Would you feel comfortable in this situation?

tydye

I do not advertise it or try to convince others to also invest in metals. But some of my relatives know I do. Now my mother-n-law wants me to purchase for her a rather sizable amount. I know I can get it much cheaper for her as opposed to her going it alone. And I do not want to see her get taken. But what if the stuff tanks - I do not think it will but what if it does? She has already taken a beating in the stock market over the last few years. (I did actually give her crap about that - she is 70 something and she had it ALL in stocks).

Last year I did help my father-in-law purchase 5K worth of metal now worth nearly double. But with metal at the numbers they are now and the dollar amount she is talking I am hesitant.

ksammut

Yes, I would feel uncomfortable but if she really wants the help, then I would help her. You may want to make a small purchase now and then dollar cost average over the next several months to a year depending on how big the investment is.

Ciccio

I would feel uncomfortable too but if she asks for help, I am sure you know how things work.
Give her your best advice and explain her that in the short term PM are not easily predictables.
Nobody owns a crystal ball...(though, OPA often mentions it)

tydye

Thanks for the advice. I was thinking about a little every week for a few months or so. Split 50/50 gold / silver

Ciccio

<< <i>Thanks for the advice. I was thinking about a little every week for a few months or so. Split 50/50 gold / silver >>



That makes perfect sense, so she can see how it goes with minimum risks.

storm888

I hate losing money for other folks ALMOST as much as
I hate losing money for myself. I would be "hesitant," if
the MIL is not sophisticated and does not understand
the CLEAR risk.

..............

I lack clues as to precise timing, but I think the metals
are RELATIVELY safe for now; $1150/$20 is prolly the
worst case, and 2011/12 could see a moonshot.

IF it starts looking like govt spending will be drastically cut,
there could be harsh downward pressure. Late arrivers
could panic and dump metals. I suspect there will be NO
meaningful spending cuts.

IF it remains clear that the dollar is on borrowed time, the
MIL is prolly pretty safe to start building a small stash. It
is safest to do it slowly.

IF aboveground inventories of AG are really as tiny as
some folks claim, it could be time to encourage folks
to get aggressive. Should the manipulators surrender,
both AG and AU could surprise on the upside; right now,
they seem to have the upperhand, BUT only because they
have refused to quit.

Soros says the dollar is dead. His pals at GS put out a
quiet/subtle sell note on metals almost everyday.

Thus, we all feel "hesitant" about pitching metals to folks
we are afraid might get burned. Hard to feel good about
giving the pitch in either direction. NOBODY has tons of
cash, yet cash still buys less "stuff" each day. I dunno.

PerryHall

As a good son-in-law you should offer to store her PM's for her.

SilverBaron

50% Silver

25% Gold

15% Pt

10% Pd


Do it and every one involved WILL be VERY happy.

jmski52

I'd have her read this thread before doing anything. Then I'd have her do 1/2 of the funds Now. The other half, in One Month, not a minute sooner.

Silver Baron's suggested mix is just fine. So is a 50/50 split. She's either going to be gambling on stocks, or precious metals, or bonds. The stock market will continue to fight it's way to barely a gain, but only because bogus money (QE 2) is being dumped into it. If she's a stock investor with any accumen, she ought to know by now that stock valuations are way skewed from how stock valuations used to be calculated. It is nothing more than a shell game now.

When the money stops, everything will be headed down. You MIL should have the understanding that when everything goes down, so will the metals. The only difference is that the metals will have residual value, whereas the paper may not. Nevertheless, she should have some cash handy for contingencies.

RedTiger

Put me down as uncomfortable. How much is "much cheaper?" Are we talking 3%, 5%, 10%, 20%? If the lower figures, a safer route might be to give the person a phone number where they order the stuff at a competitive price on their own. If the higher numbers, are you a dealer or a person with dealer connections? If a dealer, I doubt the question would even be posted.

Giving financial advice to friends and relatives tends to be a no-win situation. If it works out, the person will take credit, if it doesn't, you often never hear the end of it. If the person asking for help has bad investment instincts, odds are they are will always be bad, and it may be getting late in the game for metals and they may have to be quick to get out at a profit.

Whatever the case, I am never a fan of "all in" or "all out" moves, unless we are talking about a relatively young person with a small amount to invest and a good income. Once in a while someone lucks into good timing on radical moves, but 80% to 90% of the time, the timing is terrible and they get clocked. For the average person, incremental moves, slowly getting in, and slowly moving out, is almost always a better choice than plunging. Of course, there are the 10% or 20% exceptions, but they tend not be folks asking or needing advice.

keepdachange

My mother-in-law always makes me uncomfortable! Just thinking of her does it! Honestly though, if she makes gains then you are a wonderful son-in-law, if she loses money "it's all your fault"
Proceed w/ caution!

57loaded

if it includes the rolling pin and cast iron frying pan, i really think you are safe!

kidding aside if it's a prudent amount, why not?

i have tried to convince my family other wise but they are more savvy in the markets than myself.

Al21

Silver always goes up and down. Buy it for her on the next dip (20.00-23.00).

Baley

"investing for her" sounds like trouble any way you slice it.

I'd give her the Apmex website address and then change the subject

KUCH

It maybe a good idea to set a sell price. Take some profits and hold some. If she's asking you to do this, she isn't stupid. Give her tons of info and let her make the decision.

jmski52

If this becomes a serious drain on your time and you are going to be blamed if anything ever goes wrong, then you should be acting as a paid agent. The understanding ought to be clarified on the front end.

meluaufeet

- I would explain what you are doing and why...
- If both of you can combine a large enough order for Tulving... thats a good way to go.
- Take her to one of your B&M's, and make a small purchase together... take her to another and sell a little.

or:

- Give her a road map (dealers you use, dealers you avoid).
- Advise her on the plan, and tell her to stick with it.
- Make sure she understands how important it is to keep her holdings private.
- Let her know what things you might be interested in buying from her in the future.

She may want to consider keeping a portion in 'paper pm's'... since its liquid, and only a few clicks away.

All the best to you and yours...

RGJohn

<< <i>"investing for her" sounds like trouble any way you slice it.

I'd give her the Apmex website address and then change the subject >>



Yup. Change it to how very tasty her cake is, how lovely her garden looks, how lucky you were to have met her daughter, how, how, how,

yellowkid

You know , of course, that if you help her the likelihood of a PM drop in prices will increase substantially.

DuCrozat

If PM's tank, then she's movin' in with you, buddy!

jmski52

You know , of course, that if you help her the likelihood of a PM drop in prices will increase substantially.

There may be a little spousal rivalry going on here, especially since you helped her better half make $5 Grand with pms. You might as well face the fact that you can no longer win, no matter how you play this one.

tydye

Wow! Lots of advice here

I am not a dealer but I do have good local connections and can get the stuff far cheaper than apmex or any other mail order place. I may add some platinum into the mix but no palladium (difficult to dump locally and the spread is huge)

I do not mind helping her but I must of asked her half a dozen times are you sure. We get along good. And while a large amount it is not her life savings but an amount appropriate for PM investment. And as a last resort I could always mention to them that they talked me out of investing in FOMOCO in the spring of 09

tydye

Oddly at the other end of the family tree yesterday my mom dropped off a bag of silver and gold jewelry that she wants me to cash in for her at the local shop. I tried taking her out of it but to no avail. Looks like QVC and the local mall will be getting some sales - ARGGH.