Be aware of companies that solicit you personally to invest in gold, particularly those that predict or guarantee large profits with little or no risk. These groups should generally be avoided.

As the investor, you’ve got everything you need to make an effective choice as to which organization you want to work with and to gauge when the best would be for you to buy. Let your own financial circumstances, as well as the market conditions mentioned earlier be your guide when it comes to deciding when and where to buy your gold.

Here are a few more tips to avoid getting scammed:

• Be wary of high-pressure tactics or immediate requests for cash transfers.
• Be wary of any unsolicited contact where an offshore salesperson or company is involved.
• Read online reviews CFTC.
• Read GoldDealerReviews.com.
• Be sure to collect all the information about the fees and commissions taken by the company.

As a general rule of thumb, if it doesn’t feel right or seems too good to be true, you’re better off moving on and waiting until you’re sure before investing.

If you invest in gold bullion coins you’ll have two options when it comes to storing them:

• On your own property (in your possession).
• In a depository off of your property.
• Safety Deposit Box

This will often depend on where you buy your gold from, but if you do end up storing it in a depository, they take care of the security details

On the other hand, if you store your coins on your own property, choosing a location should involve the following considerations:

• Amount of space needed to house the gold.
• Security of space being used (safe, locker, etc.).
• Secrecy of space being used (location in home).

Keeping physical gold on your property is a fairly risky move; though some people are more confident having it in their own possession than that of a third party. If you choose to go this route you’ll want to purchase a safe and possibly come up with a method to fix it to your home or keep it within your walls with no noticeable indication of where.

It helps to be creative and think outside of the box, so that if there is a break-in your gold will stay safe.

You’ll also have a choice between physical gold bullion and paper gold. You already know about gold bullion in the form of coins, so let’s go ahead and compare that with the paper option.

Paper gold or a “Gold Certificate” is a certificate of ownership that is given by banks to individuals who invest in gold as a substitute for actual coins. It also holds significance as a U.S. currency. Those who criticize gold certificates would say that it is no better than a fiat currency and that it is impossible to verify that the banks would have actual gold allocated for all the certificates, should there be a rush to cash them in.

So on the one hand you’re dealing with the risk of keeping gold on your own property, and on the other hand trusting your gold in the hands of America’s banking system.

For those of you storing gold at home, chances are that your homeowner’s insurance will cover whatever precious metals you keep on your property. Otherwise you could consider a safe that comes with a replacement guarantee or some other form of third party insurance. Regardless of which path you take, the best thing to do is talk to the insurers about their policy as it relates to your gold.