The biggest issue that I have with buying tangible assets today is that it follows the phenomenon of investors flocking away from their falling assets to those investments that are rising in value because of increased demand by people seeking better returns. So you end up buying high instead of low and perhaps buying assets that are not a prudent part of your investment strategy. I do think that investing in tangible assets can be a good idea for some if (a) you already have a diversified portfolio of cash, bonds, stocks, real estate and so on and want to add new elements of diversification, (b) you have a specific area of interest that you are knowledgeable in and would buy these items regardless and (c) do not need a regular income stream from this investment. But tangible assets can be fairly illiquid (i.e. may be harder to sell and may require an agent charging a sizeable commission) and add increased risk to a portfolio. If you are looking to add something to your diversified investment portfolio, and don’t want to buy more (equities are cheap right now), I think real estate is significantly undervalued and recommend that you look at that instead.

The stock market over the last few years certainly has made many people worry about their investments and question whether they should be looking at other investment classes. Investing in assets such as artwork, antiques, coins and metals are certainly an option. The biggest issue that you have is that the value of many of these assets is not easy to determine and there may not be an easy place to go to get a good value for them. An uneducated investor can easily overpay for these types of assets and the transactions costs can also be high. Assets such as artwork and antiques take a very educated investor to make sure that they know what they are buying and what the opportunities for appreciation are for that asset. The other issue with these assets is that they usually are very illiquid and if other markets turn, you may not easily be able to convert them to cash to invest in other areas. There are precious metals funds that you can invest in that will invest in gold and silver and are much more liquid. As with any asset, there is a time and a place for it and it should just be a part of any overall investment strategy. Today’s market is volatile and whether you should invest in artwork and metals needs to be considered but is not right for everyone.

Diversifying by investing in multiple asset classes is a sound strategy. By utilizing stocks (domestic and international), bonds, cash, commodities (such as precious metals and agricultural) you spread your risk expose to a broad array of investments. Just like stock market investing, when it comes to investing in art and antiques, I suggest you do a whole lot of research and/or utilize the experience of an expert. Make sure you also consider the additional responsibility of protecting and preserving your tangible assets, as well as, purchasing the proper insurance in case of loss, theft or damage. The “right now” part of your question hints at chasing headlines and investing in asset classes that are currently popular. That’s a huge mistake most of the time. There is serious debate going on right now about a “Dot.Corn” bubble that is larger than the “Dot.Com” bubble that popped in 2000. Have a method to your madness.