Last Updated on February 7, 2023 by George
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TIAA was first created to help teachers save for their retirement. But it has grown into much more than that.
You don’t have to be a teacher to open a TIAA account, and you can invest in some ways. You can invest in whatever you want or pay for a service that helps people decide what to invest in.
But what investors want to know is whether or not TIAA has a gold IRA that can hold real gold.
Read on to find out more.
Before we get started with this review:
We know how hard it is to choose a business you can trust with your hard-earned money. So, we will give you as much helpful and informative information as possible so you can make the right choice.
We made a list of the investment companies we like best, so it would be easy for you to compare them and choose the one that fits your needs best.
In 1918, TIAA was formed. It was made for teachers and other educators to help them plan for their retirement and invest in it. Their services and products, as well as how the company ran, were all made with the needs of their clients in mind.
The way they invest and manage their money is for the long term. Their goal is to help their clients build a good nest egg so they will be cared for and comfortable when they get older.
The Taxpayer Relief Act was signed into law by Congress in 1997. let employees and investors hold precious physical metals in a tax-advantaged individual retirement account (IRA).
Investors asked the government to let them hold precious metals in their IRAs, so they had to give in.
The problem is that TIAA has never made an IRA that can hold real precious metals, so customers who want the safety of real precious metals have to look elsewhere.
So, we looked into every company that offers these accounts and found that Goldco takes better care of its customers than any other company that sells precious physical metals.
We also made a (concise) list of the best, most reliable companies to work with, which you can read here.
Why Put Gold in Your IRA?
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) help you save money for your retirement and your family’s financial security.
With these special accounts, you can save money without having to pay taxes on them.
With these long-term accounts, you must put a big chunk of your money into solid and reliable assets so you can retire worry-free.
a couple of hearing on what a financial advisor has to say
You can put cash in an IRA, but it is losing value quickly because inflation is out of control.
It would be best if you had a reliable asset that keeps its value and even goes up over time, and gold is the best asset for this.
With lockdowns, shortages, wars, and inflation hurting the world economy, uncertainty has never been higher. To protect themselves, investors are putting physical gold in their IRAs.
A gold IRA investment does well during crises that hurt most other investments.
Risk is knowing about the dangers in the economy but not doing anything to protect yourself and your family.
Safety in the economy means being aware of the risks and taking steps to protect your future finances. This is easy to do with a Gold IRA.
What is a Gold IRA?
You probably know some things about traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, two types of retirement accounts. As part of your retirement portfolio, you can put money into these accounts to buy stocks, index funds, bonds, and other types of investments.
You may now know that you can’t buy gold as an investment with these. You would need to open a gold IRA if you wanted to invest in gold.
One kind of IRA is a gold IRA., which can hold gold and other precious metals like silver, platinum, and palladium.
You can put money into the fund that has already been taxed, and it has the same limits on contributions and income as a traditional IRA. They differ from 401(k)s and traditional IRAs, which can only hold paper assets.
You can buy and keep the precious metal in the account with a gold IRA, and you can’t control the precious metal you buy through a gold IRA at home, even if you have a safe.
Leave your valuables with a custodian in a safe deposit box outside your home. You can start investing in gold with the help of a good-quality gold IRA company.
They can help you buy gold and get your gold IRA started. They know all the rules that the IRS puts on these kinds of investments for retirement, and they make sure that your portfolio is always in full compliance so that you can relax.
The gold IRA provider and the custodian can work together to take care of your assets.
Benefits of Gold IRAs
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Tax Advantages
A gold IRA lets you put off paying taxes now or make the most of your tax-free gains. A traditional IRA is an excellent way to put money away for retirement. But there are better ways to invest if you want more freedom.
A gold IRA is one of the ways you can put your money to work to grow your savings. You can invest in precious metals and put off paying taxes on the gains you make.
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High Flow of Money
Gold has always been a safe and stable investment because, unlike wheat, oil, and other commodities, it is not affected by market instability.
Gold’s price has steadily increased over the years, so if you sell it, you will likely make a good profit. You can also sell your gold quickly if you want to.
If you need money immediately, it’s easy to sell your gold, and you need to find a place that buys gold or sells coins. Tell them how much gold you have to deal with and that you want to get paid in cash.
If you agree on the price, you can get cash immediately. Other investments, like real estate, are more challenging to sell because it takes time to find the right buyer, and real estate deals are always complicated.
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Diversifying in an Intelligent Way
When the economy is unstable, gold is a stable investment. Stocks and bonds can go up or down in value with the market, but gold’s weight stays the same over the long term.
Because of this, it is one of the safest ways to invest. When the economy is uncertain, and inflation is high, the price of gold tends to go up, and the value goes down when the economy is doing well, and inflation goes down.
So, gold is a great way to balance out your stock and bond investments in your retirement portfolio.
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Peace of Mind for the Long Run
Gold has been around for more than a thousand years and will still be around in the future. As long as people use jewelry and money made of precious metals, which is likely, gold will be around.
Gold has been the basis of money for thousands of years, so it will not go away. Countries whose cash is based on gold have strong economies.
Depending on how you plan to invest, you can put money into gold every month or every year.
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Protect Yourself from Inflation
When there is too much money in the economy, this is called inflation. That means the dollar loses value, so you can’t buy as much with a dollar. In deflation, on the other hand, the opposite happens because there isn’t enough money going around.
Since the dollar is stronger, people can buy more with it. In the past, inflation has caused economic problems. Gold is an excellent way to protect yourself from economic downturns because its value stays stable even when the economy isn’t.
Even though prices go up, gold prices go up when there is inflation. Their gold’s value protects the buyer. During deflation, gold prices go down, but prices for consumers go back down.
So, whether prices go up or down, gold is there to protect investors.
Self-Directed IRA Explained
In many ways, a self-directed IRA is the same as a traditional or Roth IRA. Investors get tax advantages, and the rules for who can join and how much they can put in are the same. The limit for 2022 is $6,000 ($7,000 for those over 50).
At age 59 1/2, you can take money out without paying the penalty.
You can only buy mutual funds or CDs with a traditional or Roth IRA. With a self-directed IRA, you can put your money into various other investments. Here’s where they disagree.
You can put your self-directed IRA money into the following:
- Precious metals like gold, silver, and others
- Real estate
- Land that has not been developed
- Tax liens
- Promissory notes
How to Fund Your IRA – Gold IRA Rollover Explained
If you already have money in a 401(k) or another IRA and want to buy gold as a hedge against inflation, you can do a gold rollover to invest some of that money in gold.
During this step, you figure out how much money to take from your current IRA to put into your gold IRA. The money is held for up to 60 days before you can have it sent to the person in charge of your gold IRA.
How to transfer your money to a Gold IRA:
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Find a company with a Gold IRA
A traditional IRA or a Roth IRA differs from a gold IRA because you hold the actual precious metal in your gold IRA, and the stocks and bonds in the other IRAs are only on paper.
So, you should find a reputable precious metals dealer and a gold IRA provider and use their knowledge. The person who works for the gold IRA is a good source of information.
They will help you every step of the way as you set up your new gold IRA account, hire a custodian, choose your precious metals, and choose a safe place to store your gold.
The best companies that offer gold IRAs know how to work with precious metals for these accounts.
In addition to helping you with all the paperwork, transactions, and metal purchase, they will advise you on all aspects of your gold IRA for as long as you own it.
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How to Choose a Custodian for Your Own Gold IRA
The investor and the IRS talk to each other through the gold IRA custodian. They keep track of your transactions and give you and the IRS service and paperwork.
They handle buying and selling the precious metals in your account and can complete the transaction on your behalf.
Many banks don’t let you buy real metal for your IRA because it costs them more.
So, ensure that the person in charge of your gold IRA sets up a “self-directed” IRA. This lets you take care of your IRA assets the way you want without depending on the custodian to make your decisions.
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Setting up your Gold IRA
Once you decide who will charge your new gold IRA, you’ll open an account with the provider. They can help you buy and sell precious metals as part of your investment.
They will work with the people who sell the precious metals for the transactions.
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Choose Your Valuable Metals
Once your money has been moved to your gold IRA, the new provider can use their knowledge of their products to help you choose the suitable precious metal for your purchase.
Once you buy something, they will arrange for the metals to be sent to a safe place of your choice.
Who Should Invest with TIAA?
People who like to do their banking online should consider TIAA Bank, and TIAA has a wide range of services to offer.
People should choose them because of the following:
- A debit card that has many perks
- A wide range of CD options
- Access to an extensive network of ATMs
- A monthly fee is waived if the minimum account balance is met
- Investors that are NOT looking to create a Gold IRA
Customer Service at TIAA
Even though TIAA is an online bank, it has all the services of a regular bank. They offer live customer service, and they offer services like brokerage and advice.
You can use your computer or your phone to get to banking tools. You can pay your bills, set up an automatic bill payment, get payment reminders, and do much more. You can use Zelle to send money to family and friends, set a budget, and save money.
Their live customer service line is open every day of the week, even on weekends. Their hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time is used to set the hours. If your credit card gets lost or stolen, you can get help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Pros and Cons of TIAA
Pros
- Checking accounts that pay interest
- A debit card that has extras
- A large number of ATMs
Final Thoughts – TIAA Gold IRA
People who want easy access to an ATM and use debit cards to buy things will like TIAA. Consider opening your account elsewhere if you wish for higher interest rates from an online bank.
We don’t recommend a Gold IRA if you want to protect your wealth from inflation, and there are much better ways to do this.
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