Buying gold with US dollars

[rukawa]

I have US cash. I'm Canadian but taking a trip to Nashville. What is the best way to buy gold bars. I can buy at a big 5 Canadian bank but then I pay the exchange rate conversion and possibly get a worse price. Is there any convenient options in the US. I would prefer not to buy online because I'm concerned about theft.

[aws]

I used to do a bit of a credit cards reward hustle by buying gold bullion on ebay to resell to dealers. Buying online lets the gold be delivered securely to my door with the vendor on the hook for risk in shipping. The markups were so small on ebay that I ended up with a net cost of a couple percent under spot. I imagine this is still the way to go.

 

But if it has to be done in a cash purchase from another country (for reasons I'm sure I don't want to know), then you should probably just check in with the coin dealers in the area you'll be going to and try to arrange the purchase in advance.

[bizaro86]

On 8/9/2022 at 12:04 PM, rukawa said:

I have US cash. I'm Canadian but taking a trip to Nashville. What is the best way to buy gold bars. I can buy at a big 5 Canadian bank but then I pay the exchange rate conversion and possibly get a worse price. Is there any convenient options in the US. I would prefer not to buy online because I'm concerned about theft.

 

Is your US cash physical cash? If not, you can convert USD to CAD at the spot rate using Interactive Brokers (or Norbert's Gambit with a different broker). Then just buy the gold at a dealer in Canada.

[Castanza]

15 hours ago, rukawa said:

I have US cash. I'm Canadian but taking a trip to Nashville. What is the best way to buy gold bars. I can buy at a big 5 Canadian bank but then I pay the exchange rate conversion and possibly get a worse price. Is there any convenient options in the US. I would prefer not to buy online because I'm concerned about theft.

 

Look for a Local Coin Shop that deals in bullion. Some Pawn shops can be used but good ones that don't try to rip you off with premiums are hard to come by. Otherwise online is your best bet. LCS will get you the best price. Whatever way you slice it, you'll be paying a premium. The more convenient the more premium. 

 

Three places in Nashville that seem to have solid reviews and service. 

 

- Nashville Coin Gallery

- Nashville Gold & Coin Buyers Coin Dealer

- Coin Purse

 

Edit: I will add that owning physical gold can be a real PITA. If you're looking to own it simply because you like coins or bars etc. fine makes sense. But if you're looking for some items to barter with or something there are probably better things (ammo, alcohol, tobacco). Good luck!

Edited August 10, 2022 by Castanza