How To Buy Gold Monthly (Avoid Subscription Services!)

Buying gold in monthly installments is one common strategy used by gold investors. It allows you to plan out your purchases over a long period of time. There is value based on consistently accumulating more metal on a regular basis as you go.

There are several advantages to this approach—but there are also pitfalls associated with some gold subscription services.

An array of gold bullion in the form of coins and bars.

Below I'll explain how to buy gold in monthly installments. We'll also discuss the pros and cons of structuring your gold purchases ahead of time.

Develop a Gold Savings Plan

Developing a plan of action is an essential step before embarking on any investment decision. Even intelligent investors will face difficulties if they neglect planning ahead. This is true for bonds and the stock market, and it applies equally to gold.

There are two options for structuring your periodic gold accumulation. You can either sign up for a subscription program, or you can simply do the same thing yourself (without paying extra for the service). Despite what you may have expected, you can invest monthly in gold without anyone's help. You can buy gold in installments of any length, in fact.

Whichever option you choose, the goal is the same: gradually stacking up more gold. It should absolutely be thought of as a type of savings plan. In both cases, one of the key benefits of a gold savings plan is to rigorously budget your investment dollars.

If you buy the gold yourself, this can be done through a self-directed IRA (often called a Gold IRA). Investing in gold through your retirement account does place a limit on your annual contribution ($5,000 maximum) in the United States, however. You still have the flexibility to buy more than $5,000 of silver and gold per year outside of your IRA.

Consider Dollar Cost Averaging

Dollar cost averaging is a fairly straightforward strategy. You buy a fixed dollar amount, or fixed quantity, of gold at regular intervals. The purchases could be made weekly, monthly, quarterly, or any other consistent time period.

Gold and the U.S. dollar share a strong inverse relationship.

Regardless of what the gold price is, you would buy the same amount of gold over each time period. As a result, you will save money (or get more gold by weight) when prices are down. When prices are up, you’re not spending any extra money.

The main idea here is to avoid attempting to perfectly time the market, which is futile for any investor. Instead, planning out your gold purchases in fixed installments will average out the ups and downs of fluctuating prices.

Sticking to a schedule of regular purchases has several other benefits for your personal finances:

• It helps smooth out price volatility so you can build a stack of precious metals gradually and consistently.
• It helps take emotion and impulse out of the investing process.
• Above all else, it achieves the long-term goal of accumulating metals while on a budget.

Of course, you have to commit to the monthly payments, from the first installment to the last month or due date.

Alternative Gold Buying Strategy: Buy the Dips

Buying the dips is a slightly more dynamic strategy than dollar cost averaging. It is often used with stocks but can just as easily be applied to any gold investment.

When you choose to buy the dips, you make a gold purchase any time the price falls below a certain level. This can be a specific dollar amount, or when the gold price is down a certain percentage.

Depending on market activity, your purchase price might change every month. The idea here is still to accumulate gold in periodic installments. But you're actually buying less gold at higher prices and buying more at lower prices.

There's a good reason that buying the dips is so popular. In an overwhelming amount of cases, it's a highly profitable strategy. It can save you money in the long run, but the main drawback of dip-buying is that it depends on the whims of the market. If the price of gold is rallying, for example, you may have to wait weeks before your next buying opportunity.

In most cases this scheme allows the customer to choose their payment method. That could be a debit card, credit card, check, money order, or bank transfer directly from the bank account holder. Please note that if you buy gold on a credit card, you may be charged extra interest when making payments. Conversely, the seller may offer a special discount for payments made by bank wire.

Pros and Cons of Gold Subscription Services

You may have seen companies or services that offer gold purchase plans (or "gold schemes"). They require signing up for a subscription, and the rest is taken care of for you. The investor essentially signs up for financing. Subscribed members can make advance payments and redeem the credit for gold. They may choose to wait to physically receive their order upon redemption.

The biggest benefit of these plans is that they automate the investing process. This ensures you'll never forget to buy gold. You can "set it and forget it." The subscription will automatically break up your purchase into monthly installments (or any number of easy installments). Some companies may even allow you to pay later.

There are several red flags with gold subscription plans that you should be aware of, however.

Gold bugs typically prefer owning physical metal to holding cash.

Perhaps the main problem is that gold subscriptions simply cost more. There are added fees (a "premium") associated with the service as part of their terms & conditions. This is not unlike having to go through a broker to buy a stock. Over time, you will pay more per ounce of gold compared to making the purchases on your own.

Lack of flexibility is another issue. Although some investors prefer a strategy that can be placed on autopilot, this doesn't allow you to buy the dips. Your subscription won't be able to take advantage of price movement in the gold market.

These plans usually don't allow you to choose specific bullion products, either. Most sellers won't let you request specific gold coins or silver coins. You are limited to what gold products are available in the seller's inventory or company reserves. If you're specifically looking for something such as South African Krugerrand gold coins or PAMP Suisse gold bars, you may be out of luck.

How You Can Buy Gold Coins In Installments

You will see many gold purchase plans touted, but you should be wary of such offers. One of the pillars of precious metals investing is having freedom and control over your assets.

Planning out and structuring your gold purchase plan is a wise choice, but you are better off handling the task yourself and avoiding the hidden fees of any gold subscriptions.

Gainesville Coins has decades of tenure as a trusted gold bullion dealer. In addition to our luxury showroom, you can shop for precious metals right on our website. Follow the links below and please check out all of our silver and gold for sale. If you have any questions, please contact our customer support representatives at (813) 482-9300 or email us at sales@gainesvillecoins.com.

(Keep in mind that Gainesville Coins does not sell or buy gold jewellery or scrap metal.)

Gold Bullion For Sale From Gainesville Coins

Silver Bullion For Sale From Gainesville Coins

More information and educational buying guides about gold and silver from the authors at Gainesville Coins:

Investing in Gold: What You Need to Know

Investing in Silver: Guide for 2021

Best Place to Buy Silver: Low Prices from a Trusted Dealer

Best Way to Buy Silver: Guide to Buying Physical Silver

6 Gold Buying Mistakes to Avoid

How to Buy Platinum: Platinum Buyer's Guide

How to Invest in Precious Metals Like a Pro