Hi Mr. Rawles,
In response to the letter regarding buying silver in small increments each month, I know that Franklin Sanders [1] has a monthly acquisition program (“M.A.P.”). I have made bullion coin purchases with him twice now, converting some bonds to gold and silver coin and had good experiences both times. Look for the M.A.P. link to find details about his offerings.
Something to consider when buying locally versus through the mail is the difference between sales tax and shipping. If you buy from an out-of-state vendor, there should not be any sales tax. Mr. Sanders only sells and ships to people outside of his home-state of Tennessee. The savings there might make it worth paying the shipping cost. Best Regards, – Benjamin
Jim:
“Let the buyer beware”: I ran across one local dealer who priced his precious metals reasonably (100 ounce bar of silver) …… then at the conclusion of the deal, he proceeded to add local sales tax to the final price. I backed out on the deal and never went back to him. Of course he was also the one who offered me a 100 oz bar of silver (at a slight discount) with the serial numbers scraped off. Not the best type of trustworthy person obviously.
If you have a good trustworthy rapport with your dealer, many times you can buy 1/10 oz gold coins and then later trade 8 or 9 of them back for a full 1 oz coin. This is due to the premium on the smaller coins. Whether 8 or 9 for an oz depends on the economy and the times.
This is how I got started. Say $70 for a 1/10 rand every month or when you can spare the money and then after you get up to 50 1/10’s, start trading out for 1 ouncers while still buying 1/10 ouncers. I remember how good it felt when I got my first 1 oz rand in my hand and still had 41 1/10 ouncers. All day I was kicking myself in the butt for not having started sooner.
However, remember if you ever need to bribe someone, it’s to your advantage to bribe them with one 1/10th oz than to have to resort to giving them a 1 oz coin.
Many coin shops, when dealing with junk silver, will dip the coins so they come out bright and shiny. It’s never bothered me one way or the other but I’ve heard some shops will put a premium on the shiny (possibly the newly shiny) coins. This isn’t right. – The Army Aviator