Hello All! I have been plaguing this forum for months now, trying to learn as much about buying silver, more times than not, finding it a little daunting, but learning as I go along. Today I felt comfortable enough to join, so hence my registration to not just gleen, but hopefully share with other members. I think we all want to protect what we have worked for, but looking around the world today, we need to rely on no-one but ourselves. We can't rely on our jobs or our governments to 'take care of us'. I purchased some Canadian Maple Leaf 1oz silver coins back at the beginning of the year off Ebay. This was a familiar starting point as I have a shop where I sell 2nd hand designer clothes. Once again, the 'powers that be' at Ebay have once again moved the goalposts and bit by bit our little bit of extra pin money has been swallowed up by increased fees. The latest move by Ebay to insist that postage be listed free if you are TRS will probably kill off those clinging on with white knuckles, including the silver sellers. I have watched as silver has tumbled from what I paid, to today of around the $18-19 mark. I have contacted a couple of places in Sydney - we're on the east coast - to see opening times etc. I have also looked at the Perth Mint website. I have also noted one seller that is selling on Ebay and I think I have noticed him offering to sell silver here. My son's best friend is a jeweller and she works in silver and he has mentioned "Laura will sell to you mum, but I think the silver is in little balls, wire etc and this just does my head in as the bars and bullion look more "official" if you know what I mean. I'm probably wrong, but advice here would save face with both my son and his friend. All I want to do is buy some silver!!! Not truck loads or even wheelbarrow loads! I'm just an average Aussie looking at buying some silver as a security for my future. Can anyone recommend a B&M store in Sydney where I can go in, hand over a few hundred and come away with either a few coins or bars? Or should I call the Perth Mint and place an order there? Any information is greatly appreciated.
Firstly welcome. Dont get too disheartend by the current market as we are in a bit of a downtrend the outlook for the future is probably sideways for a while but if you are a long term investor you will probably do alright silver will return to $30 - $40 an oz eventually and if you begin your buying now you have a lot of upside to that. Weak hands sell in down markets strong hands buy and now is when real bargains can be had. I am currently looking at loading up on low premium bullion but am in no rush as in my opinion the market is going sideways for a while minimum 6-8 months once the price starts to recover will swap out of bullion for the semi-numismatic bullion eg lunars, RCM wildlife etc... In regards to dealers in sydney I'm not too sure as I am in WA but the little balls are known as silver shot and should be 999 silver like anything you will buy in coin or bar form from anywhere. if buying this shot you should be paying spot at the most. there are a lot of good sellers on here with cheap and trustworthy postage otherwise some online retailers like Bullion Bourse & Gold Stackers are competetively price and offer a good selection the Perth Mint is good but postage cost are high so look here and in the dealer section below to find the best deals to start
TL;DR- where can he buy silver in Sydney? Plenty of shopfront stores in Syd, here's a previous thread discussing the different shops- http://forums.silverstackers.com/topic-6727-where-can-i-buy-silver-bullion-in-sydney.html Thread is from 2011 but most the stores are still around. I'd say stick with site sponsors on here. Bullion Bourse and Goldstackers (have a look at unallocated) are my 2 recommendations. While they are in different states, they're usually the cheapest to buy from and postage is quite reasonable (probably cheaper than driving around the city and finding parking). Ordering from the Perth Mint is fine but the cost of postage and insurance racks up the cost quite a bit.
You won't get any advice as none of us are qualified to give it but you will get plenty of opinions and life experiences. I haven't bought in Sydney (as far as I know) as I do most of my purchasing from this website. It would save postage if you visit a shop but they are usually more expensive as they have overheads and staff to pay. I would avoid the shot unless you want to make jewellery yourself and you are unlikely to be able to buy at spot anywhere, particularly as spot is dropping. We have seen the premiums rising as people try to get back some money from their depreciating assets.
An easy option for you to look at in Sydney CBD would be ABC. You can just walk in, pay cash (no ID required for less than $5K) and walk out. Pretty straight forward really. Shipping with these guys gets more expensive. When you compare, try to compare the full cost of bullion + postage.
Gosh, stepped out for some milk and what a surprise at my return! Thank you very much for all your replies!! You have all given me a starting point and hopefully one day I can return the favour. Thank you PeeZapp for your explanation of the jewellers silver - the last thing I want to do is offend my son's friend!! Thank you once again all!!
Is there any reason you're not looking at online retailers? If you're simply nervous about buying online there are hundreds of people on the forum who'll be able to verify the reliability of the dealers who sponsor the site (check the Site Sponsors section of the forum). Online sellers often have very competitive prices compared to bricks and mortar retailers who have rents to pay and expensive shop fit-outs. If you're interested in Perth Mint products, you can often get them cheaper at independent dealers than what the Perth Mint sells them for. I wouldn't recommend buying silver granules for investment because, as you say, they're not marked and aren't very "official" looking (they also attract 10% GST for this reason). You'll likely have a difficult time selling them later on and might be forced to deal with a very small number of potential buyers.
Hi Big A.D. I much prefer to buy online. Like any large online site like this, navigating a site which you haven't used before, is a step by step process until you physically make that first purchase. As I have mentioned I work online with Ebay and even after 3000 odd transactions on 2 ids, there is always something new to learn. When I was guided to the sellers online here, I could see that there is a 'feedback' system which, on my Ebay ids, I guard jealously as at the end of the day it's my reputation and also a safety net for my buyers. A great system for any online financial transactions when buying and selling. I followed down the list and noted repeat transactions by the same sellers. BTW what is 'bump'? Once again, I really appreciate all the help everyone has given me. I'll let you know when I make that first purchase here!
Welcome SilverSurferNan! I hope you find great bargains....it's a great time, I believe, to be just getting into buying precious metals Some of us got brand new into it at a very bad time when the prices were double or triple of what they will be over the next few weeks / months. So, count yourself as ahead of some of us here. Don't worry about the short term fluctuations....even if it goes down a bit further. Long term, silver will trend up I'm convinced.
Thanks mmissinglink!! I have downloaded silver/gold price apps for both my iPad and iPhone. I remember looking at the price only last weekend when it was around $22 and today its around $18.71. I would during times like these, love to have an ounce of silver every time one of these apps are opened!! Coming into the weekend here and looking forward to spending some time looking around the site!! Thanks again!