More and more these days, investors are taking a look around their financial environment and realizing that the same old tired advice about investing for retirement simply won’t cut it.

Truth be told, the need for retirement investing is even greater now. Social security’s future is uncertain. Retirees are living longer. Pensions are drying up. Having a nest egg set aside for your own private retirement plan isn’t only a luxury, it’s a necessity. And listening to the same “invest in the market” advice is not going to suffice for many people who want more diversification and long-term value in their retirement investments.

Enter precious metals. Gold, silver, platinum and more have long been favorite long-term investments by all sorts of investors—not just those saving for retirement. Why? Let’s take a look at three reasons many people continue turning to precious metals to ensure their financial future is bright:

Advantage #1: Hedging against a financial storm.

Do precious metals hedge against inflation? That depends on who you ask. Investors all across the world will simply tell you to invest in the things that offer the best long-term value and consistent rate of return. But that opens up a whole host of other issues (including diversification). If you want to hedge against financial calamities, there are few ways better than having precious metals in a Self-Directed IRA. These precious metals retain their value to a significant degree even in turbulent financial conditions.

Are precious metals unpredictable to a degree? Yes. But that’s true of all investments. While some financial advisors will tell you to put your money in the market and never look back, we think that casting a wider net is a better strategy for catching fish for that long-term financial nest egg you’re building.

Advantage #2: Protection from the financial systems in place.

We all depend on the economic and financial systems already in place. We all are, to some degree, at the mercy of the markets of the world. But that doesn’t mean we have to affix our destinies to every single swing of the market. Protecting ourselves from the very financial system that we’re participating in isn’t just wise, but it’s prudent. And when it comes to your retirement, prudence is the name of the game.

Having gold, silver, and platinum in a Self-Directed IRA is a sure way to ensure that you’re protected against the fluctuations of the market—as well as individual currencies. Even burying your money in the backyard means you’re making an investment in the dollar! So don’t look at investing in precious metals as getting rid of money; look at it as transferring money to a different type of investment.

Advantage #3: True diversification.

We at AmericanIRA.com don’t recommend that you pull all of your money out of the market and invest it all in gold. That’s not what we’re driving at. Instead, we believe that precious metals should be part of a financial plan for most people. In order to achieve true diversification, you can’t have all of your money in the stock market—it’s simply not as “diversified” a strategy as many wealth managers would have you believe.

What should you do, then? You should consider a Self-Directed IRA that includes precious metals. We at AmericanIRA.com can talk to you about precious metals and other Self-Directed IRA strategies to see if they’re right for you. Simply get in touch with us at 866-7500-IRA(472) and invest just a few moments of your time to find out how you can take control of your financial destiny—and your retirement.