Diversifying with gold IRA after major real estate deals - what to watch for?

• •Finally making the jump into a gold IRA after years of just holding physical and doing real estate plays.
• •My traditional IRA is sitting at around $2.5M, mostly in SPY and some tech stocks.
• •I'm thinking of rolling over about $750k to $1M into a gold IRA.

Finally making the jump into a gold IRA after years of just holding physical and doing real estate plays. I’ve had most of my capital tied up in projects in Aspen and some commercial stuff down in Denver, so direct metals and land have been my primary focus. Now that a few big sales have closed this year (north of $5M on one alone, which was nice), I'm looking to really diversify the retirement side of things beyond just stocks and bonds. I'm already sitting on a decent amount of physical gold and silver, mostly bullion and some pre-1933 coins, but the tax benefits and security of a proper IRA are appealing for a chunk of this new liquidity.

My traditional IRA is sitting at around $2.5M, mostly in SPY and some tech stocks. I'm thinking of rolling over about $750k to $1M into a gold IRA. I've been doing a lot of reading on the various custodians and dealers, and frankly, it's a bit overwhelming. Some of these companies feel like they're just pushing whatever product gives them the highest commission. I'm familiar with the major players for physical holdings, but the IRA side adds a whole new layer of complexity with storage fees, custodian fees, and understanding the whole process of selecting IRS-approved metals. It’s not like buying land and just knowing what I'm looking at.

For those of you who have already navigated this – what were your biggest headaches? Any particular custodians or dealers that stood out for their transparency and fair pricing? I’m looking for a company that really understands the nuances, especially around things like segregated storage, and isn’t just a glorified precious metals salesman. I'm based in Aspen, and while I do travel a lot, a good online experience and solid communication are key. What are the current average annual fees everyone is seeing for custodians and storage? I don’t mind paying for quality, but I also don’t want to be gouged.

Also, any thoughts on the timing of a rollover right now? With inflation fears still percolating and the market being... well, the market, it feels like a good time to convert some paper into hard assets. But is there anything specific happening that makes now a particularly good, or bad, time to move a significant chunk into gold and silver? Thanks for any insights.