How To Buy Gold Bullion
Investing in gold is always a smart decision in our view. Whether you’re a novice or an experienced gold bullion buyer, it’s wise to educate yourself and do a bit of research. There are several things worth knowing so you can invest your savings wisely. To help you, we answered some of the most asked questions that we receive daily from our regular and new clients.
Where to buy gold bullion?
In this day and age, there is a variety of options for buying gold bullion, and you can even buy gold online. Pacific Precious Metals is a great place to buy as it offers both the chance to buy gold bullion coins and bars online and in stores.
Buying gold bullion coins online is convenient as you can go through our catalog on the website and add any bullion coin or gold bar you like to your shopping cart. All you need is an email address to register, and you can start looking for coins and bars. If you opt for gold buying online, Pacific Precious Metals will provide fully insured shipping, so your purchases will arrive safely.
Once you log in with your email address, you will also have the option to track your order and see the history of all your orders.
Can you buy gold bars from a bank?
Yes, you can purchase gold bars from banks, but you will have to travel to Switzerland. No banks in the United States sell gold coins. However, since it's unlikely you will travel so far to buy bullion bars and coins we offer both online and in store purchases. Not only that, you'll find a much better selection of gold bars locally if you buy from a trusted dealer. Our selection of gold bars is broad and covers most top brands and weights.
Nevertheless, it's always better to purchase gold bars and coins from a local precious metal dealer, be it online or at a store, than to go to an online only dealer for bullion bars. Trusted retailers that have both an online AND brick and mortar presence usually offer the same or better gold bars at comparable or better prices.
Is gold bullion pure gold?
Bullion is gold that's been officially recognized as 99.5% pure. The purity is indicated on the gold as numbers 999, 9999, 99999, and this tells us the percentage to which bullion is pure: 99.9%, and so on. When you're buying gold coins or gold bars, considering the purity is important since you want to get as much fine gold as you can for the price.
Premium and Spread
Possibly the most important terms when it comes to buying gold are premium and spread. Premium is the cost to produce and distribute gold. It is the price above the spot price of gold you pay. When you pay a certain amount over spot for a gold coin, that amount is being split between 3 sides - the manufacturer/refiner, the distributor, and the retailer, and the manufacturer ends up with the majority.
Spread is the second important term you should be familiar with when buying gold bullion coins and bars gold. It represents the difference between the buy-and-sell price. Always try to buy gold coins or gold bars that have narrow spread.
It's good business always to minimize both the gold spot price and the spread.
The price of gold
The price of gold has a positive price elasticity. This means that the value of gold increases along with the demand. Gold prices are shaped by 3 key factors - supply, demand, and investor behavior. Another mover of the gold price is central banks. Investor behavior affects the demand for gold futures, which is where the price of gold is determined.
The thing about gold is that it retains value, and in most cases when the economic situation worsens, the price of gold goes up. During the Great Recession, the prices of gold significantly rose. Just as the stock market bottomed out, the prices rose further, and they kept rising as the economy slowly recovered. All this means that even if more people continue to buy gold, the price will keep rising, no matter the economic condition. It also means that investing in gold rarely poses any risk over very long time frames.
Gold makes a valuable diversifying element for your portfolio, and Pacific Precious Metals is a great place to continue to add to or start a new investment portfolio.
Our bullion price is updated every 30 seconds based on the current spot price. We do this to bring you the ultimate user experience that makes a satisfied, long-term customer.
The cheapest way to buy gold
The first way to buy is to invest in physical gold, by buying bullion products such as gold coins and bullion bars - depending on your preferences. Keep in mind that the price of gold bullion bars and gold bullion coins depends on many factors, like weight, design, and so on.
Your second option is to get trading portions of physical gold. This means you can trade small portions by using an investment platform.
The third and cheapest way to buy coins gold is through an ETC - Exchange-Traded Commodities. ETC is a commodity version of ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund) that tracks the price of coins gold. Gold-backed ETCs keep the gold in a vault and track the price.
Private Mints vs. Government Mints
While the difference in ownership is obvious due to their names, there are a few other significant differences between government mints and private mints.
The crucial difference is that bullion coins produced by sovereign mints are made for legal tender for that country. Private mints also produce bullion for purchase, but they're not created as currency.
For example, the U.S Mint makes the American Gold Eagle and the American Silver Eagle. These have a face value of 50 dollars and 1 dollar respectively, and while they are legal tender, as in you could use them to purchase a dollar's worth of goods, you should never actually do that, as their market value is much higher than their face value.
Private mints make bullion coins that are not a part of legal tender and therefore don't have a face value shown on the coin and are not considered a currency. If the item being manufactured is in the shape of a coin, it is referred to as a gold round while if it is rectangular, it is a gold bar.
Major Sovereign Mints
American Mint
Two out of the three most popular gold coins among investors (here we don't include gold bars) in the United States are produced by the U.S. mint.
American Gold Eagle - The American Gold Eagle coin is the most famous gold coin for investment portfolios. 1986 is the year the United States Mint started production of the Gold Eagle. The design features lady liberty and the bald eagle as the symbol of freedom. It's made in four different sizes, including the 1/10 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz.
Each 1 oz American Gold Eagle bullion sold by the Pacific Precious Metals contains 1 troy ounce of fine gold. It's also a 22k gold. The gold content, gold purity, and the weight of the Gold Eagle are guaranteed by the US Government.
American Gold Buffalo - The second most popular gold bullion in the U.S is the American Gold Buffalo. The Gold Buffalo was first produced in 2006, with the purpose to compete against fast-growing competitors, including Canadian mints. Unlike the Gold Eagle, the Gold Buffalo is a 24k coin, which means it's pure gold of immense quality. In fact, the purity of this coin is 9999, or 99.99 %. In 2008, the United States mint made this bullion in 4 sizes, but today only one size is minted - 1 oz.
Canadian Mint
Canadian Gold Maple Leaf - Canadian Gold Maple leaf is popular in many countries and it's gold bullion produced by the Royal Canadian mint. When it came out in 1979, the coin was produced to a fineness of 999, but in 1982, it went up to 9999.
Soon after the change's been made, the Gold Maple became the most popular gold coin in the world, surpassing the previous number one gold coin - the Krugerrand. The coin was later produced with a fineness of 99999, and the design features Queen Elizabeth II, but these 99999 coins are usually special edition type gold coins .
Since 2014, the Royal Canadian Mint has been one of the most advanced mints worldwide, and the anti-counterfeiting technology that goes into their bullion coins - the Bullion DNA program, is setting a standard for all other world mints. We take pride in the fact that Pacific Precious Metals is a part of the RCM's Bullion DNA program, and you can find us on this list.
Call of the Wild Series - The RCM has a special series of gold coins with a fineness of 99999. Each year they make a few new versions of the coin, and the design features the Queen on the observe and indigenous Canadian animal on the reverse. A lot of investors try to get every coin in the ongoing series.
Austrian Mint
There are four Austrian gold coins that you can find on the market - Gold Philharmonic, Gold Ducat, Gold Guilder, and Gold Crown. However, the best investment option for buyers is the Gold Philharmonic.
Gold Philharmonic was first introduced in 1989, and it's the most popular gold bullion in Europe. It's made in five sizes: 1/25, 1/10, 1/4, 1/2, and 1 oz, and each is 9999 pure gold.
Australian mints
Perth Mint is the number one producer of gold bullion in Australia, with the Royal mint being a close second. Still, when it comes to gold bullion, especially gold coins, the Perth Mint is unbeatable.
Gold Nugget/Gold Kangaroo coin - In 1986, the Perth Mint started producing gold coins. The coin was first called Gold Nugget and it featured an image of the largest gold nugget ever found. In 1989, and ever since the design features an image of the Kangaroo. All of them have Queen of England on the observe. The images of the marsupial are interesting and engaging, and it's the reason investors love to buy it.
British mints
The British Royal mint is one of the oldest in the world. Their Gold Sovereign Coin has not changed in design for hundreds of years, and it's the most popular British gold bullion amongst bullion buyers. This is a 22k gold coin, and it depicts Saint George and the Dragon on the reverse, and a King or Queen of England on the observe, depending on when it's made. Besides the Gold Sovereign, other popular coins are the Gold Britannia, and the Queen's Beasts gold coins.
Gold Britannia - When it was first introduced in 1987, the Gold Britannia was a 22k coin, but starting in 2013, the Royal Mint started producing it with a purity of 9999. The reverse features Britannia, the symbolic human representation of Britain. The beauty of Britannia continues to attract the public eye and is the reason why this coin gets so much recognition among the investors.
Queen's Beast gold coins - In recent years, the British Royal mint introduced a new coin series, the Queen's Beasts gold coins. Bullion collectors and investors around the globe are fascinated with their unique designs that feature mythical and legendary creatures.
South African Mint
The Krugerrand - This gold bullion was first introduced in 1967. The coin features the South African Prime Minister Paul Kruger. The name is a combination of his last name - Kruger, and South African currency - the Rand. The Krugerrand is a 22k gold coin, and it's made in four sizes: 1/10, 1/4, 1/2, and 1 oz.
Chinese Mint
Chinese Gold Panda coin - This coin was first minted in 1982, and it was first made in 5 sizes, 1/20, 1/10, 1/4, 1/2, and 1 oz, but in 2016, the Chinese mint started producing them in metric sizes, so now we have 1 gram (1 gram is around 0.04 oz), 3 grams, 8 grams, 15 grams, and 30 grams. The reverse of the gold bullion depicts the iconic panda bear in various settings, so investors who are looking for gold to buy are getting these each year to have all the coins in the ongoing Panda bear series.
Mexican Mint
Mexican mint produces a coin called the Libertad that is still traded in the USA, especially in the Southern states that are close to the country of Mexico. The Libertad, aka Mexican Onza, is a 9999 pure gold coin.
Besides the Gold Onza, investors like the Gold Peso coin, especially the Gold 50 Peso. These are 90% gold, and the balance is copper.
Pacific Precious Metals offers a variety of bullion products that you can get both online and in-person
If you're in the San Francisco Bay Area, don't hesitate to visit us and get the best offer today!
Have a question or concern about buying gold bullion?
Get a free consultation with an expert - call 415-383-7411
You can also send us a note on our website and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.
