Gold IRA fees - anybody compared Equity Trust vs. Kingdom vs. Augusta recently?

• •Best decision I ever made, especially watching these last few years.
• •My portfolio is sitting comfortably in the low seven figures now, thanks in large part to those early gold buys.
• •My previous company handled everything fine, but I'm thinking of moving things around, maybe splitting it up a bit, just for peace of mind.

Okay, so I’ve been holding a substantial chunk of my retirement in gold for a while now – since 2008, actually, right after the whole market went sideways. Best decision I ever made, especially watching these last few years. My portfolio is sitting comfortably in the low seven figures now, thanks in large part to those early gold buys. My previous company handled everything fine, but I'm thinking of moving things around, maybe splitting it up a bit, just for peace of mind. Getting a little antsy with all my eggs in one basket, even if it's a solid basket. My wife keeps giving me that look about "diversification within diversification," you know?

I’m specifically looking at fees, storage especially. Last time I did a deep dive into this was probably five years ago and everything felt a lot simpler. Now it seems like every company has twenty different tiers and hidden charges. Equity Trust, Kingdom Trust, Augusta Precious Metals – these are the three that keep popping up on my radar for self-directed IRAs. Anyone here have recent experience comparing their fee structures? I’m talking account maintenance, transaction fees (if any, though I don’t plan on much moving around once it’s set), and critically, secure storage fees. I’m currently paying about 0.1% on storage for a good chunk of metal, but that was locked in a while back. I'm based in Houston, so I'm looking at vaults that will store my metal here in the US, preferably Delaware or Salt Lake City, not offshore.

I’m pretty meticulous with my finances, comes with being in the energy sector for 40 years before I retired. Every penny counts, especially when you're talking about a million or two in precious metals. I'm seeing numbers all over the place online, from flat fees of $150-$250 annually to percentages that just feel too high. What’s considered a reasonable annual fee these days for a sizeable gold IRA? And has anyone encountered companies that try to nickel and dime you on exit fees or surprise audits? I hate getting blindsided.

Any insights or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated. Trying to make sure my golden years stay golden, not tarnished by excessive fees.