I heard paper money will be worthless and should should have coins. Where and how do you get them if you are wanting to replace thousands of dollars?

-- donna olsen (jdolsen@aol.com), October 21, 1998

Answers

There are mixed opinions about which currency will be worth anything. You should do your own research on what the experts say, then decide for yourself. Read the threads under banking/finance in this forum's archives, the first one discusses your question. Good place to start.

Myself, I plan to convert enough in gold/silver for a few month's supply. I've ordered 3k worth of gold bullion coins (cheaper in lots of 10)from Monex a couple weeks ago, but haven't recieved them yet. (I should by Friday, as they said within 2 weeks.) We haven't decided yet what to do with the rest of our money assets (pension plan, stocks etc.)

-- Chris (catsy@pond.com), October 21, 1998.

I got some gold and silver from Affordable Jewelry and Precious Metals ( I believe its www.ajpm.com). The had the lowest price I could find at the time on the internet.

-- anonymous (secret@here.com), October 22, 1998.

And I always play the silver medallion payoff slots when I go to a casino. Since I keep em instead of turning em back in - they start to accumulate after a while.

-- Paul Davis (davisp1953@yahoo.com), October 22, 1998.

Gold with some silver bullion coin is a good bet to have for a number of reasons. BUT, you first want to stock up on food, supplies, etc. There are very long and involved theories regarding the advent of the EURO, the economic upheaval in Asia, which has filtered down to Canada and major countries in S. America etc, etc.

There are so many factors involved, it would make your head spin. If you want to put in the time to do the research, by all means, the "writing is on the wall" out there for anyone to read. The US dollar will undergo an upheaval. Like Y2k, we do not yet know how bad it will get. Gold along with a small amount of silver bullion coin will be a very good asset retention tool. You can count on it. And by the way, you will not be alone in your quest. Most precious metals dealers are backordered on bullion coins, and are enjoying near record business. Ask AJPM (see above post). Their last comment was that they hadn't been this busy in 18 years (yes they are reliable and discreet).

-- Goldi (goldilucks@yahoo.com), October 22, 1998.

Dear Donna,

Paper money is worthless NOW. It's just that the majority doesn't think so yet, and might possibly get away with that attitude. I prefer not to bet on that one. Your decision to seek harder assets might well be wise.

As to how: first chore is to select a dealer. You can check locally (you may have to pay sales tax if you do, depending on your state), or mail- order. Check around the net for dealer advertisements or troll here on the list for suggestions (try 1-800-375-4653- that's who I buy from. Disclaimer: no commissions or kickbacks or conflicts of interest in the reco either. Heck, this isn't really me anyway, it's some guy named nemo). Take a look at Mark Skousen's SCROOGE INVESTING (a book) for some tips and suggested dealers. Shop by comparing prices from dealer to dealer- call several at as close to the same time as you can manage for prices. They generally set prices by what's called "spot" which means the going market price for metals- it changes from minute to minute depending on trading in the commodities market, and if you do your shopping over several days you might not get a good comparison.

After you select a dealer, call in an order. They'll quote a locked- in price and give you a trade number or transaction number, and if it's your first time they might give you a customer or account number too. When you make the deal by phone you're obligated to get payment under way soon- you can wire money, send a cashiers check or a personal check if you're willing to wait for it to clear. The dealer will ship to you registered and insured, and you just go by the post office and sign for the package.

You might want to place a couple of small orders first to 'feel out' the process. It is a pretty big leap of faith to venture several thousand dollars with people you don't know and haven't done business with before. Some people are paranoid about people knowing who bought what. Your call there on how tricky you want to be.

Second chore is to figure out how much to buy, and third chore is to figure out what to buy. A general rule of thumb is 5-10% of asset total in hard assets. Some people are going beyond that right now, some still don't have any at all. Your call. What to buy is your call too. Right now the bullion coins are probably the best bet. The premiums for pre-1965 US silver dimes, quarters and halves(called junk silver) have gone up a lot, as have premiums for pre-1934 US gold coins. Some will try to tell you the old stuff is "non- confiscateable." Some will try to tell you "numismatics" (collectible coins) are the only way to go. I bought pre-34 US gold while prices were good but now that it's gone up so much I'm buying bullion coins. I bought enough junk silver while prices were lower too, and I'm not buying any more silver at all. So your call here also. I don't buy numismatics at all. I suggest you buy some of your bullion gold in fractional values (1/2, 1/4 and 1/10 ounce) just to be on the safe side. Silver is OK in ounces. I would stick with US Eagles on all counts. Do buy one 1-ounce maple leaf 'cause they're so pretty though (hey, I found out I'm a raving gold-bug at heart. Who woulda known?)

Fourth chore is to figure out where to stash your stuff. DON'T put it in the safe deposit box in the bank. Hide it somewhere safe and smart. We did a thread on that a while back on this list- hunt it up.

I hope you never need ANY of your insurance, your monetary insurance (your gold and silver) especially. But I really think the bear (market) will be worse than the (computer) bug, and the insurance might just save your financial life. My mom recently made the same decision and I'm taking care of several thousands of $ in trades for her too. Good luck and happy trading,

nemo...

-- nemo (nemo@deepsix.com), October 22, 1998.

You might consider 40% silver coins -- half dollars -- minted between 1965 and 1969. These coins have the unique characteristic of having a face value (.50) that is not a great deal lower than their current silver content value (aka "melt" value... about .75 with silver around $5/oz). Hence one is buying silver, primarily, but with a safety net rather close below in the form of the .50 legal tender value. It is hard to imagine that *both* silver and the dollar will tank terribly. (I mean, people have to use *something* for money, eh?) If the dollar goes to hell (very likely), then silver will almost certainly appreciate, possibly dramatically. If silver goes to hell (very unlikely), then you always have the dollar value of the coins. These coins can be bought in bags of 2000, face value $1000, for about $1500-1600, at current silver prices.

-- alan lewis (aelewis@provide.net), October 23, 1998.

I subscribe to Gary North's newsletter, and he recently had to change twenty years of financial advice. He used to think that we would eventually have massive inflation, refueled by the printing of worthless paper money. Research has convinced him that we will possibly have deflation, since our computer-blip money will disappear. He says to store lots of the cash that you currently have in your wallet. Store small bills and change. All it costs is the interest you would have gotten had you kept the money in the bank. Why not do this, just in case?

-- Hedging Bets (northreader@whynot.com), October 27, 1998.

While having money in gold or silver seems like a good idea as a hedge, if TEOTWAWKI happens (as some are suggesting) Is gold going to remain a good hedge? Or should I look into something else?

-- Steve L. (levins@csps.com), October 28, 1998.