Storage fees for gold IRA - am I doing this right?
- •Okay, so I've had a Gold IRA going for a couple of years now, mostly just as a supplement to my government pension.
- •I'm in Albuquerque, been a state employee for over 20 years, and while the pension is solid, I wanted some diversification.
- •Started with about 50k, it's sitting closer to 65k now with some additional contributions and maybe a good bit of luck.
Okay, so I've had a Gold IRA going for a couple of years now, mostly just as a supplement to my government pension. I'm in Albuquerque, been a state employee for over 20 years, and while the pension is solid, I wanted some diversification. Started with about 50k, it's sitting closer to 65k now with some additional contributions and maybe a good bit of luck. The physical gold part makes me feel really secure, especially with all the ups and downs lately.
My question is about storage fees. I'm with a fairly reputable custodian, and they store my gold in Delaware (not that I can just drive there and pick it up, ha!). I'm currently paying a flat annual fee, which seems okay for the size of my account. But I was talking to a buddy who's also got a Gold IRA, and he's paying a percentage-based fee with his custodian. Now I'm wondering if I should be renegotiating or looking around. Is a flat fee generally better, or am I missing something? My portfolio isn't huge, definitely in that 50-100k range, so I don't want to overpay on fees that eat into my gains.
For those of you with similar portfolio sizes, what are you paying for storage? Did you shop around a lot for custodians based on their fee structure? I feel like I did my homework initially, but it's been a couple of years, and things change. Any advice for someone building up their retirement safety net would be really helpful – want to make sure I'm maximizing every dollar.