I have been stacking since 2007. Most of you would not be impressed by my stack though! I have bought only a few hundred every year and made many mistakes along the way. Mostly buying when cash was available rather than I waited for the right prices. Looking back, I could have made a sure 30% return with compound interest, whilst I have made somewhere around 5% (given I bought Silver at high prices, but I was lucky to catch gold at 800 USD.) I also have to pay 80 USD a year for the safety deposit box. What is your strategy what % of your portfolio do you keep in silver (or other PMs) ? It is very tempting to see how my silver could perform if turned into cash and compounded. If I make it, I still have 25 years to retirement. Silver is a gamble against the financial world, whilst compound interest is a safe bet that your currency units will increase. I am aware of the risks financial and the safety net of PMs, but still whilst I have been looking at the world with a rather pessimistic outlook and have lost money. I would like to avoid more damage in the next 30 years. What are your thoughts on this ?
I don't think it's one or the other. Now is a good time to be in silver because the world situation is shaky and the australian dollar is taking a nose dive while interest rates are amazingly low and possibly going lower. If things start to change it might be time to move into equities and a few years later in to something else. If interest rates firm up then maybe back into a savings account. I'm sure I'll always have a little silver, it's a great hobby, but it's not always the tight time to buy. Even if your just stitching metals it's obvious that gold is sometimes better value, platinum at others but for the moment I think sliver is where it's at. I've been watching silver since early 2010 and missed the boat then but when I saw that things were moving in the right direction last year I jumped on the bandwagon. Silver isn't always going to make you rich, it could make you awfully poor if your not careful, I have no garuntee that now is the best time to be in silver but I have better reasons to put what little money I have into sliver at the moment than anywhere else.
10% physical metal (insurance against system blow up) 80% property (cash flow, depreciation, tax benefit. Loan from bank, and inflation inflating away the loan) 10% cash (when i see good entry to metal or shares or currency play). Money that i can afford to lose. With interest so low, you would be better of lending tbe money from back. no point putting it on a bank. Was having like 20% in equities. But lost all of it.
There is no safety difference between compound interest and silver. It's just a matter of avoiding buying (includes fiat) any of both high and/or selling low. This makes your question to a todays one. What is it today? Intrest rates are historically low, silver is historically high, and both tend to come together like this. It's the moments you chose that determine the outcome. Not silver, not fiat, not any product. Silver doesn't perform. People perform. I started bad. I learnt myself the things post mortem. I'm making better decisions now. I won't return to fiat. Instead I stockpile stuff, including silver, with a better timing. Silver isn't a gamble. A gamble gives everybody a same chance to win. Here, the best, and first, informed wins.
Gambling is at a casino where the winning chance is a setpoint by the owner, just like lottery is too.. The outcome is independent of the player. Speculation is where the winning chance is determined by choices of the speculators. They affect the outcome. They, all together, decide the outcome. QOTD!
OP, I don't consider silver an investment, but a hedge against inflation. Over the past 100 year, silver has averaged 3% (about the same as inflation). My hope is I will only enjoy silver as a hobby, and never need it from a financial perspective.
I consider my sliver collection like a nice set of firm tits, it's something nice to look at and even more fun to fondle, I only expect to have fun and not get rich doing it this and will not be disappointed or go broke if things go south.
As I just pointed out in another thread. If silver doubles to say US$35 within 10 years, that's only about 7.2% compounded interest annually. Given the wild volatility of silver, unless it really "goes to the moon", it's not a great investment in that respect.
I consider that Silver as a gamble. Regarding my total portfolio I have the following weightings for my assets (Asset value minus gearing): Shares (Not including compulsory superannuation) - 5% Precious Metals - 8% Property - 75% Cash - 12% With PMS gold is 79% of the value and Silver 21%. I see my PM portfolio as an insurance policy against inflation, financial collapse, etc.
I don't hold silver as an investment in the way that you would invest in e.g. bonds. Therefore I only "invest" that amount which is in excess of current needs, i.e. that which I can afford to lose. I buy pretty things that make sets and form a collection, I have some old bulk that is cheap an low premium that the "zombies are coming" people could appreciate, I have some jewelery items that have their uses, and other stuff that's just neat and makes me feel good. It may pay off in the long term or it may not. I'm not that fussed. Compared to some "true" investments in super schemes that turned thousands into hundreds, my gamble on PMs has not proved a bad investment yet. Unlike those super schemes, I at least get some intermediate enjoyment out of my PMs that I never got from Western Royal or AMP.
