Augusta Precious Metals Gold IRA Review
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Investing is an important part of retirement planning. And investing in precious metals like gold and silver can be a way to hedge your investments against inflation, diversify your portfolio and give yourself peace of mind.
There are certainly downsides — like the fact that precious metals don’t earn dividends — but if you’re interested in buying precious metals one option is to do so through a gold IRA (individual retirement account).
Read on for our review of Augusta Precious Metals to help you decide if its gold IRA offering is right for you.
Best overall
Augusta Precious Metals is listed as “best overall” on Money’s list of the best gold IRA companies. The company has many educational resources on its site — including a series on why not to own gold to make sure investors understand the risks — and the highest possible rating from the BBB.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA pros and cons
- One-on-one web session
- Offers educational content in video format on their website
- Lifetime customer support
- $50,000 order minimum
- Hard to find fee information online
Augusta Precious Metals pros explained
We rated Augusta Precious Metals as one of the best gold IRA companies thanks to various offerings and features, including its online educational content.
One-on-one web session
Before opening an IRA with Augusta Precious Metals, you have the opportunity to attend an online web conference to learn about its offerings. This web session will educate you on what a gold IRA is, the benefits of investing in precious metals, how to avoid falling for gimmicks when buying silver and gold and more. The session is free of cost and has no obligations, though the site says it’s only for those with at least $100,000 in savings.
Offers educational content in video format on their website
Augusta Precious Metals offers a wide selection of educational videos. Topics include how to buy gold in an IRA, how the Federal Reserve works, how to handle some of the risks you may face in retirement and how current events may impact your investments. Augusta also provides weekly articles with updates on market news.
Lifetime customer support
Once you are a customer of Augusta Precious Metals, you can access their lifetime customer support. The company says you will be assigned a customer success agent that will be available via phone or email to answer questions and connect you with other departments when necessary.
Augusta Precious Metals cons explained
Investing in a gold IRA with Augusta Precious Metals may not work for everyone.
$50,000 order minimum
One downside of investing with Augusta Precious Metals is the required minimum investment amount to start an IRA. Augusta requires you to invest at least $50,000 into your new IRA, which is higher than other firms. The funds used to purchase gold and silver can come from a deposit or transfer from a Roth IRA, 401(k) or another retirement fund.
Hard to find fee information online
Augusta Precious Metals may offer tons of educational resources online, but it’s difficult to find fee information. You may need to call a company representative to know exactly what the cost will be for you.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA offerings
On top of their IRA investment options, Augusta also allows you to buy gold or silver bars directly.
Gold & Silver IRA
When you open a gold IRA account with Augusta Precious Metals, the company says you’ll get help from a representative from the time you decide to open the account to anytime questions come up in the future.
Once you choose your precious metals, Augusta covers the cost of shipping fees and liability insurance until the metals are delivered to the storage location.
The IRS has approved certain coins and bullion for investment in IRAs. Gold bars and coins must be, for the most part, 99.5% pure. Silver coins and bars must be 99.9% pure.
Gold coins you can purchase for your IRA that Augusta highlights include:
- American Eagles
- American Eagle Proofs
- Canadian Maple Leaf
- Gold Canadian Eagle
- American Buffalo
- Australian Striped Marlin
Silver coins you can purchase for your IRA that Augusta highlights include:
- Canadian Silver Soaring Eagle
- Canadian Silver Eagle with Nest
- American Silver Eagle
- Canadian Silver Maple Leaf
Gold & Silver cash purchases
You can buy gold and silver products directly from Augusta Precious Metals if you do not want to invest in an IRA or do not have the minimum requirement of $50,000.
Augusta Precious Metals offers many more coins and bullion products available for purchase outside of an IRA. Plus, they'll ship your purchase to any location you choose for free.
Common bullion products
Common gold and silver bullion products are available for purchase from Augusta Precious Metals. A complete list of available products can be found on their website. However, prices are not available online and must be confirmed by Augusta Precious Metals at the time of purchase. Augusta Precious Metal’s transaction agreement states that the margin they sell common bullion products can be as high as 5.2%. Once you confirm your order, the price will lock in.
Premium products
Augusta also offers several premium coins and bullion products in gold and silver. As noted in their transaction agreement, the margin for a Premium product may be as high as 66%. Many Premium products listed on their website are in limited supply or sold out.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA pricing
Augusta Precious Metals does not list the prices of any products on its website, as the gold and silver markets are constantly in flux. You will need to call and speak with an agent to get the price of a specific bar or coin. The company doesn’t charge management fees for the gold and silver IRAs.
Opening an IRA includes one-time set-up fees of $250 that cover custodian and storage costs, as well as a $200 recurring annual fee that also cover custodian and storage costs.
Augusta Precious Metals sets its own buyback prices internally based on the intrinsic metal value of the product. These buyback prices change regularly and differ depending on if the product is common bullion or a premium product.
Gold IRA financial stability
Augusta Precious Metals has an A+ ranking by the BBB.
Gold and other precious metals are thought to be stable investments since they can help hedge against market volatility — one of the biggest risks people face in retirement — and inflation. But there are certainly risks. Gold prices are not guaranteed to increase over time, and don’t offer dividends, so financial advisors tend to recommend a small portion of your investment portfolio, like 5% or less.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA accessibility
Augusta Precious Metals is available to anyone interested in buying gold or silver, but has a minimum investment requirement of $50,000 plus an initial set-up fee totaling $250.
Availability
Augusta Precious Metals is available throughout the U.S. You can purchase gold or silver and have it shipped to your home or stored in one of Augusta’s preferred depositories.
Contact information
Augusta offers exceptional customer support. Contact Augusta Precious Metals through its website chat or speak with an agent at 1(800)700-1008.
User experience
Augusta Precious Metals seems to provide an excellent user experience for customers and those looking to learn more about the precious metals market. The company also has a lot of educational information about why not to buy gold and silver, and how to avoid scare tactics that are often used in the industry.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA customer satisfaction
Augusta Precious Metals boasts a BBB customer review rating of 4.97 out of 5 stars, with positive comments about the companies’ professionality and focus on education.
Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA FAQ
How does the account opening process work with Augusta Precious Metals?
What is Augusta Precious Metals' buyback program?
Is buying gold a safe investment decision?
How we evaluated Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA
We evaluated Augusta Precious Metals based on the following factors:
- Account offerings, including what kinds of metals customers can invest in
- Information (or lack thereof) on pricing
- Customer experience and satisfaction according to trusted third-party review sites such as the BBB
- Availability across the U.S.
Summary of Money’s Augusta Precious Metals gold IRA review
Gold IRAs can allow investors to get exposure to precious metals, but it’s very important to diversify your investment portfolio.
Augusta Precious Metals offers impressive educational content and customer support, which are several factors Money took into account when naming it one of the best gold IRAs.
The company may be a good option for those who want to learn a lot about the precious metals industry and make informed decisions about where they’re putting their money.