Are silver american eagle coins good as an investment?
Question:
They could be worth millions 25 to 30 years down the line.
Not really.
Coin collecting is more like baseball cards - occasionally you'll get something in your collection with several times the face value. Usually you strive for coins that are rare but not necessarily valuable.
An example would be an Indian head penny from the 1800's. It's not something you'll find every day but it's not worth much more than it's face value. Even though it's at least 100 years old there were still plenty minted and enough out there that the value has increased so little.
You would get a better return rate by investing $100 in a certificate of deposit at an FDIC insured financial institution. In 3 to 6 months you could almost double it depending on where you lived and who your account was with. Then reinvest it again for a longer time and higher interest rate. Keep going.
Coin-wise what's hot right now are the presidential dollar coins. There has been talk of doing away with the Sacagawea and Susan B. Anthony coins in addition to minting comemorative coins on all the presidents.
Hells no. Metals are a horrible investment. If you want some silver eagles because they're cool to look at then fine. Get 'em. Metals are highly speculative. Prices are high right now too. Just about any other investment outperforms metals over time. I heard one guy on the radio say that an ounce of gold purchased in 1920 for 20 dollars would be worth over 600 today while the 20 dollar bill would still only be worth 20.
True, assuming you kept it in your wallet for 87 years. The same 20 invested in stocks would be worth 80 grand. Like I said, buy 'em if you like 'em. Invest in something else.
No they are not. The U.S. Mint American Eagles are collectibles, not investments. If you really want to invest in silver you should buy the Silver Trust Exchange Traded Fund through a brokerage account. Or, you could buy silver bullion directly through an online distributor. BUT, I wouldn't recommend doing these things because long-term you can make much more money by simply investing in the S&P 500 and there's much less risk in doing so.
Gold and silver are good investments. While some other answers indicate that the past performance of the stock markets have far outperformed gold and silver, there is no guarantee that will continue. One purchases gold and silver as an alternative currency and as a hedge against economic catastrophe. Fiat currencies such as the dollar have no inherrent value and all fiat currencies have eventually failed. Additionally, capitalism has a rather volitile history, and many suspect that the era of U.S. empire is coming to an end.
On the other hand, Amreican Eagle silver coins are a bit of a problem. The problem is that you pay a minting fee on top of the value of the silver. Since silver sells for a relatively low price, the minting fee means that you will already have more of a loss than one likes to see immediately upon purchase. The better option is to purchase gold coins or silver bars (no minting fee on silver bars). If you are buying modern mint gold coins, expect to pay spot price plus a $20 minting fee.
Spot price refers to the current price per ounce. Currently, gold is selling for $675.00 per ounce. This means that you should pay no more than $695.00 for a one ounce gold coin. Silver is currently selling at $13.68 per ounce. A popular site where you can find these prices on an up-to-date basis along with a little commentary on precious metals markets is www.kitco.com
here's a link to them on ebay.
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