Do you own physical gold as an investment?

Type_45

HansOndabush said:

Why are we digressing into the 'puff of nothing' called bitcoin on a physical gold thread? Go make your own bitcoin thread if that's what you want to gas about.

Thank you! 
Does anyone have any thoughts on buying gold bars rather than gold coins? 

MX5huggy

Gold bars are subject to Capital Gains Tax, UK legal tender, Sovereigns etc, are not. 

HansOndabush

Type_45 said:

HansOndabush said:

Why are we digressing into the 'puff of nothing' called bitcoin on a physical gold thread? Go make your own bitcoin thread if that's what you want to gas about.

Thank you! 
Does anyone have any thoughts on buying gold bars rather than gold coins? 

Have you considered BullionVault for gold purchases? They store it for you but you can also take delivery if you want so long as you have sufficient gold to make it worthwhile.

ZiggerZagger

for those who are interested in the gold vs bitcoin argument https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fmwTGpVCvo (Peter Schiff does make me chuckle on Bitcoin, particularly as other investment banks are so bullish)
re Gold - I wouldn't hold it yourself because of the risks (insurance, storage) but you can buy directly from the Royal Mint if you want and they will store it for you too.

pbartlett

Some of the point about having gold is that you hold it at home where you can get at it. 

Type_45

HansOndabush said:

Type_45 said:

HansOndabush said:

Why are we digressing into the 'puff of nothing' called bitcoin on a physical gold thread? Go make your own bitcoin thread if that's what you want to gas about.

Thank you! 
Does anyone have any thoughts on buying gold bars rather than gold coins? 

Have you considered BullionVault for gold purchases? They store it for you but you can also take delivery if you want so long as you have sufficient gold to make it worthwhile.

I have downloaded their app and read into them a little bit. The concerns with Bullion Vault would be, 1) if a crisis happens, would I be able to get my gold to use in whatever way I wish? They may be closed etc.  And 2) they seem to charge high fees for the release of gold.

Otherwise Bullion Vault is a good concept and I do like the business model and the opportunity they provide.

Type_45

MX5huggy said:

Gold bars are subject to Capital Gains Tax, UK legal tender, Sovereigns etc, are not. 

Yes, this is a big reason to go for sovereigns. Like ISAs, it takes the tax headache away.

Regarding the legal tender status of a sovereign (which has a face value of £100?), I suppose it would be possible for it to be worth a lot more than its face value. Which is a bit odd. 

But yes, legal tender British gold such as sovereigns are attractive as a purchase.

Type_45

pbartlett said:

Some of the point about having gold is that you hold it at home where you can get at it. 

Exactly. And that's the whole point. Without that, there's no point and you might as well invest in any number of assets which are just numbers on a screen and which can be snatched away from you at any moment.

Real estate and physical gold are different from other assets in that sense.

HansOndabush

Type_45 said:

pbartlett said:

Some of the point about having gold is that you hold it at home where you can get at it. 

Exactly. And that's the whole point. Without that, there's no point and you might as well invest in any number of assets which are just numbers on a screen and which can be snatched away from you at any moment.

Real estate and physical gold are different from other assets in that sense.

That's not quite true. You can hold gold in an ETF as a hedge against inflation. Unlike stocks, the gold value will not go to zero anytime though admittedly there is some counter-party risk to ETFs.

Ref. "The concerns with Bullion Vault would be, 1) if a crisis happens, would I be able to get my gold to use in whatever way I wish? They may be closed etc.  And 2) they seem to charge high fees for the release of gold."

1) If you are talking about a war type of situation then possibly not but in the normal run of things you should be able to liquidate your gold and cash out the proceeds.

2) You have to compare that with the premium you pay for physical that you take delivery of.

Michael121

Why do you need to hold physical gold if you want to own it.