What's a good gold IRA storage fee percentage these days?
- •When the whole financial crisis hit in '08, I was really glad I had a decent chunk in the shiny stuff.
- •I've been with the same IRA custodian for ages, and honestly, I haven't really fussed about the storage fees much.
- •They've always seemed reasonable enough, flat fee, no big deal.
Okay, so I've been in gold for over 20 years now, pretty much since the market dips after 9/11 really solidified my conviction that you need some physical assets as a hedge. When the whole financial crisis hit in '08, I was really glad I had a decent chunk in the shiny stuff. I'm retired now, did my 30+ years at Ford out here in Detroit, and my portfolio is somewhere between 500k and 1M, with a good chunk of that still in precious metals. I've been with the same IRA custodian for ages, and honestly, I haven't really fussed about the storage fees much. They've always seemed reasonable enough, flat fee, no big deal.
Lately, though, with all the inflation talk and just generally keeping a closer eye on every penny in retirement, I've been looking at my statements a bit more critically. I know it's a small percentage in the grand scheme of things, but over decades, those fees add up. My current custodian charges a flat annual fee for my gold, and while it's not killing me, I'm just wondering if I'm getting played or if it's competitive. I've heard some talk about percentage-based fees vs. flat fees, and frankly, my head starts spinning with all the different setups.
Mainly, I'm holding gold bullion, but I've got a small allocation in palladium too, just for diversification since I believe in its industrial future. So, for those of you with significant gold IRA holdings (say, over $500K), what are you paying for storage, either as a flat fee or a percentage? Especially interested if anyone has experience with custodians that have good rates for palladium. Is there a point where a percentage-based fee becomes better than a flat fee, or vice versa, depending on the value of your metals? Feeling a little out of touch on this specific detail, appreciate any insights.