Humans have cherished gold more than any other precious metal throughout history. For centuries it was used as legal tender and it backed legal tender in the United States. Gold adorned kings, pharaohs and in recent years became a sign of opulence among the world's very wealthy as they coated cars and weapons with the expensive metal. Human beings have been attracted to gold throughout the ages and this trend shows no sign of stopping any time in the near future.
When times get tough economically, banks, countries and wealthy individuals often turn to gold to preserve their riches. Gold gives people and societies the security of knowing that no matter what happens in the world, they will still be wealthy. While money in the bank can suddenly become worthless in times of trouble, gold in the hand will always be able to buy you the things you need to survive and live the life you have grown accustomed to. People might think that we're crazy to think this way or prepare for something that might never happen but it's often better to be safe than sorry. There are many countries where after a war their currency becomes as worthy as the paper its printed on. It is the wise investor who is prepared and the savvy person who is realistic about the future possibilities and invests at least a portion of his savings in a material that will hold its value as well as be liquid enough to turn into money no matter where he is in the world.
You might feel that it would be difficult to exchange gold for money. As an investment vehicle, having all your money in precious metals might sound ridiculous. After all, what are you going to do? Are you going to go to a bank and hand them an ingot and ask for it to be exchanged into small bills? In some countries this is absolutely possible. Of course, there are better ways to liquidate gold but as an investment it is more liquid than most.
There are many other physical goods that you can invest your money in but their liquidity is often limited. Homes, raw land and material goods such as cars or collectibles might be great ways to invest your money but their liquidity is often limited. Selling a home or car quickly often requires you to sell at a bargain price if you need money for an emergency. Also, it is often difficult to unload a house that you invested in quickly if prices begin to plummet as they often do during an economic crisis. Gold, on the other hand, often increases in value and goes up in price during tough economic times. As stock prices plummet, the price of gold often goes up since wise investors scramble to move their money into something that is safe and secure.
Gold is often viewed as one of the most stable and logical long term investments. While there might be days, weeks or months when the price of gold goes down, overall, gold retains its value and historically goes up in value over time. There are people that trade gold the same way that people trade stocks. They buy and sell gold short term hoping to ride the highs and lows in the market. Overall, though, most investors look at gold for security as well as a way to avoid inflation that is prevalent in an economy where money is printed and injected into the economy, this making the existing money worth less. All of these aren't the only reason why we might want to invest in gold.
Growing up, many of us dreamed of being wealthy. We all knew what gold was from the time we were quite young. We played games and dreamed of being kings, queens or the richest person in the world. Part of that dream may have involved having a safe filled with gold bricks. As we grew older, the allure of gold continued. Gold jewelry, gold engagement rings and maybe even the desire to own a little gold continued. We wanted to feel secure. We wanted that feeling that we had arrived that comes with owning gold whether that be a gold ingot or a perfect gold coin.
Owning gold satisfies this carnal desire to be wealthy and secure. It's likely that more than one investor has relived that childhood dream and stood with a smile on his or her face as they held their first gold ingot in their hands. They had arrived. They were living that childhood dream. Of course, this probably isn't the main reason why most people invest in good but it sure is one of the fun parts.
When times get tough economically, banks, countries and wealthy individuals often turn to gold to preserve their riches. Gold gives people and societies the security of knowing that no matter what happens in the world, they will still be wealthy. While money in the bank can suddenly become worthless in times of trouble, gold in the hand will always be able to buy you the things you need to survive and live the life you have grown accustomed to. People might think that we're crazy to think this way or prepare for something that might never happen but it's often better to be safe than sorry. There are many countries where after a war their currency becomes as worthy as the paper its printed on. It is the wise investor who is prepared and the savvy person who is realistic about the future possibilities and invests at least a portion of his savings in a material that will hold its value as well as be liquid enough to turn into money no matter where he is in the world.
You might feel that it would be difficult to exchange gold for money. As an investment vehicle, having all your money in precious metals might sound ridiculous. After all, what are you going to do? Are you going to go to a bank and hand them an ingot and ask for it to be exchanged into small bills? In some countries this is absolutely possible. Of course, there are better ways to liquidate gold but as an investment it is more liquid than most.
There are many other physical goods that you can invest your money in but their liquidity is often limited. Homes, raw land and material goods such as cars or collectibles might be great ways to invest your money but their liquidity is often limited. Selling a home or car quickly often requires you to sell at a bargain price if you need money for an emergency. Also, it is often difficult to unload a house that you invested in quickly if prices begin to plummet as they often do during an economic crisis. Gold, on the other hand, often increases in value and goes up in price during tough economic times. As stock prices plummet, the price of gold often goes up since wise investors scramble to move their money into something that is safe and secure.
Gold is often viewed as one of the most stable and logical long term investments. While there might be days, weeks or months when the price of gold goes down, overall, gold retains its value and historically goes up in value over time. There are people that trade gold the same way that people trade stocks. They buy and sell gold short term hoping to ride the highs and lows in the market. Overall, though, most investors look at gold for security as well as a way to avoid inflation that is prevalent in an economy where money is printed and injected into the economy, this making the existing money worth less. All of these aren't the only reason why we might want to invest in gold.
Growing up, many of us dreamed of being wealthy. We all knew what gold was from the time we were quite young. We played games and dreamed of being kings, queens or the richest person in the world. Part of that dream may have involved having a safe filled with gold bricks. As we grew older, the allure of gold continued. Gold jewelry, gold engagement rings and maybe even the desire to own a little gold continued. We wanted to feel secure. We wanted that feeling that we had arrived that comes with owning gold whether that be a gold ingot or a perfect gold coin.
Owning gold satisfies this carnal desire to be wealthy and secure. It's likely that more than one investor has relived that childhood dream and stood with a smile on his or her face as they held their first gold ingot in their hands. They had arrived. They were living that childhood dream. Of course, this probably isn't the main reason why most people invest in good but it sure is one of the fun parts.
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