Brits regret not buying Gold but didn't learn their lesson

If you live long enough, you’re going to have some regrets.

Woulda, coulda, shoulda, as my dad was fond of saying.

The thing about regrets is that they were totally avoidable. That’s why they’re regrets. We made a bad decision, a questionable call, a wrong turn.

But regrets aren’t all bad. We can learn from them and avoid making the same mistake twice.

I say all of this because I ran across a story about regrets the other day.

One-third of adults in the UK regret not investing in gold in the past five years. Thirty percent say they regret missing out on silver.

This is according to research conducted by the Royal Mint.

I understand why they feel this way. Over the last five years, the gold price has increased by nearly 150 percent, while silver has gained almost 200 percent.

Meanwhile, only 8 percent of UK adults kept any of their savings in gold, and only 3 percent held any silver.

As the Royal Mint put it, many UK adults feel a sense of “missed opportunity.”

The polling also revealed that Brits are worried about the future of their money. Seventy-three percent said they were concerned about how global conflicts and economic instability could affect the value of their money.

The concern about monetary depreciation is certainly legitimate. However, I think they’re missing the culprit. It’s not some nebulous global conflict or vague economic instability stealing their purchasing power. It’s their government running the money-printing press.

Here’s where the story goes completely sideways.

Brits recognize that their purchasing power is declining. They see that both gold and silver could have shielded them from this monetary debasement. They regret making a bad choice by not investing in gold and silver.

But they failed to learn the lesson.

Only a quarter of poll respondents said they would likely put savings in precious metals over the next five years. Sixty percent said they would still choose to keep their money in a checking account.

In the immortal words of Shoresy, “So dumb!”

I suppose in five years, the Royal Mint will publish the results of a new poll indicating that a bunch of Brits regret not buying gold over the last five years.

Sure, folks missed an opportunity to purchase gold at around $1,800 per ounce five years ago. But the opportunity itself is still right there in front of them. Because here’s the thing. In five years, people will almost certainly look back and yearn for $4,500 gold.

That’s because monetary debasement will continue in both the UK and the good ol’ US of A. Both countries’ central banks have a 2 percent inflation target.

That’s the plan – to devalue your money and rob you of 2 percent of your purchasing power every single year. That may not sound like a lot, but it adds up. Every 5 years, your money loses a little more than 10 percent of its purchasing power.

My point is that gold and silver will almost certainly climb higher over the next five years because monetary debasement is more likely to speed up than to slow down.

Here’s the thing about regrets. They’re avoidable. You just have to make the right decision the first time. But when you make the wrong call, let regret be your teacher. Don’t make the same mistake twice!

Call 800-800-1865 today and talk to a Money Metals precious metals specialist. They can help you figure out how to avoid future regrets.