My bank is nickel-and-diming me on gold storage - anyone else?

Janet Cook

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My bank is nickel-and-diming me on gold storage - anyone else?

janet_cook📊Growing (50-100k)

about 9 hours ago

Key Takeaways

•Okay, so I've had my Gold IRA for about six years now.
•But these storage fees are starting to really grind my gears.
•My bank, where I opened the account, charges me a flat annual fee PLUS a percentage of the total value.

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Okay, so I've had my Gold IRA for about six years now. Started it up when I got that bonus from selling the North Kingstown store - about $70k went straight into it, mostly American Gold Eagles and some Canadian Maples. As a jewelry store owner here in Providence, I know the market, I know the metals, and felt pretty good about diversifying some of my retirement away from just paper assets. But these storage fees are starting to really grind my gears.

My bank, where I opened the account, charges me a flat annual fee PLUS a percentage of the total value. It almost feels like they're double-dipping, and it's eating into my returns more than I initially calculated. I'm looking at my statements from last year, and between the two, it was almost $800! For just holding some coins in a vault? I understand security and insurance cost money, but this feels excessive, especially when gold has been doing so well. I'm starting to wonder if I made the right decision going with a traditional bank for custody.

Has anyone else dealt with this? Are there better options out there for storage that offer more transparent or lower fee structures, especially for a portfolio in the $90k-$100k range? I’m thinking about starting to take distributions in a few years, and I’m already trying to get my head around that with an RMD Calculator, but these storage fees are just another headache. Any recommendations for custodians or strategies to minimize these costs would be greatly appreciated. I’m open to moving the whole kit and caboodle if it makes sense.

5 comments

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Best Answer▲ 10 upvotes

helen_turner💰Established (100-250k)

I hear you on the storage fees, they can definitely sting. But I'm also thinking, as a jewelry store owner yourself, couldn't you potentially leverage your own secure storage facilities? I mean, you've probably got an insured vault for your inventory already, right? Might be worth looking into whether your IRA custodian has any provisions for that kind of self-storage, even if it's just for a portion to offset some of those yearly costs. Just a thought!

Comments (5)

betty_king📊Growing (50-100k)•less than a minute ago

Uggh, I feel your pain on this! I ran into something similar with my first Gold IRA. Not quite "nickel and diming," but their storage fees seemed to creep up year over year, and their transparency wasn't great. Ended up switching providers and the difference was night and day. Hope you find a better solution!

karen_robinson💼Starter (0-50k)•less than a minute ago

Hey, great post! I'm curious, as a jewelry store owner, do you store any of your business inventory on-site, or is that all off-site in a secure facility too? Just wondering how that compares to your Gold IRA storage.

helen_turner💰Established (100-250k)Real Investor•less than a minute ago

I hear you on the storage fees, they can definitely sting. But I'm also thinking, as a jewelry store owner yourself, couldn't you potentially leverage your own secure storage facilities? I mean, you've probably got an insured vault for your inventory already, right? Might be worth looking into whether your IRA custodian has any provisions for *that* kind of self-storage, even if it's just for a portion to offset some of those yearly costs. Just a thought!

mark_adams👑Elite (1m-5m)Real Investor•less than a minute ago

Ugh, that's incredibly frustrating when you're already doing your due diligence. It sounds like you know your stuff when it comes to the gold itself. Have you looked into segregated storage options, even if it's with a different custodian? Sometimes they have more transparent fee structures, especially if you're holding a significant amount like that. Forbes Advisor has a decent breakdown of different gold IRA companies and their storage options that might be a good starting point for comparison.

margaret_chen🏆Advanced (250-500k)Real Investor•less than a minute ago

Totally feel this. My bank started hitting me with a "precious metals handling fee" last year that wasn't in the original agreement. Like, seriously? It's bad enough we're paying for storage, but then they tack on something new? My initial investment was a bit smaller, around $40k, but still, those little fees add up over time. It's frustrating when you've done your due diligence and then they pull this stuff.

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