One of the best things about silver investing is that it is so easy for almost anyone to get started. To become a stock trader, you need to first establish a brokerage account, which may require a minimum of $2,500 or more. Trades cost between $5 and $15, and really cut into your cost basis unless you are making huge transactions. Trading currencies has similar problems. Gold, although great, is expensive: one-ounce coins cost nearly $2,000, and fractional coins have big mintage premiums. Someone can safely invest in silver, by comparison, for as little as $35.
Big Returns
Silver is a volatile precious metal, thanks to heavy manipulation by institutional firms and possibly even governments. Thus, true believers in silver feel that it has the potential to multiply several fold in value over the course of the next few years. Stocks, by contrast, have been lackluster performers since the end of the most recent inflationary boom, and even going back to the Great Depression, the real, inflation-adjusted return on stocks has been lackluster at best. Silver and gold shine, but only silver is affordable for the masses.
Bad Credit?
If you are a person with damaged credit – maybe someone who got caught up in the last boom and didn’t get a big bailout like the politically connected bankers – then investing in stocks may not be a realistic option for you. If you have debts accruing interest at 10% or more per annum, then investing in stocks – where you’d be lucky to see a return of 10% in a good year – doesn’t make sense. Furthermore, if you have financial judgements against you as a result of unpaid debts, your stock-market brokerage account can be attached and emptied by creditors. Silver, by contrast, can be held safely in your home. And while your debts may continue to grow by 10%, a good 50-100% appreciation in your silver could help you take care of those debts in one fell swoop.
It’s The American Way
Silver is patriotic and democratic. It was America’s first money. It is affordable to almost everyone. Silver does not discriminate. Anyone with a job or any other income source can afford to buy at least an ounce of silver with each paycheck. Those of greater means can afford much more, but no one is denied a seat at the table of silver investing. This is just one of the many things that makes silver the most important and exciting investment opportunity in the world today.