Investing In Silver Bullion
Precious metals have had increasing popularity as an avenue of investment in recent decades. Bullion like gold, silver, and platinum saw a boost in their demand. Many experts suggest they could be a sensible method for diversifying one’s portfolio due to their intrinsic value.
Silver, specifically, has a special place in this matter. It is often seen as the first bullion metal in which to invest. The truth is, given silver’s lower price compared to bullion products made of other metals such as gold and platinum, it will most likely act as an introductory asset for many bullion investors.
However, purchasing physical silver bullion (silver bars, silver coins, or silver rounds) is only one step of the investment process. As investors begin to accumulate assets, it is essential to have proper storage. The correct measures can ensure that no silver is lost or damaged because of poor storage conditions.
This article will show you how to store silver bullion, including silver bars, coins, or rounds. There are certain precautionary steps to take when storing silver products and different options from which to choose. In addition, we will show you tips on how to hide precious metals in a safe and savvy way at your own home.
Storing Silver
Correctly storing your silver is vital to preserving your wealth. If not done properly, your silver products can decrease in value over time. Silver stored in damp locations or places with high humidity levels can tarnish or even corrode. This greatly diminishes the value of the precious metal and is a risk bullion investors can avoid by following some specific steps.
Nevertheless, these factors may indicate more than one option for storing silver. Consider the total size of your bullion holdings and the risks you’re willing to take to decide which option best suits your needs.
The options include:
Home Storage
On most occasions, the first option that comes to mind for investors is to store their silver bullion at home. It’s not too hard to guess why, either. Storing silver at home or private property offers complete control over your assets. An owner may also decide to hide their holdings at a secret location. Home storage is often the case for small to medium-sized bullion portfolios.
All efforts in means of safety are valid. Carefulness is key when protecting your silver from environmental damage or thieves. We will delve further into how to properly hide your bullion along the article.
As mentioned before, your silver items can get damaged due to the environment and oxidize. This results in tarnished silver with a dirty looking appearance. This type of tarnish can cause bullion dealers to pay less for your silver in the future. For this reason, environmental damage can be avoided if the metal is stored properly. It doesn’t require more than three cautionary steps.
First, your silver bars, coins, and rounds can be stored in secure compartments, such as a safe or china cabinet. This alone can go a long way in protecting the metal cased inside from tarnish by sheltering it from the outside climate and humid air.
In addition to that step (though using storage containers like a safe is optional but often advised), storing silver bullion at home requires keeping it out of damp locations and places of high moisture levels. The use of desiccant packets (commonly known as silica gel) is suggested to prevent tarnish as well.
Some investors like to have their silver pieces individually wrapped in acid-free tissue paper to avoid the build-up of sulfur compounds and other chemicals. By no means keep your silver inside a plastic bag or wrapped in cloth using rubber bands. Even though they may hold the soft surface of the cloth tighter, the chemicals can cause your silver items to change colors.
Lastly, but nonetheless important, experts recommend you store your silver and gold separately. Avoid storing your silver alongside gold coins or similar products. Keeping them together can cause damage and eventual tarnish.
Bank Storage
Banking institutions commonly offer the service of safety deposit boxes for rent to customers. Unsurprisingly, precious metals investors may consider storing their holdings in a bank due to their financial nature.
However, this alternative presents several issues that a bullion owner should consider. Experts don’t consider banking institutions a primary option for storing silver. This is because there are generally fewer insurance policies when it comes to banks. In fact, safety deposit boxes are not FDIC-insured.
Some separate policies might take place, though they might not guarantee full insurance of your bullion’s worth in dollar value. In addition to that, there are possible conditional factors to remember. According to seasoned investors, safe deposit boxes are prone to freezes and confiscations from tax debts, court orders, and penalties.
Lastly, banks may be vulnerable to turmoils and crashes in the financial world. Not to mention that potential “bank holidays” may leave an owner unable to access their box when they want it.
Third-Party Storage
Should you decide to store your silver at a third-party facility, the general rules and guidelines stay the same. Most importantly, ensure you consider the typical safekeeping steps for precious metals.
Your third-party silver storage must offer security from theft and environmental damage and have the silver items stored properly in discreet and dry locations. Also, ensure that you are guaranteed ownership of the exact metal you shipped in. Equally important, verify the terms and conditions offered by the facility for you to access and/or withdraw your stored bullion when you want it.
SD Depository Storage
If you are looking for a secure way to store silver or other precious metals outside your home, all without spending too much money, consider SD Depository. As well as selling millions of ounces of gold and silver, SD Bullion offers an easy and safe solution for physical bullion storage.
SD Depository is a fully-insured non-bank bullion depository offering secure and discreet storage for precious metal owners. We offer benefits such as the option to take delivery of your owned stored metal at any requested time. Your personal holdings are also allocated to a fully segregated storage in your name. This also means that all bullion shipped out upon request is from the exact holdings that were shipped in.
Customer safety and assistance are SD Depository’s priority. It is easy to start an account, and there is no minimum amount of metal required to do so. Account owners may enjoy adding different bullion content to their storage, be it silver, gold, platinum, or even palladium products. On top of that, selling the metal allocated to your account is simple.
New customers will get the first three months of storage completely free. After that, SD Depository’s current costs start at as low as $9.99 per month. SD Bullion is proud to offer the industry the lowest cost of precious metals storage.
How To Hide Silver Bullion
Unfortunately, bullion owners are always potential victims of theft. This means that if you want to store your precious metals at home or private property, you require creative hiding places to best safeguard your holdings. Be savvy regarding the amount of space you need for silver bars compared to coins and rounds.
Some examples include hiding your silver bars and coins inside sound speakers, on false-bottom drawers, on the underside frame of furniture, and so on. If you decide to bury your silver items, for instance, in your backyard, remember that the terrain might change over time or even due to natural disasters, so be careful not to lose sight of your hidden treasure.
Finally, be sensible about whom you share this information with. The fewer people to know it, the less likely it will be that the location of your silver items will be revealed to ill-intentioned people.
Please note that these tips are for educational purposes only, and SD Bullion does not guarantee these measures are failproof. Moreover, you may check our in-depth article on how to hide silver for a complete analysis.
FAQs
How To Store Silver Bars?
Store silver bars in a location with minimum air exposure and low humidity. Silver bullion (coins, bars, and rounds) can oxidize in damp environments and can be stored in soft cloth to avoid tarnish in silver. Avoid silver bar storage alongside gold bullion, so it doesn’t scratch or tarnish. Finally, you can store your silver at a third-party depository.
How To Store Silver Coins?
Your silver coin storage must be in a cool and dry spot with minimum exposure to air. Avoid damp locations, so your coins don't tarnish. Avoid storing silver alongside gold to keep the soft metal from scratching and oxidizing. You can store coins in coin capsules to reduce the risk of damage. You can also find a trusted third-party depository service to keep your silver coins.
Where Should I Store Silver At Home?
Your silver bullion can be stored in a safe. Make sure to avoid damp locations and exposure to air. A safe is not the only option, though. You can hide your silver in creative places to prevent the risk of theft. Some ideas include false-bottom drawers, inside furniture, under floorboards, and inside cut-out books.
How Do You Wrap Silver In Storage?
To keep your silver safe, use a soft fabric to store it in a dry and cool location. You can use acid-free tissue paper or unbleached cotton cloth to wrap your silver piece. Avoid using chemicals and only clean silver with proper products like E-Z-Est coin cleaner.
Should I Keep Silver Bars In Plastic?
Plastic bags contain sulfur and trap moisture, which can alter your silver bars. When you purchase silver, it may come in a plastic case or bag. For safe silver bar storage, along with coins or rounds, think about acquiring capsules to house them in. These can reduce the risk of scratching or tarnishing.
