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Of course, the value goes up and down, and there's no guaranty of the value when you decide to sell it.

Problem I've had... A good portion of my silver was bought as "collectible" items. Medallions, commemorative coins, etc. As I've sold some of it, none of it sold for any more than melt value. It was purchased originally for far more than melt value. So, when folks buy Franklin Mint (etc.) products, and pay a premium, do so only because you enjoy looking at the stuff, as the value is seldom more than melt value.

And the Franklin Mint stuff comes packaged so nicely, in albums, or framed. It takes up much more room for this presentation than buying unpackaged coins, rounds, bouillon etc.






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If it is gifted to you in his (or her) will there is no downside, except perhaps having to pay estate tax. In which case, you just sell enough of it to cover the tax. To avoid this, if he plans on passing it on anyway, he should start gifting it now.
 
Soylent Green.
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Aloha, Mark
 
You can't eat it and it literally has 0 value without an economy just like the one folks are trying to avoid participating in. Precious metals are only useful to jewelers IF there are people well off enough to want shiny things and tech manufacturers that will fold if the economy collapses.

That's my .02. I think if I was going to horde anything 2020 taught me ammo purchased cheap isn't a bad idea.
 
Yes, but if you buy from a "reputable dealer" you'll pay a markup when buying and a markdown when selling which of course can be calculated as ror against actual unrealized ror at points of time.
Thise costs must be considered and accounted.
Physical bullion is becoming more scare.

Center Street Gold & Silver in Tigard is buying for above "ask" spot price.

Premium to buy physical is 13-30% above spot, the made up number controlled by big banks, whom have been fined nearly a BILLION dollars for price manipulation in the past.

 
You can't eat it and it literally has 0 value without an economy just like the one folks are trying to avoid participating in.
lol

Fixed that for you.

People have a lot of things they can't eat. It's kind of a people thing.

Tho I am interested in any examples of a large group of unrelated people who don't have an economy. I love history.
 
lol

Fixed that for you.

People have a lot of things they can't eat. It's kind of a people thing.

Tho I am interested in any examples of a large group of unrelated people who don't have an economy. I love history.
Well there are barter type economies. The kind of economies I was thinking about use some form of fungible substance/coin as an agreed upon substitute for usable comodities. Precious metals are simply the oldest historical analog we have for $.
 
We have some, and depending on the year you ask can be up or down a good deal. Not really much in the grand scheme of things, we never looked at it like an investment, or even a potential salvation.
Similar to our freeze dried food, its there to tide us over for a while should things go radically south, but don't really want to mess with it otherwise, and though it would be plenty irritating, wont cause hardship should it spoil or get stolen.
 
Well there are barter type economies. The kind of economies I was thinking about use some form of fungible substance/coin as an agreed upon substitute for usable comodities. Precious metals are simply the oldest historical analog we have for $.
Precious metals have always been valued throughout history, sure , while S is HTF it may or may not have value, but eventually it will be valued again.
Should it be your only hedge against inflation/collapse/SHTF? Of course not, but it should be part of it because there will always be someone who wants it.
In regard to the OP...
This sounds like free money for you. Take it and run. Like someone said earlier, It would be best if step-dad started giving it away now, but frankly I don't see how it would be any sort of hassle if you inherited a box of silver rounds from him. It's not quantified anywhere official is it? So who's going to know if you got 3 oz. or 5000?
As to those worried about people stealing it, Puhleeze:rolleyes: bad people can steal your guns, your car, your wife's jewelry or your TV. Does that possibility keep you from owning those? Why should it be any different for PMs?
 
Yeah.....I remember a story.
I was told about a guy claiming to his soon to be ex-wife, to have only $50 to his name.

He conveniently didn't mention that it was actually a US $50 Gold Coin.

Aloha, Mark
 
My stepfather has been investing in silver, gold, and the like for about forty years. He's at a point where he sees it more as passing on legacy. Mom sees it more as a hassle. Short of having a very real (and fluctuating value depending on demand and market) what are the actual downsides to maintaining value or even wealth in precious metals in today's world?

I know there's a lot of metal holders here. I'm curious what downsides you see (if any) considering the state of things.
Two downsides:

1. It may not be very liquid.
2. No interest or dividend income.

A lot of people think it's a great hedge against inflation, and it does insulate you. However, a good value/growth stock will also follow inflation in the long run.

I've held Apple stock since 2003. Over that time period it has split 2:1, 7:1, and 4:1. If you started with 1000 shares at $15 ($15K) you would now have 56,000 shares at $145 ($8,120,000). That doesn't include all the generous dividends along the way. Gold can't come close.
 
Not hardly.

If he wanted cash today for some of his PM's for "whatever", he could simply sell some. If he wants to. Then he'd take said cash & buy "whatever".

It only seems "complicated" to folks whom are not familiar with such.

Quite a bit easier than selling most other "things" one no longer wishes to hold onto, to then take that money & buy something someone wants. If that makes sense.

What becomes a bit more complicated is numismatic (collector) value vs smelt value. However that can be alleviated with ongoing record keeping & discussion...AND knowing whom he considers trusted dealers (discussion).
There is a point where a mountain of cash isn't going to buy goods. An example is if you want to buy a $50,000 item. If the seller won't accept $50,000 in cash because they want to deposit the $50,000 what options do you have?

If you try to deposit the $50,000 in cash, the bank is going to report the deposit.

You say "it only seems 'complicated' to folks whom are not familiar with such" what exactly do you mean?

For lesser amounts its easy to sell precious metals and use the cash. If you sell over $10,000 in precious metals it is a burden and you run the risk of running into issues with the taxman, fire, theft etc. If I am missing something here please explain it as you would to someone who graduated from Portland State.
 
There is a point where a mountain of cash isn't going to buy goods. An example is if you want to buy a $50,000 item. If the seller won't accept $50,000 in cash because they want to deposit the $50,000 what options do you have?

If you try to deposit the $50,000 in cash, the bank is going to report the deposit.

You say "it only seems 'complicated' to folks whom are not familiar with such" what exactly do you mean?

For lesser amounts its easy to sell precious metals and use the cash. If you sell over $10,000 in precious metals it is a burden and you run the risk of running into issues with the taxman, fire, theft etc. If I am missing something here please explain it as you would to someone who graduated from Portland State.
Wouldn't the bank have to report a check deposit of $50K as well? (Yes, they do) so the scenario is no different
The deal with giving a fellow $50K cash or $50K worth of silver is he now has the option of depositing it in the bank or simply depositing it in his safe at home.
A check is just a marker with no intrinsic value unless its deposited in a bank.
A gun shop I used to frequent had a deal where he would take silver for guns, 20 ounces for a Colt SAA, back in the 80s, IIRC. He said it was the same deal you could get back in the 1880s A lot of folks took the deal. The gun shop owner used his own cash to pay for the guns and stacked the silver.
 
There is a point where a mountain of cash isn't going to buy goods. An example is if you want to buy a $50,000 item. If the seller won't accept $50,000 in cash because they want to deposit the $50,000 what options do you have?

If you try to deposit the $50,000 in cash, the bank is going to report the deposit.

You say "it only seems 'complicated' to folks whom are not familiar with such" what exactly do you mean?

For lesser amounts its easy to sell precious metals and use the cash. If you sell over $10,000 in precious metals it is a burden and you run the risk of running into issues with the taxman, fire, theft etc. If I am missing something here please explain it as you would to someone who graduated from Portland State.
I have been reported numerous times for large cash deposits or withdrawals. If I have sold a $50,000 car, I deposit the money in the bank. When the Gov agent asks I show them the title transfer!
The same is true of buying auction property. The transaction is in cash. I take cash out of the bank and go to the auction. Or I come back from the auction with cash. Somewhere on the report form the bank uses there is a question " is this a normal transaction for this customer?" DR
 
Wouldn't the bank have to report a check deposit of $50K as well? (Yes, they do) so the scenario is no different
The deal with giving a fellow $50K cash or $50K worth of silver is he now has the option of depositing it in the bank or simply depositing it in his safe at home.
A check is just a marker with no intrinsic value unless its deposited in a bank.
A gun shop I used to frequent had a deal where he would take silver for guns, 20 ounces for a Colt SAA, back in the 80s, IIRC. He said it was the same deal you could get back in the 1880s A lot of folks took the deal. The gun shop owner used his own cash to pay for the guns and stacked the silver.
The difference between depositing cash(money order) and a check is significant.

A check quickly allows a financial institution to see where the money originated from. If you deposit a $50,000 check you will be ok. If you deposit $50,000 in cash you are going to get attention you don't want.

If you don't believe that go ahead and call your bank tomorrow and ask them.

Your bank is also not obligated to inform you when they report suspicious activity. In fact its frowned upon by the feds.
 
I have been reported numerous times for large cash deposits or withdrawals. If I have sold a $50,000 car, I deposit the money in the bank. When the Gov agent asks I show them the title transfer!
The same is true of buying auction property. The transaction is in cash. I take cash out of the bank and go to the auction. Or I come back from the auction with cash. Somewhere on the report form the bank uses there is a question " is this a normal transaction for this customer?" DR
If you can prove (you shouldn't have to) that the funds are legitimate you are fine.

If you can't what do you think would happen to your $50,000? If you told the government you sold precious metals you better be able to provide receipts of what you paid and sold it for. They will demand their cut.
 
The difference between depositing cash(money order) and a check is significant.

A check quickly allows a financial institution to see where the money originated from. If you deposit a $50,000 check you will be ok. If you deposit $50,000 in cash you are going to get attention you don't want.

If you don't believe that go ahead and call your bank tomorrow and ask them.

Your bank is also not obligated to inform you when they report suspicious activity. In fact its frowned upon by the feds.
What if I just stick the $50K in my safe? Who is going to report it at all? Given the low interest rates these days there really isn't a lot of advantage to depositing it except for having the money there to pay bills. So now let's say I'm a fellow with regular income That money is dropped into my account at regular intervals every month. Meanwhile I find some eccentric millionaire who will buy my HiPoint collection for $50K cash.
I go there and meet him with my detector pen and after I check all 500 $100 bills, OR test the silver ingots I transfer the HiPoints to him and go my merry way. The gun shop doesn't know or care what he paid me and for myself, I keep my mouth shut. I go home with either, stuff them in my safe and withdraw from the Bank of Me whenever a new shiny object catches my eye. The bank sees the usual deposits and transactions in my accounts and I can even drop a few Thousand in my savings from time to time if I want. If I want work done on the house I can always find a contractor who will work for cash. If I want a new suit or gun or framistat, I pay cash because nearly all sellers like cash. The seller who doesn't want cash but has something I really want or need gets paid out of my bank account.
Handling cash or PM's really isn't all that difficult.
The hardest part of it all is finding the eccentric millionaire who likes HiPoints.
 

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