Minimums for Gold IRA – What did you guys start with?

• •I’ve been seeing a lot of chatter lately, especially with the Fed’s recent moves, about getting into a Gold IRA.
• •I was more concerned with diversifying and protecting what I had built up than chasing huge returns, and so far, I have zero regrets.
• •My question for this community is about minimum investment requirements.

I’ve been seeing a lot of chatter lately, especially with the Fed’s recent moves, about getting into a Gold IRA. I’m pretty heavy into wealth preservation, as you can imagine being a lawyer in Philly, and gold has always been a key component of that strategy for me. I initially moved a good chunk of my old 401k into a Gold IRA a few years back – around $400k at the time – mostly into physical gold and some silver bars, which is where I've been parking a lot of my excess capital. I was more concerned with diversifying and protecting what I had built up than chasing huge returns, and so far, I have zero regrets.

My question for this community is about minimum investment requirements. When I first looked into it, most custodians had minimums, some pretty steep actually, often in the $25k-$50k range, at least for the reputable ones I considered. I was already past that point, so it wasn't a huge barrier for me. But with so many new players and more interest in hard assets these days, have those minimums come down significantly? I'm thinking of setting up smaller Gold IRAs for my kids eventually, just to get them started with some real diversification exposure, and knowing what they might face would be helpful.

Also, how did you all approach your initial investment? Did you go with the minimum, or did you roll over a larger portion of your existing retirement plans? I'm always looking for different perspectives. It can be tricky figuring out how much to allocate, especially when you're balancing it with other investments like real estate here in Philadelphia. I’m currently looking at adding another $100k or so to my existing IRA, mainly for more silver bars, given the industrial demand, and I’ve been using that Gold IRA Calculator to get a rough idea of what that could look like over the next 10-15 years. It’s pretty basic, but handy for a quick projection.

I know some people might think these minimums are high, but given the long-term protection and stability gold offers, I’ve always seen it as a necessary threshold to clear. What are your thoughts folks? And any specific custodians you’d recommend for those looking to start with a more modest amount?