Questions to Ask a Gold IRA Company Before You Sign
Across review platforms and consumer cases, people who regret a gold IRA almost never regret the gold. They regret the two numbers nobody made them look at: the markup they paid going in and the buyback price they got coming out. Every question below exists to force those numbers, and the accountability behind them, into writing before any money moves.
The money questions
How much do you need to start a gold IRA?
There is no legal minimum. Minimums are company policy, and they vary enormously: some dealers open accounts around $10,000, many set the bar at $25,000, and some require $50,000 or more. Two things follow. First, if a company's minimum is above what you planned to commit, that is the end of the conversation, not a reason to stretch. Second, a salesperson pushing you to move a larger share of your retirement than you intended is describing their commission, not your plan.
What is a normal markup over spot for gold coins?
The metal has a public price, the spot price, and every dealer sells above it. For common bullion coins and bars, premiums in the mid single digits over spot are commonly cited as typical, moving with the product and market conditions. The overpayment problem lives elsewhere: proof, collectible, and "exclusive" coins carrying premiums many times that level, which is the single most consistent theme in consumer complaints and enforcement cases in this industry. The question to ask, in writing: "For the exact products you are proposing, what is the percentage over spot I am paying?" A fair dealer answers it. You can check spot any time on our live gold price chart.
If the answer steers toward special coins "not subject to reporting" or "safer from confiscation," you are hearing a premium pitch, not a fact. Our gold IRA red flags guide decodes the common versions.
Will you show me your buyback price in writing?
Someday you will sell, and the buyback price will be lower than the market, just as your purchase price was higher than it. That round trip is the real cost of the position, and finding it out at exit is the industry's most common bitter surprise. Before you buy, ask how the buyback price is set relative to spot, whether the company commits to buying back at all, and whether both answers can be put in writing. The full exit mechanics are on our selling and buyback guide, and the spread's role in total cost is quantified in our fees guide.
What are the annual fees, all of them?
Setup, annual custodian fee, and storage typically total a few hundred dollars a year, and among honest companies they are similar. Get the schedule in writing anyway, including whether storage is flat or scales with account value, because a percentage-based storage fee changes the math as the account grows. The layer-by-layer breakdown is in our gold IRA fees guide.
The accountability questions
Who is the custodian, and who is the depository?
A gold IRA involves three separate parties: the dealer that sells the metal, the custodian that administers the IRA, and the depository that physically stores the metal. IRS rules require the metal to be held by a qualified trustee or custodian, never at your home, a rule the Tax Court enforced expensively in the case covered in our home storage guide. Get both names before funding, and confirm the custodian exists and is in good standing independently of the dealer's website. This separation is also what protects you if the dealer itself ever fails, which we cover in what happens if your gold IRA company goes out of business.
Is my storage segregated or commingled?
Segregated storage keeps your exact coins and bars under your account, and you get back the same items you bought. Commingled storage pools like-kind metal, and you get back equivalent items. Segregated typically costs somewhat more. Neither is improper, but the invoice should say which one you have, and the answer should match what the salesperson claimed.
Are you a licensed financial advisor?
Almost always, the honest answer is no. Federal regulators state it plainly: precious metals dealers are typically not licensed or registered investment professionals, and their representatives earn commissions on what they sell. That does not make them dishonest. It means their opinion on how much of your retirement belongs in metal is a sales position, not fiduciary advice, and the louder the urgency, the more that distinction matters.
The offer questions
Is the free silver really free?
Promotional metal is paid for somewhere, and the only place it can be is the pricing of what you buy. Value any promo at what you could sell it for, not its advertised retail value, and compare companies on the all-in number: markup over spot on your actual purchase plus annual fees.
How long should this take, and why is someone rushing me?
A clean setup commonly runs one to three weeks: open the self-directed account, fund it by direct trustee-to-trustee transfer (the safe lane our 401(k) rollover guide walks through), then buy and ship metal to the depository. Nothing in that process rewards a same-day decision. Deadlines, expiring bonuses, and fear pitches about the dollar are pressure mechanics, and pressure is the one thing every regulator warning about this industry has in common.
The one-page version: get the minimum, the markup over spot, the buyback basis, and the full fee schedule in writing. Get the custodian and depository names and verify them. Know whether storage is segregated. Remember the salesperson is not your advisor. And treat urgency as information about the company, not about gold.
Frequently asked questions
How much do you need to start a gold IRA?
There is no legal minimum, only company minimums: some dealers start around $10,000, many at $25,000, some at $50,000 or more. A high minimum is a business choice, not an IRS rule, so if the floor is above what you planned to commit, compare other companies rather than stretching.
What is a fair premium over spot?
For common bullion coins and bars, premiums in the mid single digits over spot are commonly cited as typical. Premiums many times that, usually attached to proof or collectible coins, are how buyers overpay. Ask for the exact percentage in writing for the products proposed.
Who holds the metal in a gold IRA?
A qualified custodian through an insured depository, never the dealer and never you at home. Get both names before funding and verify the custodian independently. The IRS home-storage prohibition is strict enough that violating it can make the whole account taxable.
Are gold IRA companies fiduciaries?
No. Precious metals dealers are typically not licensed investment advisors, and their representatives work on commission, a distinction federal regulators draw explicitly. Their suggestions about how much to invest are sales positions, not fiduciary advice.
What is the biggest mistake first-time gold IRA buyers make?
Focusing on the small published fees while ignoring the two big unpublished numbers: the markup over spot going in and the buyback price coming out. That round trip usually costs more than years of custodian and storage fees combined, which is why the questions on this page push both into writing.
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General information, not investment, tax, or legal advice. Sources: IRS: IRA investments FAQ; CFTC: Precious Metals Fraud; FTC: Investing in Gold. ClearChoiceRadar is not affiliated with any government agency.