Precious metals IRAs get described in a pretty simple way online, but the actual structure is a bit more layered once you look at it closely.
At the core, it’s still a self-directed IRA. The difference is just what it holds. Instead of stocks or ETFs, it holds physical metals like gold or silver, as long as they meet certain purity and eligibility rules.
Where people usually get tripped up is that even though it’s “physical” metal, you don’t actually hold it yourself.
There are usually three moving parts involved:
- a custodian that runs the IRA and handles compliance
- a metals dealer where the gold or silver is purchased
- an approved storage facility where everything is held
So instead of one account that you directly control like a brokerage, it becomes a setup with a few layers in between.
That’s also where expectations tend to shift a bit. It’s not quite the same as buying bullion directly, and it’s not quite the same as a normal stock-based IRA either.
Some of the things people don’t always factor in upfront are the extra fees across those layers, the added steps when moving funds in or out, and the fact that access to the metals is structured through the custodian rather than direct possession.
None of that is necessarily good or bad, it just works differently than most people expect when they first hear about it.