Silver Eagles vs. Generic Rounds for IRA - What's your take?

Diane Bailey

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Silver Eagles vs. Generic Rounds for IRA - What's your take?

diane_bailey💰Established (100-250k)

less than a minute ago

Key Takeaways

•Been wrestling with this for a bit as I'm looking to add more to my Roth Gold IRA.
•I've got about $180k in the IRA right now, mostly gold, but want to diversify with some silver.
•I'm trying to decide between buying American Silver Eagle bullion coins or just going with some generic silver rounds.

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Been wrestling with this for a bit as I'm looking to add more to my Roth Gold IRA. My business, a few guided tours around Savannah, has been doing surprisingly well despite all the inflation jitters, so I've got some capital I want to keep safe. I've got about $180k in the IRA right now, mostly gold, but want to diversify with some silver. I'm trying to decide between buying American Silver Eagle bullion coins or just going with some generic silver rounds. The premium on the Eagles is pretty steep right now, pushing them almost 25-30% over spot from some dealers I've looked at online, even the ones I've used for my gold before.

On one hand, ASEs are recognized everywhere, super liquid, and frankly, they just feel more "official" for an IRA. There's comfort in knowing that if things ever went completely sideways, they'd be readily accepted, even if I have to pull them out of the IRA early (which I'm obviously hoping to avoid). The generic rounds, while significantly cheaper per ounce and obviously still pure silver, just don't have that same universal recognition. My main concern is the spread when I eventually go to sell them, either when I retire or if I need to rebalance my portfolio.

I know the usual argument is that an ounce is an ounce for investment purposes, and for a long-term hold in an IRA, maybe the premium truly doesn't matter as much in the grand scheme of things. But that initial 25-30% hit feels… substantial, especially when I'm looking to drop another $20k-$30k into silver. Does anyone here exclusively buy generic for their IRA silver, or do you bite the bullet and pay the premium for Eagles?

Is there a point where the premium gets so high that it completely erodes the benefit of the liquidity? I'm trying to balance getting the most silver for my buck versus future salability and ease of liquidation. Any seasoned investors have strong opinions one way or another on this for IRA investing specifically? Is there a hidden benefit to ASEs that I'm overlooking besides just recognition?

3 comments

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Best Answer▲ 5 upvotes

elizabeth_johnson💰Established (100-250k)

Hey, I hear you on this one! I had a similar dilemma when I was setting up my own precious metals IRA. My business, a little online vintage clothing shop, had a surprisingly good quarter and I wanted to diversify beyond just gold. I ended up splitting the difference a bit – went with some Silver Eagles for the recognized value and liquidity, but also picked up a decent portion of generic rounds for the sheer amount of silver I could get for the price. Haven't regretted it yet, it feels like a good balance.

Comments (3)

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

patricia_miller📊Growing (50-100k)✓ Verified•less than a minute ago

Congrats on the successful tour business in Savannah, that's awesome! Quick question though, you mentioned your IRA is "mostly gold" right now. Does that mean you already have some silver in there, or is this your first foray into adding silver to the mix?

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

Interesting dilemma! While the numismatic value of Silver Eagles is definitely a draw, for a *Roth IRA* where the goal is typically long-term growth and tax-free withdrawals, I've always leaned towards getting the most silver for my dollar. Generic rounds usually have a lower premium over spot, which means more ounces in your account for the same outlay.

Given that you're already sitting on a good amount of gold, focusing on maximizing the silver weight rather than potential collector value might be the more straightforward play. Especially if you're thinking of it purely as an inflation hedge. Just my two cents!

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