Any good investor knows to put a bit of their investments into the commodity market. The best commodity to own is gold. If you are planing for your retirement or simply want to generate some investment profits, this piece is for you.

Think about using the Internet to sell gold. You no longer need to buy and sell gold at a physical location. It is possible to utilize a website to sell gold items. Most sites work by mailing you a mailer or kit. You then use your mailer to ship the gold. If all is in working order, they’ll then pay you at their going rate.

If you will be selling your gold, shop around for best prices. Even though the market “spot” gold price is the national standard, not all stores will pay it. Look at places where it costs less for the company to do business, so they can pay more for the gold.

Try using something like GoldMoney for buying gold. It’s akin to opening up a bank account but with gold instead. With GoldMoney, you pay for a certain amount of gold at market rates, taken from your account, and it is reserved for you. The gold itself is in a vault at a bank, and you can cash it or redeem it for gold bullions.

There are many unexpected places to find gold, including thrift stores and antique shops. If you understand what to look for, you really can find some great deals. Sometimes, people sell to these kinds of stores because they were unaware of what they had. If you know what you’re doing, you can make the money they did not.

Talk to a gold representative to learn how they test gold for purity. Quite often, the gold will be stamped. A visual cue may not be available so other methods are used to figure it out. Dealers using an acid test may be newcomers, as this is a very basic test.

Read the fine print of your sales contract. Read any materials the company you are sending your gold to provides you with. Doing so makes it easier to keep track of what portion of your earnings go toward fees and commissions.

Read all the fine print when you are going through a gold dealer. Gold is a huge business that makes a lot of money. Always understand anything you’re placing your signature on. If you’re not happy with the specific terms, then you need to keep moving along. Sometimes it’s worth it to protect yourself financially.

Even though gold is often profitable, it is also equally volatile. If you can’t handle losing money, this is not the investment for you. If you are able to handle it, then you can still limit the downside risk involved. Only invest a small amount into gold. It should be no more than five percent.

Figure out who your dealer really is before you buy gold from them. It’s always a wise decision to check to see if a company has any complaints on file with the BBB, prior to giving money to any company. This will help you find any complaints registered against any gold dealers. If you find complaints, think about going elsewhere for your transaction.

Only deal with gold buyers you have researched and approached on your own. If you choose to use a mail-away gold buying service, be sure you requested the service. Don’t just mail your gold and personal information off to someone who has asked you to. Any company you want to do business with should be BBB listed so you can check into them.

If you are looking to buy reasonably priced gold, ask your family if they have discarded jewelry they would consider selling. Invest in a good jewelry scale, weigh the gold and you can pay your relatives more than a pawnshop would pay and still be able to make money in the deal.

Prior to investing in gold, set goals. While the price of gold does fluctuate, it does protect your investment from economic turmoil and inflation. By setting goals and limiting your involvement, you can make smart choices for profit.

If you are a beginning gold investor, avoid making things too complicated. Avoid gold futures, even though it is a popular investment. Futures markets are extremely complicated and highly volatile, too much so for most investors, much less beginners. If you do not understand the process, you can lose money fast. Investors who have been in gold investing for a long time are the ones that type of investing should be left to.

Be aware that you’re not going to get what your gold is worth when you go to sell it. Gold dealers are in business like other business owners. They must make money, so there needs to be some room in that purchase price for doing so. Depending on the buyer’s particular needs and situation, he or she may only be able to offer you half to three-quarters of your gold’s current market value.

Having read this article in full, you now know a thing or two you previously didn’t. Keep these tips in mind as you build your strategy. Keep all these tips in mind to have the best success when it comes to gold.