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Protecting your savings for the future is always a major investment decision to make. Transferring your savings into a Gold IRA will need the assistance of an expert. And fortunately, Goldco happens to be a trusted company.
By providing services that take care of customers setting up their IRAs down to buying gold for it, Goldco has managed to maintain a strong reputation as one of the industry’s most trusted Gold IRA companies. So, it goes without saying that Goldco is a viable option to set up an IRA with. The only question is how much you can trust them with your savings. To answer that question, we should take a closer look at what the Goldco reviews are saying.
TL:DR
As a company, Goldco has an understanding of how the typical person wanting to protect their savings thinks. In as much as protecting one’s hard-earned cash is important, the process of converting it into high-valued physical assets can be intimidating.
Nobody wants to go through what everybody in 2008 suffered from the market crash, the company aims to provide an investment process that is easy to understand with fees that are just as easy to manage.
The company has been in business since 2011 and specializes in protecting wealth and assets for its clientele. However, they are most known for helping individuals set up their own Individual Retirement Accounts. To be more specific about it, they can help in setting up a gold IRA where clients can have gold and precious metals stored to their name.
There are many positive reasons why someone would want to set up an IRA. Benefits like tax deductions, instant diversification, the appreciation of one’s own net worth, and financial freedom are just a few notable examples. Whatever the case, Goldco makes it a point to help anyone enjoy such benefits through a streamlined IRA process.
That being said, it is still a good idea to make sure that any company can be trusted. The best way to do that is by looking at the different Goldco Reviews and understanding what kind of experience the company has been giving to its clients.
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Goldco Reviews, Complaints, & Dispute
With over a decade of experience, Goldco has amassed several thousands of customer reviews and testimonies. Based on these reviews, it would seem that the overall consensus is that it is a rather trustworthy company to do business with.
Most Goldco reviews would put considerable focus on the user experience, which is considered as attentive and effective. Essentially, the agents have been known to take care of every need and concern that a customer might have.
Also, their website has been commended for its online support service where people can get in touch with an agent and interact with them directly.
Here are some of the ratings that the company has received from some agencies:
Better Business Bureau
The company has received approximately 138 Reviews from the BBB and has an overall rating of A+.
Business Consumer Alliance
Currently, the BCA gives Goldco a rating of AAA, which is one of the highest possible ratings that a company can receive from the agency. This is based solely on the one review it has on the website.
Trustpilot
This independent monitoring website has archived approximately 682 reviews for Goldco. 90% of the reviews rate the company as Excellent and 7% rate them as Great. The company has received ratings of Average, Poor, and Bad Ranges at 1% respectively. This would imply that the company is a trustworthy company with a strong focus on customer service and security.
Trustlink
The company currently enjoys a 5-Star rating from Trustlink. This rating is based on 253 reviews with most users agreeing on their excellent customer service and support. The staff has been noted by reviews to be very attentive and patient, while providing solutions that are unique to every customer experience.
Yelp
On this site, Goldco maintains a strong rating of 4.5 stars. This is based on the 6 reviews it has received from Yelp users who commend the company for its attentive staff, customer service, and streamlined rollover procedure.
Goldco IRA Fees
Currently, Goldco charges their clients $80.00 annually for the maintenance of their IRAs. This is their only fixed rate as the company adopts a more variable system for other fees.
For storage, you are expected to spend between $100.00 and $150.00 every year depending on the size of your IRA and the type of metals you have deposited there. The same goes for shipping, which is determined by what you are ordering and the amount.
As for the minimum purchase amount, Goldco recommends $50,000.00 if you want to store precious metals in your IRA and $25,000.00 for non-IRA purchases. This is one of the steepest investment minimums in the industry as of now so clients need to ask their agents first as to how much doing business with the company will set them back.
That being said, Goldco more than makes up for it by having a robust promotion program that will make the fees more manageable. If you were to meet the $50,000.00 minimum, for example, the company will waive your annual fees for the first year. Also, the client will get 5% of their investment’s worth in gold and precious metals. As for first-time IRA applicants, the $50.00 setup fee will be waived.
At this point, what you need to know is that Goldco will charge you for absolutely everything that you are to do with your IRA. This includes the setup of the IRA and any rollover procedure that is necessary to fund it. The first-year costs can total up to $260.00 which can be waived if you meet the investment minimum after setting up your IRA.
Setting Up Your Gold IRA
Opening an IRA with Goldco is usually a straightforward process. The company even claims that the process involves only 3 steps that customer reviews do corroborate.
To start the process, one must need to sign a Purchase Agreement. This will acquaint the client with the terms and conditions for using the IRA and what they can expect from the company as far as services are concerned. Once signed, this document will bind both investor and Goldco to a relationship.
Of course, there are other requirements that you have to meet before the company will offer you a Purchase Agreement. This is where most of the paperwork will come in and you have to invest some time and effort to meet all the requisites to be a legitimate IRA holder.
The next step is funding the IRA. The most direct way to do this without having to find new income would be the rollover process. Here, any savings you have stashed in a separate account will be transferred to your IRA.
What makes rollovers preferable is that they help you save on taxes. If you can have the money transferred within 2 months or less, you should not have to deal with capital gains tax and a stiff penalty from the IRS.
Once the IRA has been set up and funded, all that is left to do now is to buy gold and other precious metals. This can be tiresome at first as you would not know what kind of investments are the best for you currently. Fortunately, Goldco does offer investor education so would make the best investment decisions at all times.
Gold IRA Custodian
What you have to understand is that Goldco is not an IRA Custodian but a broker. This difference is important as the company is not equipped to hold and transfer physical gold anywhere.
However, what they can do for you is help you buy and sell gold with your IRA. They can also assist you with the required paperwork to qualify for an IRA and with the rollover process.
As for the actual process of buying and selling gold, Goldco does employ specialists that will communicate with the storage facilities handling the physical commodity. This way, the exact product and amount will be transferred to and from your account.
And even if they are not a custodian, the company is affiliated with a company that is a licensed custodian. This is important as you will have to pay for whatever fees that those companies will require for the security and shipment of your precious metals.
As such, you must clarify this matter with the assigned company representative in your first meeting. You have to how much doing business with both a broker and their affiliates will set you back financially.
Equity Trust Company
As was mentioned, Goldco is partnered with an IRA custodian company that happens to be the Equity Trust Company. Operating since 1974, Equity Trust Company is an equally trustworthy company when it comes to several forms of investment.
The company specializes in custodial and administrative services that handle various types of investments and retirement accounts. In fact, Gold IRAs cover only a small portion of what the Equity Trust Company handles for their clients.
Gold IRA Depository
As a broker, Goldco also partners with other facilities that will handle the storage of your precious metals. As of now, there are 3 Gold IRA depositories partnered with the company. Depending on your choice of a depository, you could spend at least $100.00 or as much as $150.00 for the storage of your gold.
- Delaware Depository Service Company – The largest Gold IRA Depository in the US, this company offers non-segregated vault storage. That simply means that your gold will be stored in one vault along with those of others. As for their storage fee, DDSC only asks for as much as $100.00 per year.
- Brinks – Another Goldco affiliate, this depositary company employs segregated vault storage, which means that the precious metals owned by clients will be stored in their separate compartments within a particular vault. They also ask for a flat rate of $100.00 per year for storage from clients.
- International Depositary Services – Another option if you choose segregated vault storage, IDS is a depository company that will charge you $150.00 per year for the storage fee.
As for which company is ideal for you, that all comes to your preferences. Some would prefer non-segregation as this is cheaper, although some wish to separate their gold from the others for extra security. Of course, you can have these options discussed with your agent.
Goldco’s Products and Services
The company offers a selection of coins approved for IRA storage with a minimum fineness of .995. Here is a more detailed breakdown of the products that the company offers.
Silver American Eagle
Available in both Types 1 and 2, this is the silver bullion coin minted by the United States of America. Type 1 features the classic 1986 design with a .999 fineness rating. Type 2, on the other hand, features a more modern design. Either way, both Types 1 and 2 have a face value of $1.00.
Gold American
Available also in two types, the Gold American has a 22-karat rating and has the distinction of being the only gold bullion ever issued by the US mint. Both types feature the American Eagle, and were minted in 1986. Both also carry the same face value of $50.00.
Silver American Bald Eagle
One of several American IRA-approved silvers, the silver bald eagle obviously features America’s national symbol. It was struck from 2. oz of pure silver with a .999 fineness and has a value of $2.00 TVD.
Australian Spotted Eagle Ray
Hailing from Australia, this silver coin was issued as legal tender in 2020 and has a face value of AUD 2.00.
Australian Striped Marlin
Struck from a quarter of an ounce of gold, this coin has a face value of AUD 25.00 and weighs 46.6 grams.
Gold Lucky Dragon
This gold coin hails from Canada and is struck from a quarter of an ounce of pure gold with a .999 purity rating. It currently has a face value of CAD 10.00.
As for their services, Goldco does offer the following
IRA Setup – The company’s primary service is in helping you set up IRAs. This includes the standard Gold IRA, silver IRA, a Simple IRA, and a Simplified Employee Pension IRA. Much of their services will involve planning and paperwork as Goldco is noted to assist their clients in coming up with a retirement plan or to qualify for the precious metals IRAs.
One point that needs to be mentioned is that the company is affiliated with a sister organization that specializes in cryptocurrency IRAs. This is a fairly new product meant for crypto investors so much of its viability has yet to be proven. However, it’s good to know that such an option is available for now.
Rollover – Once an IRA is set up, the next thing to do is to pool money into it. This is where the company’s rollover service will come in as it helps transfer money from an existing account into the newly-created IRAs.
Goldco particularly specializes in 401K rollovers, which is the most-preferred funding method for IRAs right now. The reason for why is simple: a person has more control over their money in an IRA compared to a 401k account.
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Gold Buy-Back Program
Although it is preferred that you hold on to your gold for as long as possible, there might come a time when you might want to sell it. Perhaps there is an emergency that needs to be dealt with and you don’t have enough money to address the problem.
And luckily for you, gold and other precious metals are rarely a hard sell these days. You can find a buyer who is willing enough to purchase whatever you have to offer and in what amount. The only question now is the price that you are willing to sell your gold for.
You can sell that gold to other investors, but there is always the option to sell it back to the company you originally purchased it from. This is what is called a Buy-Back option, and most of the best Gold IRA companies do offer this option.
Fortunately, the various Goldco reviews do point out that the company does allow for the buy-back option for their clients. In fact, the company recommends that you sell them the gold back before you consider any other buyer. More often than not, the company will give a better deal than a stranger based on the current market value for your gold or the price that you initially purchased it, whichever is higher during liquidation.
And speaking of liquidation, Goldco does promise no additional fees when you want to liquidate your assets. In a few steps and at zero cost, you can have your gold sold back to the company and the money transferred to your account as soon as possible.
Goldco Review: Worth Your Investment?
So, is Goldco a company trustworthy enough? The short answer is a Yes. As far as trust is concerned, Goldco does have a solid reputation for being trustworthy based on the reviews and ratings they have been given. In fact, they are one of the few customers to have maintained a perfect Triple-A rating from the Better Business Bureau for over a decade now.
It also helps that their line of products and services support this reputation. There is a solid selection of gold and silver coins and bullion for IRA investments, as well as some non-IRA options.
As for their fees, it is manageable and smartly implemented. The use of a variable rate for storage and maintenance fees will help you keep your costs down and dependent on the rate of investment activity you are willing to engage with. It also helps that the company has some promotions that help in spreading the expenses out to keep your costs manageable even further for the first few years.
Goldco Complaints: What Don’t We Like?
If there is a major flaw that Goldco should be noted for, it would be that they are not that keen on telling would-be clients that they are a broker firm. That is not essentially a bad thing but it would have been better if they would tell you of such at the first instance, instead of letting you figure things out through the conversation.
This problem also goes beyond the issue of transparency. Since the company has to be affiliated with storage facilities and depositaries, this means that you will also have to pay for the services of an entirely different company just to maintain your IRA. In other words, you are not only doing business with Goldco. You are doing business with Goldco and whoever affiliate is assigned to handle your account.
Another glaring issue with the company is the steep investment minimum of $50,000.00. That is one of the highest ranges for recommended minimums to date as most IRA companies would settle for somewhere between $5,000.00 and $25,000.00. This only tells you that you should plan your finances over a long period before you even entertain the thought of doing business with Goldco.
Final Thoughts – Goldco Reviews
As an IRA company, Goldco is fairly trustworthy. Their lack of major complaints from customers and high ratings for over 10 years only tells would-be clients that they know what they are doing when it comes to protecting savings.
Their robust set of programs, products, and services would also tell you that such a claim is no mere bluff either. The staff is trained to attend to every concern a client has and assist them in all transactions. And if you need to sell your gold, the company does offer an easy buyback process with no liquidation.
All of these features do offset the fact that they have the highest requirement for an investment minimum. And since many are still transacting with Goldco in recent years, it is safe to say that the high minimum is not exactly a deal-breaker for a lot of would-be investors.
All in all, Goldco makes for a viable option to set your IRA up. Their services can help anyone convert their savings into high-value, inflation-resistant assets that can last more than a single lifetime.