Women and Precious Metals: Moving Past Hesitation and Building Wealth
When gold and silver came up in conversations with women friends, engagement rings, herringbone necklaces, and diamond tennis bracelets were usually the first things considered. Investing in these metals seemed outside their knowledge or reach. That assumption was mistaken, and it was not unusual.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: Studies indicated that many women had been reluctant to put money into anything beyond cash-equivalent choices, including certificates of deposit (CDs) and money market accounts, leaving nearly 70% of their portfolio in lower-return options. The original author related to years of shifting cash among low-risk choices. At publication, that pattern appeared to be changing. This article first considers why progress had been slow, the situation then, and a step-by-step approach women could use to prepare for investing.
Historically: Reasons Women May Hesitate to Invest
Choosing investments with greater risk in pursuit of greater returns calls for confidence. The original article noted that only 9% of women believed they made investment decisions better than men.
Women’s lack of confidence may also be understandable because gold and silver had largely been a male-dominated field. Why would that matter? Consider taking a car to a mechanic: without knowing the answers, a customer may feel dependent on the mechanic’s judgment. That can feel intimidating when another person is expected to solve the problem. The customer hopes the repair is done properly, according to sound practices, and for a reasonable charge.
Women can often experience that same uncertainty when considering investments in gold and silver.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: At Publication: Women Were Investing More Often
In the years preceding publication, women had begun approaching investing with more confidence. The original article reported that 71% of women felt more confident about investing after developing a financial plan—a complete view of financial goals and the steps required to work toward them.
The original article also reported that nine out of ten women planned to make investment choices during the following year to help their money grow. That shift appeared in the 2021 Women and Investing Study.. Its results showed that women investing beyond retirement increased from 44% in 2018 to 67% three years afterward.
Even when women did not identify themselves as strong investors, they could make investment decisions as well as, or perhaps better than, men. The article attributed this to careful research, attention to detail, and thorough review of the available investment choices. That was a general observation, not a rule for every investor.
Looking Forward: Overcoming Barriers to Gold and Silver InvestingAt the time of original publication, the article described the following:
If women have that potential, what could help them continue forward with investing? The article’s answer was learning more about gold and silver investing. Knowledge can support taking charge of financial decisions. For many people, including the original author, the starting point was a plan.
Preparing to Invest: Practical Steps
For readers considering a first precious-metals investment or increasing one, the original article presented the following steps as a useful way to prepare.
1. Identify Your Main Goal
Clarifying what someone hopes to accomplish by growing or diversifying investments is important. Those objectives can guide investment decisions and shape a financial plan. Common investor goals mentioned in the original article included:
- Preserving your wealth
- Creating a hedge against inflation
- Making an IRA contribution
2. Develop a Financial Plan
This step may sound more daunting than it needs to be. Its central purpose is simply to create a strategy for a financial future. The original article began by distinguishing investing from saving so readers could use the same terms.
Saving is a key part of a financial strategy. It means setting money aside each month after bills have been paid. Many households follow a budget, but fewer know exactly where every dollar goes each month. At the time of publication, the article suggested expense tracking could range from Mint, Intuit’s free online budget planner, to a detailed Quicken subscription. Once monthly spending is understood, unnecessary costs may be reduced and those funds can be set aside for the future.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: Investing, by contrast, is generally intended to build wealth rather than preserve it. Investment goals should account for time horizon—the period an investment is expected to be held before the money is needed—risk tolerance, meaning the amount of risk someone is willing to bear in financial portfolios, and financial objectives. As the original article had discussed in 2022, at publication it argued that a traditional 60/40 portfolio could no longer be relied upon: 60% stocks and 40% bonds. It also stated that bonds had performed worse than stocks through that year’s first half.
For instance, until 2020, the article said an investor could generally preserve purchasing power through conservative government-bond investments. In the couple of years before publication, inflation had risen sharply and affected the average American. At the time of publication, it reported that bond investments produced an approximate negative real return of -6%. At that rate, it stated, half of purchasing power would be lost in 12 years.
Whatever an investor chooses for a financial portfolio, the original article cautioned against a “set it and forget it” plan, despite a common belief otherwise. Put differently, an investment plan should not run on autopilot. It should remain flexible, be reviewed regularly, and be adjusted when appropriate. Changes in career, employment, marriage, divorce, children, or economic conditions can all be reasons to reconsider an investment plan.
So far, the article had identified items it would not recommend for a portfolio. At publication, Atlanta Gold & Coin suggested considering precious metals, including gold and silver, within an investment plan. Its reasoning was that these metals had served as money for nearly six thousand years and therefore had a lengthy record. The article characterized them as a way to address high inflation, preserve purchasing power, and ideally outperform many other asset classes when needed most. It also stressed that readers should learn about precious metals rather than rely only on that view.
When this article was originally published, Atlanta Gold & Coin of Johns Creek stated that it was willing to discuss general plans involving investing in gold and silver or cashing out gold and silver. It also noted that a complete financial plan might sometimes be appropriate. For a professional, comprehensive analysis of a then-current and future plan, the article identified Martha M. Spence as a resource. It described her as a Wealth Management Advisor with Merrill Lynch in Gainesville, GA, and said Atlanta Gold & Coin had worked with many of her clients, and vice versa. Readers were invited at publication to view Martha’s professional profile and contact information at this link.
3. Understanding Gold and Silver InvestingAt the time of original publication, the article described the following:
The starting point is learning. Women already develop the knowledge needed for many parts of life. The article encouraged applying that same desire to understand and that same close attention to detail here.
Before investing in gold and silver, it can help to understand the difference between gold COINS and gold BULLION. Readers might also examine both gold and silver investments before deciding between them. The following material was presented as a sample of subjects readers could learn about in precious metals.
Gold Coins Compared With Gold Bullion
Choosing between gold coins and gold bars (also called bullion) involves some complexity. Gold bars typically carry lower prices or premiums than gold coins. Gold coins, however, can offer advantages of their own.
Government mints produce and guarantee gold coins, providing assurance that weight, precious-metal content, and purity match what is stated. Gold-coin investing can be more involved than investing in bars because there are additional choices, such as price, grade, and size. In addition, gold coins can be of interest to both investors and collectors.
For someone whose aim is to buy gold coins for investment and as an inflation hedge, the article suggested focusing on gold bullion coins. These coins are primarily purchased and sold for their underlying gold content rather than collectability. Examples named were American gold eagles, American gold buffaloes, South African gold krugerrands, Austrian gold philharmonics, and Canadian gold maple leaf coins.
Silver Compared With GoldAt the time of original publication, the article described the following:
The article stated that investing in gold and silver creates a hedge against inflation. It explained that precious metals have intrinsic value and are finite earthly resources, so they rise when demand increases and supply declines. In other words, gold and silver cannot be made from nothing in the way the article compared with paper currency. Identifying deposits, mining or extracting ore, and refining precious metals require time, labor, equipment, and other resources.
Choosing between gold, silver, or a combination of both was presented as a personal decision for readers. The original article noted that, although many people invested in silver, historical experience had shown gold to be the steadier investment. It also explained that gold was used more often for investment and traded among central banks, while silver had more industrial uses.
The original article also described gold as less volatile than silver, with prices that tended to move more gradually and consistently. It suggested that this could allow more time to adjust, including buying or selling at what the article considered favorable points. Using a stock-market comparison, it characterized silver as similar to a fast-moving technology stock such as Tesla or Amazon, while gold resembled a more established holding such as Procter & Gamble or Exxon Mobil.
The article suggested that readers might add silver later, particularly after silver-price pullbacks created buying opportunities. Still, it characterized gold as generally making more sense as the principal part of an investment strategy.
The original article outlined several ways to invest in either gold or silver. Readers could purchase tangible bars or coins, establish a precious-metals IRA, or use stock-related investments such as gold and silver ETFs. It advised careful research into each option before deciding where to begin, then encouraged readers to proceed confidently and work toward a positive outcome.
Physical Gold & Silver Versus Paper Holdings
The original article referenced an old saying about gold and silver: if you do not hold it, you do not own it. It said this was an idea many precious-metals investors did not weigh when investing, but one the article believed they should consider. The discussion that followed outlined several reasons the article gave for that view.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: The article began by considering physical gold that was purchased but stored elsewhere, such as with a coin dealer. It acknowledged that many dealers offered depository services and were highly reputable businesses. However, it stated that, in the years before publication, some had gone bankrupt or been closed by authorities. According to the article, some cases involved unethical practices, excessive leverage and poor management, or failures to fill orders and allocate purchases to individual accounts. Its point was that allowing another party to hold physical gold involved some risk.
The original article further stated that banks were increasingly limiting the kinds of property permitted in safe-deposit boxes. It reported that at least one major bank no longer permitted clients to store physical gold and silver there. The article said it did not know what consequences could follow if restricted items were found, but considered the risk unwise. It cautioned that confiscation was the outcome a holder would least want and expressed hope that Executive 6102 would not be repeated.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: The article asked readers not to misunderstand its position. Although storage could be a temporary problem or modest inconvenience, it strongly favored limiting investments to physical gold and silver rather than ETFs, mutual funds, or stocks. Its stated reason was that many ETFs and mutual funds were highly leveraged and therefore not fully supported by physical gold and silver. In some cases, the article said, they were believed to be leveraged at 200 to 1, or possibly more. Put differently, it suggested they might hold only 1 ounce of gold for every 200 ounces of gold contracts issued. The article concluded that this arithmetic did not add up and that it did not want readers left empty-handed.
The original article also explained that stock-related holdings generally did not allow investors to receive physical gold or silver when selling. It used GLD, described as a proxy for gold, as an example: when an investor sold holdings, the result was cash rather than physical gold. The article cautioned that, if cash were someday no longer the preferred medium of exchange, this arrangement could place an investor in a difficult position.
Finally, the article said that many stock-related gold and silver investments, particularly those not fully backed by metals, depended on confidence. It reasoned that if the market lost confidence or requested settlement in physical gold and silver without enough metal available to meet demand, these “paper” investments could theoretically collapse and potentially reach zero. The article contrasted that scenario with physical gold and silver, which it described as retaining intrinsic value. It reminded readers that the metal survivability rate was 6k years and counting.
Atlanta Gold & Coin Buyers and Women Investors
When this article was originally published, it had introduced basic points for a precious-metals investment journey and invited readers ready for a first step to call and arrange an appointment. At that time, Atlanta Gold & Coin Buyers stated that it was committed to helping women make appropriate precious-metals investment choices. The original article said the business could advise on the best gold and silver options for individual goals and also buy physical gold and silver when clients were ready to make a change.
At the time of original publication, the article described the following: When originally published, readers were invited to call that day at 678-515-5763!
