Investing in gold?

[Greendad]

I heard that now you can invest your money in gold without physically holding the gold, which is great. I wouldn't want to keep gold or other precious metals at home (security issues). Though, how does it work?

 

[jason]

You can buy gold like a stock. You have your choice of:
Gold exchange-traded funds
Gold mutual funds
Junior gold stocks.
Gold options and futures

 

[TJoel]

Thanks for the info. So in this type of investment, who will hold the actual gold? While it is a good alternative to storing your own gold, do you think it also is safe?

 

[jason]

It is just like owning a stock. It depends on how much you trust the market. If you are worried about something like the dollar loosing its value, or a disaster situation then I would go with gold you can hold. Coins are good as you can trade a little at a time. The big question though, in a disaster situation, will gold hold its value.

 

[Milt]

You can also invest in precious metal stocks which are not exclusively gold. At any given time, various precious metals are up and down, so it's kind of like investing in a variety of them at once.