Part 3 – Know Your Dealer

In the last article, Part 2 – What You Need To Know About Precious Metals IRAs, we mentioned a precious metals dealer that had made recent headlines when they vanished into thin air, taking investors’ IRA money and never buying/transferring the metals to the depository on their behalf.

It is very discouraging to read news and hear stories from clients about people being taken advantage of or ripped off. It gives the industry a bad name and puts a heightened level of suspicion around reputable dealers who have a long-standing business and have been treating people fairly for decades.

I only had to spend about 10 minutes online doing some research into the company to discover a few interesting items.

The company mentioned above had only been in business since 2017. Seven years may seem like a lot, but dealers will often exaggerate or downright fabricate the length of time they have been operating. A quick business entity search on the California Corporation Commission website showed that one of the directors had a variety of different aliases and had only been using his latest last name since he formed the company in 2017. Prior to that, he had been doing business in Alabama using a different alias and had declared bankruptcy in the state of Alabama in 2015. Before starting this new gold business in 2017, he had no history of having owned a business or worked in the precious metals industry. All of these are red flags.

Aside from background checking ownership and verifying the number of years in business, you can also read internet reviews (Google, Yelp, BBB etc.) and call other dealers in your area or anywhere in the nation to inquire about another company. Dealers who have been around a long time often know of each other and even do business with each other. Ask the dealer for a list of references-like you would do if you were hiring an employee. References should include the company’s banking institution, other precious metals dealers/wholesalers and even their insurance company.

I’m hoping that by writing this article and sharing it with others, it will inspire people to do a little more research into the companies with whom they entrust large sums of money. As times get tougher, an additional level of scrutiny should be given to those who are handling our hard-earned dollars.

As we mentioned in our last piece, please consider sharing this email with your family and friends who may have mentioned that they are interested in gold and silver.

We are always here as a resource for questions. Our firm has a no pressure approach and no one here is a commissioned salesperson.

Please give us a call if you have any questions at 602-840-5500. You can also email us at info@apmaz.com.

Stay tuned for our next piece, Part 4 – Bait and Switch.

All my best,
Courtney Svendsen

-Jerry Williams’ daughter and APM Inc. owner since 2013. Proudly taking over writing the news people need to know as it relates to precious metals.