Custodian fees for my Gold IRA are killing me - Traditional vs. Self-Directed?

• •Alright, so I’ve been kicking around the idea of a Gold IRA for a while now, probably close to two years, maybe more.
• •With my background in steel, I've always understood the value of commodities, so gold just made sense.
• •I put about $280k into a traditional IRA account, all allocated to physical gold through a pretty well-known custodian.

Alright, so I’ve been kicking around the idea of a Gold IRA for a while now, probably close to two years, maybe more. Finally pulled the trigger about 14 months ago after seeing the writing on the wall with inflation and just generally wanting more hard asset exposure in my portfolio. With my background in steel, I've always understood the value of commodities, so gold just made sense.

I put about $280k into a traditional IRA account, all allocated to physical gold through a pretty well-known custodian. The metals are vaulted, insured, all that good stuff. But man, these quarterly fees are starting to feel like a gut punch. It’s not just the storage, it’s the admin fees, transaction fees if I wanted to make any changes – it really adds up. I'm sitting here in Birmingham, looking at these statements and wondering if I made the right move going with a boilerplate solution.

I've started doing some digging into self-directed IRAs, specifically those geared towards physical metals. The idea of having more control, potentially lower overall fees for the same security, is really appealing. I'm pretty comfortable managing investments myself, always have been. My concern is, am I overlooking some hidden pitfalls unique to holding gold myself vs. a major custodian? Are there regulations or reporting requirements that make it a total headache?

Anyone out there with a substantial gold allocation (thinking $250k+) who went the self-directed route? What’s your experience been like, especially coming from a traditional custody setup? Is the juice worth the squeeze with the extra legwork? Looking for real-world insights here, not just marketing fluff from the various companies out there positioning themselves. Thanks in advance for any advice.