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Norman1 said

You got lucky, Winnie, just like those who bought long-term bonds 35 years ago when interest rates were around 12% per year.

Had the gold been purchased 20 years earlier in 1979, it would have been purchased around US$300 per ounce and the 20 year experience would have ended with gold around US$290.

Gold also does not produce any income. Those Bank of Montreal shares I bought in the late 1980's now pay me dividends each year of over 55% of their original cost. So, I am receiving my original investment back every two years now.

One needs to understand what was behind the returns one ends up with. Otherwise, one will seriously miscalculate the odds of achieving the same returns in the next ten, twenty, or thirty years.  

'Amen' to that ⬆

When it comes to Gold, I prefer to invest in the companies that dig it out of the ground, rather than directly in gold. One of my favorite ETF's is; Horizons Enhanced Income Gold Producers ETF (HEP/TSX). I've done very well with it, and the Dividend is quite Handsome ... ~ 5% .

Selkirk

It is good to understand if one was just lucky or one had a special insight.

Luck does happen. Although, bad luck seems to happens more often than the good kind with investments.

I'm reminded of those technology day traders who thought they had insight into a way to make lots of money day trading tech stocks.

Turns out the tech stocks were closing about 1% higher than open most days. So, one could have got similar results just buying and holding the whole time instead of buying in the morning and selling by close of the day.

The discount brokerages were quite happy to collect over $1,000/month in trading commissions from some of those guys.

Norman1 said

. . .

The discount brokerages were quite happy to collect over $1,000/month in trading commissions from some of those guys. 

... Déjà Vu of the olden days ⬆

During the Gold & Silver Rushes, the hardware stores selling picks & shovels often made more money than the miners.

savemoresaveoften said
I dont see how holding physical gold as the main and only asset makes a portfolio immune to downturn....

Just because gold has been at $1300-$2000 last few years does not mean it will never revisit $300 an ounce. Never say never  

Right now over 80% of my portfolio - physical gold.
Based on my previous experience, I took that risk.
I'm tired to chase around below 3% interest rates.

So far, I got approx. 9% per year (compounded yearly) for all 20 previous years.
Absolutely no fees, clean investment and clean return.
I can also choose to pay capital gain taxes after selling or not to pay capital gains - this investment isn't connected to my name and/or SIN whatsoever.
I'm absolutely free to pay capital gain taxes on my own discretion and I like that - I'm in control.

Winnie said

Right now over 80% of my portfolio - physical gold.
Based on my previous experience, I took that risk.
I'm tired to chase around below 3% interest rates.

So far, I got approx. 9% per year (compounded yearly) for all 20 previous years.
Absolutely no fees, clean investment and clean return.
I can also choose to pay capital gain taxes after selling or not to pay capital gains - this investment isn't connected to my name and/or SIN whatsoever.
I'm absolutely free to pay capital gain taxes on my own discretion and I like that - I'm in control.  

Its the next 20 years that matters, not the previous...

savemoresaveoften said

Its the next 20 years that matters, not the previous...  

Correct, I agree, let see in 10 or 20 years how much I will loose or gain.

Bill said
... I'm leery of having it in my house in case it burns down or I forget where I put some. 

Bill, I have the same problem. I'm keeping records, where I put gold and storing those records in my fire-proof safe. But, I write those records in "code", so only I would understand them. And, I'm worry, just in case my memory will not be so good later and I would not be able to "decode" my records, that would be quite a problem. Safety deposit boxes I'm not using for about 30 years now, because when bank employees helped me with my access to my boxes, they looked at me strangely - boxes were very heavy.