Are you planning ahead for your retirement? Have you started hearing more and more about the importance of diversifying your portfolio to protect you against stock market volatility? Setting up a Gold IRA is an excellent way to protect your assets and ensure you'll be well-set when it comes time to retire.

American Bullion is a well-established and trusted name in the gold investment community. They have been helping individuals prepare and plan for their retirement for over 10 years.

If you're considering setting up a Gold IRA, take a few minutes to read through our comprehensive review of American Bullion below. We'll share more information about the company, how a Gold IRA works, the process for setting up or rolling over an existing IRA, and why you may want to consider trusting American Bullion with your gold investment needs.

What is a Gold IRA?

A Gold IRA (Individual Retirement Account), more formally known as a Precious Metals IRA, is used to help individuals diversify their portfolios by investing some of their funds in gold and other precious metals, rather than stocks. Gold IRAs are one type of self-directed IRAs.

When you set up a Gold IRA, you select specific, approved gold, silver, platinum, or palladium coins or bars to be held in your account. These items are stored in a secure, IRS-approved depositor. When you reach retirement age, you can choose to liquidate your assets for a payout, or you may choose to have the physical coins and bars sent to you.

Why Should You Invest in Gold?

There are a number of reasons you should consider investing some of your money in gold. Gold offers a sense of financial security.

Even in troubling economic times, gold retains its value. In fact, the value of gold often increases when other economic indicators, such as the stock market, are decreasing. When you have some of your money invested in gold, you will be protected, even if the stock market is crashing once you reach the age of retirement.

Since there is a relatively fixed amount of gold on the planet, it is a highly sought-after commodity. This should make you feel confident that even years from now when you retire, gold will still be in high-demand and you'll be able to reap the benefits of your investments.

Gold can also protect you against the decreasing purchasing power of the US Dollar. As the United States Government continues to print more and more money, the value of the dollar continues to decrease little by little, making the money you have sitting in your bank accounts worth less and less overtime. An investment in gold can help you retain the value of your investment, and likely significantly increase it overtime.

Why Choose a Gold IRA Through American Bullion?

Many companies offer Gold IRAs, so you may be wondering what sets American Bullion apart from the rest. There are numerous reasons you will want to consider putting your trust in American Bullion when you begin exploring your Gold IRA options.

First, American Bullion has been in business for more than 10 years. When American Bullion was founded in 2009, Gold IRAs had been allowed by the IRS for 12 years, but were rarely used by investors. American Bullion was one of the first companies who really started helping investors learn more about Gold IRAs and begin taking advantage of the amazing opportunity offered by the IRS.

As a registered dealer in precious metals, you can trust that your interactions and transactions with American Bullion will be safe and secure. They have authorization from the United States Mint and Royal Canadian Mint for buying and selling high-quality precious metals, so you can feel confident that the gold you add to your portfolio will be of excellent quality and value.

American Bullion strives to make each step of the process simple for investors. From setting up or rolling over your IRA to choosing the coins and precious metals you want to add to your account, a member of their team will always be available to offer assistance.

They have a team of Gold IRA processors who are well-trained and ready to help you. These team members are knowledge about the process and requirements for setting up a Gold IRA and will be able to help guide you through the entire process, answer any questions you may have, and help calm any concerns you may have.

American Bullion is a member of many gold-related organizations, including the American Numismatic Association (ANA) and the Industry Council for Tangible Assets (ICTA). In addition to being a registered dealer with the United States Mint and Royal Canadian Mint, they are also an authorized dealer of the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) and the National Guaranty Corporation (NGC).

You can read reviews from many of the satisfied customers who have worked with American Bullion in the past. The company is also a Better Business Bureau (BBB) accredited business with an A+ rating.

They have an "Excellent" rating from Trustpilot and are a member of the National Ethics Association. They also are a TRUSTe member. All of these memberships and certifications should help you feel confident that you are working with a highly reputable and trustworthy company.

American Bullion offers new members free storage and no account fees for their first year. These savings are designed to help you get started with minimal investment so you can begin understanding how valuable a Gold IRA can be for your future.

Planning for Retirement with American Bullion

American Bullion offers many resources to help you plan and prepare for your retirement, whether it is a few years down the road or you are just starting off in your career. Investing in gold through American Bullion can help provide you with long-term security and protection market swings that could wipe away years of growth in just a few days.

Gold should be just one piece of your retirement portfolio. Having a diversified portfolio with a mix of investments in the stock market, real estate, gold, and other opportunities can help set you up for success and prosperity. Generally, it is recommended to hold around 10% of your investments in gold, silver, or other precious metals through a Gold IRA.

When you visit American Bullion's homepage, you can use their retirement calculator to help you determine whether you have enough saved for your retirement. The calculator has you enter information about yourself and your retirement accounts including your current age, projected age for retirement, annual income, current savings, and retirement savings rate.

Based on the information you enter, the calculator will help you see what the value of your investments will be when you reach the age of retirement. It will also display the projected about you'll need to make it through your retirement years (based on living to the age of 92).

Seeing these numbers can help you determine if you are on track to have enough saved up for retirement, or if you need to make changes now to ensure you are prepared.

When setting up your Gold IRA, it is also a good idea to further diversify your portfolio by investing in different precious metals. Including some gold, some silver, some platinum, and some palladium can help set you up for success and make sure that you are as protected and secure as possible.

American Bullion's team of experts are available to help you understand your options and select the best coins and bars to add to your Gold IRA. They have created a department that is specifically dedicated to help individual transfer or rollover Traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, 401ks, 403bs, and other qualified accounts.

Converting A Current IRA to a Gold IRA

If you currently have an IRA and would like to convert it, roll it over to a Gold IRA, American Bullion can help you. They have a team of individuals ready and waiting to help you understand what is involved in a rollover and guide you through the process of transferring your account and setting up your Gold IRA.

When you work with American Bullion to convert your account, they will take care of reporting the transaction to the government, securing the depository for your gold, and shipping your gold to the depository. This will further simplify the process for you and make it much more manageable.

American Bullion has created a self-directed IRA checklist on their website to help you make sure each step in the process is completed correctly to simplify the process of rolling over your current IRA.

One of the first things you will need to complete to initiate the process is the Shipping and Transaction Agreement. In this agreement you authorize American Bullion to make purchases on your behalf and ship them to their storage depository. Take your time to read through the agreement and reach out to a team member at American Bullion if you have any questions about the information it includes.

Next, you will need to complete the Self-Direct IRA Application. Your application will need to include your personal information as well as the type of IRA rollover you are looking to complete. Be sure to add a beneficiary and their name/social security number to the application to prevent any delays in processing.

The next step in the process involves completed the Self-Directed IRA Transfer Request Form. This form will provide American Bullion with the information they need to get in touch with the custodian for your current retirement account and will authorize them to initiate the transfer of funds to your new Gold IRA.

If your current retirement custodian issues a check instead of sending the funds to American Bullion through a wire transfer, you will also need to complete the Deposit Coupon. This will make sure our check can be deposited into your account and recorded with the IRS.

Coins and Bars That Can be Included in a Gold IRA

There are specific rules and regulations regarding which types of coins and bars you can add to a Gold IRA. Working with one of the gold specialists from American Bullion can help you make sure you select items that are allowable for your IRA. Below are some of the coins that are approved and can be selected to add to your account:

The American Gold Eagle Coin's design shows the Striding Liberty Design from the $20 Saint Gaudens gold coin that Theodore Roosevelt commissioned. The reverse side of the coin shows a nest of eagles, which was designed by Miley Busiek.

This coin is available in 1-, ½-, ¼-, and 1/10-ounce denominations. It has a gold fineness rating of .916.

The front of the coin features an image of Queen Elizabeth II and the back features a maple leaf, the national symbol of Canada.

The American Buffalo Coin were minted between 1913 and 1938. The front of the coin features a portrait of a Native American and the reverse side of the coin shows a buffalo.

These bars are available in many different weights and sizes, making it easy for you to choose how much you want to add to your account. They'll also be very easy to sell when you are ready to liquidate your IRA.

To certify their authenticity each bar features a hologram with a unique number on its reverse side.

The front side of the bar display the Roman goddess of fortune and luck, Fortuna, and the reverse side of the bar has a serial number and the purity and weight of the bar. There are also a few other design variations for this gold bar.

Gold Storage

The IRS has created very strict rules and regulations covering the storage of gold and other precious metals in a Gold IRA. There are different depositories located across the United States that have been approved by the IRS for the storage of Gold IRA assets. American Bullion stores their customers' precious metals at the IRS-approved Delaware Depository.

You can feel very confident about the safety and security of your gold and other precious metals stored in this facility as it utilizes the most current and impenetrable security measure. These measures include a large and dedicated staff of security guards, inventory control systems, and reporting systems. Additionally, the location of this depository is away from financial centers or political centers, further decreasing risk to your investments.

Other reasons you can feel perfectly safe and secure with your gold in the Delaware depository include:

If you want, you can visit the facility to see the gold, silver, platinum, or palladium bars or coins you have stored there.

Home storage is another option you can consider for your Gold IRA. However, in most cases this will likely not be a possible option for you or one you'll want to pursue because of the very strict policies the IRS has put in place.

If you don't fully meet the necessary qualifications and continue with home storage, the purchases made will be taxable. In order to be considered for home storage, all of the following qualifications must be met:

As you can see, the IRS makes it very difficult for individuals to legally store their Gold IRA investments in their own home. When you see other companies promoting this storage option, you should be very leery of what they're offering.

Gold for Bitcoin

American Bullion was one of the first gold investment companies to offer the option of using Bitcoin to purchase gold and other precious metals. They first began offering this option in 2014.

When you have your Bitcoin account linked, you'll be able to complete transactions in a matter of minutes. This can help simplify the process of purchasing the gold and other precious metals you want and help you begin to reap the benefits right away.

When you choose to use Bitcoin, not only will your transactions be completed quickly, but you'll be able to take care of everything from your own home; it won't be necessary to visit your financial establishment.

Precious Metals Investment Options

In addition to investing in gold, you can also further diversify your investments by adding other precious metals to your Gold IRA through American Bullion. They offer silver, platinum and palladium coins and bars.

Silver is a good metal to consider adding to your portfolio. In addition to being used for jewelry, silver is in high demand across the globe.

Its properties make a good choice for use in manufacturing of different products including solar panels, batteries, microwaves, televisions, medical instruments and more. Silver is an excellent thermal and electrical conductor and can withstand extreme temperatures, making it very sought after in many industrial fields.

Adding silver to your self-directed IRA can provide you with additional financial security. As more and more applications are being found for silver, it is becoming clear that silver will be highly sought after for some time to come.

Platinum is another metal you will want to consider adding to your IRA. Since the value of platinum tends to move in the opposite direction of gold, having both in your portfolio can help ensure your financial security. If the gold in your portfolio happens to decrease in value when you are ready to retire, the increase in the value of the platinum can help off-set the changes.

If you're looking to add platinum to your Gold IRA, you can only choose coins or bars with a fineness of .9995 or greater. The bars also need to be manufactured by a COMEX- or NYMEX-approved refiner or a mint of a national government.

The final precious metal you can consider for addition to your Gold IRA is palladium. In order to be included in an IRA, palladium bars or coins must have a fineness of .9995 or higher. They also need to be manufactured by a national government mine or an NYMEX- or COMEX-approved refiner.

If you're considering adding silver, platinum, or palladium to your Gold IRA, below are some of the different coins or bars you can consider adding through American Bullion.

American Bullion's Free Gold Guide

American Bullion offers a very useful Gold Buyer's Guide for free through their website. To receive your copy of the free guide, you simply need to fill out the request form on their website. Just enter your name, email address, phone number, and whether you are looking to add gold to an IRA of 401k or purchase gold or silver.

After you enter your information, you will receive the free guide from American Bullion. You'll find that the guide is very helpful in understanding more about investing in gold and setting up a Gold IRA. Some of the important topics covered by the guide include why to invest in gold, which types of retirement accounts can be converted into a Gold IRA, how you can start the rollover process to convert a retirement account, making cash purchases of gold, and some of the different types of coins and bars that you can invest in.

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Final Verdict

Making the decision to set up a self-directed IRA, or Gold IRA, is a good idea. It can help diversify your investments and set you up for a financially safe retirement. When your retirement funds are spread out across different investment options you are the most protected against a volatile economy and stock market.

American Bullion's Gold IRAs are the perfect option if you're looking to take advantage of the benefits associated with a Gold IRA. American Bullion has been helping investors like you set up their Gold IRAs for more than a decade. They have a dedicated team of experts who specialize in helping clients through the process of converting their exiting IRA or 401k into a Gold IRA.

When you choose to use American Bullion for you Gold IRA needs, their knowledgeable staff can also walk you through the process of selecting which types of precious metals you'll want to include in your account. They offer gold, silver platinum, and palladium, providing you with numerous options to diversify your portfolio even further and make sure you are well-prepared for your retirement.

It is never too early to start planning for your retirement. Visit American Bullion's website today to learn more about a Gold IRA and begin the process of setting yours up. You'll be amazed with how much support you'll receive from the team members at American Bullion.