit gained.

 

Thanks for the input! I would only remove the plastic if selling to a refinery. If I don't sell to a refinery, then where could I sell large amounts?

 

You don't need to worry about that now as you should not be planning on selling any time soon. The best place will change over time. It could be here, it could be EBay, it could be some other auction site, it could be a coin show, it could be ....

Well, you get the point.

 

If my twelve year old self could do it over again I would invest in stocks, or broad market low cost tracking funds to be more specific. I think medal has a place in a balanced portfolio and as a hedge, but no more than 10% of your investments. Nothing is safe. Silver isn't safe, gold isn't safe, stocks aren't safe... Everything is a trade off, risk versus reward. You have a long life in front of you, take risks now while you have plenty of time to recover.

 

Great start, I think silver has a little better upside potential then gold at the moment.

You say plastic capsules and that's a Red flag to me.
Are you 100% sure what you have is silver?
I'd like to see a picture of said bar (did you buy from a reputable dealer)

Everyone should have the tools to know 100% that the PM's they buy are genuine.
Tools like a scale, neodidneyum magnet and others are cheap enough to buy.

That said, I have pulled a couple bars out of the local gold and silver store case that were plated or fakes.

 

Generally I would rather have gold than silver. Silver fluctuates more wildly than gold. However, silver is more affordable so as a long term idea, it wouldn't hurt to be buying now at these levels. I wouldn't sell the gold though.
Not sure if you could sell directly to a refinery as you would need some serious weight. You could sell to a middle man (someone who buys gold and silver), and they send it to the smelter in larger quantities. But then you are getting a lower price because the middleman has to make a profit also.
It's never easy to make money. But it can be done. Hard work and education.

 

Start good investing habits young. Too many folks have waited far too long to start putting part of their money to work. Good luck and may life bring you good fortune -- and not only in the category of money.

 

I wish I was thinking of investing when I was 12 LOL, but being only 12 you probably don't have a huge bank account, if its something you want to do long
Term have a strategy in place to make it both fun and profitable

 

Good for you Adam. I wouldn't sell gold for silver. It's a good idea to have both.

Time is on your side so enjoy the hunt for more of what appeals to you in the world of metals. Don't be in a rush to buy or sell at any time.

If you have the opportunity you should invest in stocks and real estate as well. Diversification is important.

 

I agree with this 100%. Low cost index funds that track the S&P should make up 80% of your investments. Put 10% into PM and put 10% into a hobby. For me that hobby is coins!

When you listen to the greatest value investors of all time you never hear them say that they regretted not putting more money into PM.

 

Adam,
It's great that you have the mindset to save, and that alone is priceless in the long run!

I'm 39 now and remember back (I sound like an old man now ) when I was 12 and started putting money away in savings when it actually paid to save money in a bank. I was earning 5-6% on my money and it got me hooked. It was so rewarding to me that when I was 16 and I was able to pull out cash to buy my first car. That alone taught me so many life lessons that carried with me forever.

Please keep saving but you're also very young so spend a bit to experience life; you'll never get those days back.

 

By plastic I mean the casing around the bars. Is that what you mean? The bars are APMEX so I don't think there fake? I will try to get a picture soon. Thanks!

Thank you!

I do invest in stocks already, but could you please PM me on ways to invest in real estate with spending a ton of money. Are there ways to only spend a little money? Thanks!

 

Hey Adam. I tried to PM you but it didn't go through. Here's what I was referring to.

You can invest via mutual funds in Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). They are made up of companies that own real estate and usually pay a quarterly dividend to you. Typically you only reinvest that money back into the mutual fund allowing you to buy more shares.

If you use a brokerage like Vanguard you should be able to automatically invest each month for $50 to $100 per month. It's a good way for exposure to another area of investment.

https://personal.vanguard.com/us/funds/snapshot?FundIntExt=INT&FundId=5123

 

Thanks for the info!

 

Haha the op isn't 12.

 

What makes you think I'm not 12? Not trying to start a argument, but I think all my answers and questions are incredibly more mature than yours. Posting "ttt" on random forums is not helpful at all. I am trying to get answers to the thread. If you can not take the little time to help me at all, then there is no point to be on these forums. I am 12, and I started investing in stocks when I was in 3rd grade. I am not wasting my time trying to make you believe that I am 12.

 

Here,s a couple of examples of my stack though i generally collect and invest in
Generic 10 OZ Bars, this Kilo bar was my first, and it is of the poured Silver variety
Which means you will generally pay way over spot but some times you have to treat
Yourself

 

And dont forget about 1 OZ ASE,S either silver is silver no matter how you stack it