Birch Gold Group Review (2024) – Scam or Legit?

Dunned Inventures is reader supported. When you invest through our links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you

Birch Gold Group earned quite a bit of public recognition because of frequent mentions on the Ben Shapiro Show. Company representatives have also appeared on the show to discuss various financial and economic topics. This dealer buys and sells precious metals and helps customers establish IRAs with gold and other precious metals.

Some highlights of the pros and cons of working with Birch Gold Group include:

Pros:

  • Established company with good name recognition
  • Focus on personally serving and educating customers
  • Experienced in precious metals for wealth management and IRAs

Cons:

  • Doesn't transparently display prices or offer online ordering

Birch Gold Rating

Birch Gold Group includes educational resources, high-quality products, personal service from trained and experienced representatives, and excellent assistance with precious metal IRAs. Their customer support is unparalleled with a fair flat fee structure that doesn't charge as a percentage of your holdings.

Overall Rating: 
4.8/5 stars

Products Offered

Customer Support

Fees

Birch Gold Group

4.84/5 BBB Customer Rating

4.8/5 Trust Pilot Rating

4.8/5 Consumer Affairs Rating

4.9/5 Trust Link Rating

Who Is Birch Gold Group?

Since 2003, the company established its headquarters in Burbank, California, located across the street from Warner Brothers Studio. Birch Gold Group serves customers all over the United States, and the official website says it has helped more than 13,000 customers.

Why Invest in Precious Metals From Birch Gold Group?

Birch Gold Group employs knowledgeable advisors, mostly former commodity brokers, financial advisors, and wealth managers. This financially literate group focuses on educating customers on the benefits of keeping gold and other precious metals as part of a diversified portfolio. They also provide personal service to customers.

This dealer sells gold, silver, platinum, palladium bullion coins, and bars. They also offer collectible coins but focus on relatively high precious metal content products.

Who is the Birch Gold Group Suited For?

The emphasis on bullion coins and precious metal IRAs means that Birch Gold Group focuses on investors who want to diversify their wealth portfolio with precious metals. They also assist customers with setting up and funding a precious metal IRA.

The website does offer some old coins, like a Walking Liberty Silver Dollar. Still, this gold dealer doesn't cater to people who collect old or rare coins for their numismatic value.

Finally, Birch Gold offers plenty of information about their products and services. Unlike many other coin or bullion dealers, they don't list prices on the website. Some bullion buyers mentioned they found the prices relatively high compared to some online brokers, but Birch Gold Group may provide more personal service than those competitors.

They also don't provide purely online ordering. Customers can order remotely, but they can't order directly from the website and need the assistance of a representative.

Thus, Birch Gold Group is perfect for investors who want guidance and individual service and not independent investors who want to compare prices and buy online.

How Does Birch Gold Group Work?

People interested in precious metals should explore a dealer's products, storage options, fees, minimum purchase requirements, and shipping policies. Here is a quick summary:

Birch Gold

Summary

Products Offered

Gold, Silver, Platinum, and Palladium Bullion Products

Precious Metal Storage

Brink's Global Service and Delaware Depository

Minimum Purchase

Ideally $10,000

Fee Structure

Flat Fee with Initial Fees Waived When Depositing $50,000 or More

Shipping

Free. 5-10 Day Delivery Time

Insurance

Fully Insured Shipments

Products Offered

Birch Gold Group offers two ways to buy precious metals:

Physical possession of bullion: Customers will contact Birch Gold and speak with a representative about the amount of money they hope to invest and the precious metals they want to own. The customer needs to send a check or wire to pay for the order. In turn, Birch Gold will send an insured shipment directly to the customer's address.

The precious metals offered that approved to be a part of your IRA are:

  • Gold
  • Silver
  • Platinum
  • Palladium
Is Birch Gold Legit

Gold (0.995 Minimum Fineness)

– American Eagle Coins (Bullion & Proof)
– American Buffalo
– Canadian Maple Leaf
– Austrian Philharmonic
– Australian Nugget / Kangaroo
– Gold bars and rounds from approved mints & refiners

Birch Gold IRA

Silver (0.999 Minimum Fineness)

– American Eagle (Bullion and Proof)
– Canadian Maple Leaf and Twin Maple Leaf (2 oz)
– Austrian Philharmonic
– Australian Kookaburra
– Mexican Libertad
– Silver bars and rounds from approved mints & refiners

Birch Gold Fees

Platinum (0.9995 Minimum Fineness)

– American Eagle
– Australian Koala
– Austrian Philharmonic
– Canadian Maple Leaf
– Platinum bars and rounds from approved mints & refiners

Birch Gold Group Pros And Cons

Palladium (0.9995 Minimum Fineness)

– Canadian Maple Leaf
– Palladium bars and rounds from approved mints & refiners

Self-directed IRA: Customers can choose a funding source, such as transferring an existing IRA or rolling over a 401(k). After that, the customer selects appropriate types of bullion for their gold IRA. Finally, the customer can choose storage options. A Birch Gold representative will help the customer with paperwork and selections.

Precious Metal Storage

Birch Gold offers customers a variety of insured depositories for precious metal IRAs. They often work with two storage leaders, Brink's Global Service and Delaware Depository, and these options offer up to $1 billion in insurance for stored metals. Banks Global Service has storage locations in New York, Los Angeles, and Salt Lake City.

Minimum Purchase

Birch Gold Group suggests a $10,000 minimum deposit to set up a new precious metal IRA.

Fees

This dealer offers most services to their customers without additional fees beyond the purchase price. Storage fees for gold IRAs will depend upon the amount stored and depository chosen. Birch Gold Group waives initial fees for customers who deposit at least $50,000.

Fees can vary, but Birch Gold Group lists these examples for a typical customer:

Initial account setup fee: $50

Wire transfer fee: $30

Annual storage and insurance fees: $100

Annual account management: $100

Also, consider the cost of the precious metals purchased. Expect to pay a premium over the spot price of the bullion for silver, gold, palladium, or platinum purchased from dealers.

Shipping and Insurance

Birch Gold Group pays for shipping on orders that meet the $10,000 minimum, which isn't unusual for a dealer. Birch Gold says they fully insure all shipments.

The dealer also carefully and discreetly packages all orders, so the shipment should look like a typical package but protect precious metals from damage. Expect to wait two days for payments to clear and Birch Gold Group to ship, and then another five to 10 days for the shipment to arrive.

You can ship your precious metals directly to the storage facility for a hands off experience.

Free Investors Kit With Birch Gold Group

Birch Gold Reviews

Birch Gold maintained a customer rating of 4.84/5 on the Better Business Bureau website, meaning most people have a positive experience with this company. They did gather nine posted complaints to the BB in the last three years.

Most complaints centered around the customer's perception that the dealer lacked price transparency. Some potential customers made initial contact and then decided not to proceed, and these individuals complained because Birch Gold kept contacting them after they requested no more contact.

Birch Gold did respond to these complaints, and in some cases, the customer later remarked that they felt the company resolved the issue. Positive reviews often mentioned the personalized guidance received from the representatives. Here are a couple of the latest reviews by happy investors.

Birch Gold Group Reviews
Birch Gold Complaints

How to Open a Gold IRA With Birch Gold

The IRS allows investors to keep approved bullion in a self-directed IRA. Opening and funding the account only takes a few simple steps:

Step 1

Opening a gold IRA with Birch Gold starts with a call to a representative to discuss the planned amount of money for an initial deposit and funding source.

Step 2

The representative will help you choose IRS-qualified bullion to buy.

Step 3

After you pick out your bullion, you can fund their accounts with a check or wire. You might also roll over the funds from another retirement account, like a 401k or IRA.

Step 4

The representative will explain storage options and fees.

Step 5

The representative will also help you complete the necessary paperwork.

Step 6

You can also make additional deposits in the future.

Frequently Asked Questions About Birch Gold Group

To help inform a comparison, read some answers to frequently asked questions about this precious metals dealer.

How Long Will It Take To Receive My Precious Metals?

Birch doesn't offer a general shipping estimate on the website, but the company promises fully insured shipping. Shipping times will depend upon the postal or shipping service and current conditions. Payments might take a few days to clear. After that, Birch Gold Group will ship the order, and it could take another week or two to arrive.

How Does Birch Group Store Precious Metals?

Like most precious metal dealers, Birch Group doesn't store its customers' precious metals. Instead, this dealer works with high-quality, insured depositories, like Delaware Depository and Brinks.

How Can Customers Check The Performance Of Their Gold IRA?

Birch Group asks customers to call their representatives for updated reports on the performance of a precious metals IRA. Customers can also keep a detailed inventory of their purchases and check the value of their assets on sites that post updated bullion prices.

Which Precious Metals Will The IRS Allow In A Gold IRA?

The IRS allows taxpayers to store bullion in self-directed IRAs. This allowance doesn't include precious metal coins or jewelry with a value primarily based on their numismatic, collectible, or artistic value.

The IRS does allow approved types of gold, silver, platinum, and palladium as long as they conform to these rules:

  • The bullion needs to meet purity standards, including a gold purity of 99.5%, silver purity of 99.9%, and platinum or palladium purity of 99.95%.
  • An accredited refiner, assayer, manufacturer, or national mint must certify the purity of rounds, coins, or bars.
  • Only non-proof coins in uncirculated or excellent condition qualify.
  • Proof coins in original packaging with their certificate of authenticity qualify.

The Birch Gold website marks the products that the IRS will accept for gold IRAs. Examples include the American Gold or Silver Eagle and the Canadian Palladium Maple Leaf.

Is Birch Gold a Legitimate Dealer?

Birch Gold operates as a legitimate dealer, and they have been in business since 2003. The Better Business Bureau accredited this business in 2011. Some precious metals customers might prefer more transparency and online features. Most services require a phone call to the dealer.

Positives of dealing with Birch Gold include plenty of educational resources, high-quality products, personal service from trained and experienced representatives, and assistance with precious metal IRAs.

Birch Gold Group

4.84/5 BBB Customer Rating

4.8/5 Trust Pilot Rating

4.8/5 Consumer Affairs Rating

4.9/5 Trust Link Rating

About Roy Guller

I have been an investment adviser for more than 30 years and managed more than 500 million dollars for my exclusive group of clients. My expertise lies in retirement funds and I want to share my wealth of experience with you so you can make the right decisions for your future.

You Might Also Like These...