Reply #7: I've been "getting out of dollars" for 3 years [View All]

[idealista]

and I've learned alot in the process. I had an Everbank account and that's fine if you feel confident about the banking system (I don't) and don't mind paying 3/4% fee to convert into other currency, and the same to convert back. I would favor Swiss Francs and Canadian dollars.

If a lot of banks, or more than one large bank, fails, I think the FDIC will be hard-pressed to honor the insurance. So I do not take that $100,000 insurance as rock-solid.

One suggestion is to open an account with a discount brokerage - like Fidelity for instance - and invest in non-dollar and commodity and precious-metals related mutual funds such as: Prudent Global Income Fund (PSAFX) or Merck Hard Currency Fund; Toqueville Gold Fund (TGLDX) or USA Precious Metals (USAGX); energy funds such as Icon Energy (ICENX). You can invest in gold and silver by buying Central Fund of Canada, which is a closed end fund that trades like a stock (ticker symbol CEF) and holds gold and silver bullion in audited vaults in Canada.

You can also buy gold and silver from a local coin shop or various reputable dealers such as CNI ("golddealer.com" on the internet)- and you can check prices there to see if your local dealer is priced right. They have advice on their site about the best forms to buy gold and silver bullion in, which is well-written, and I'm sure you can find other advice if you google. Of course, storing it is a concern. But you could fit a fortune in gold in a safe deposit box! In a financial crisis, where confidence in unbacked paper money is eroded, gold and silver should protect you and may do explosively well. Many experts think silver will outperform gold in percentage terms - there is very little above ground.

I am not a broker or financial adviser, and this is just what I have learned for myself - each person must reasearch and reach their own conclusions.