Should you buy gold?

Send yours to me.

You see the pitches constantly on TV. One thing that puzzles me is that they're always showing how high gold has risen in price. Shouldn't that be a signal to sell gold? As in, buy low, sell high?

Consumer Reports looked at one company, Goldline. Here's what it found:

Goldline's over-the-phone prices for bars and bullion coins (coins without collectible value) were on par with other dealers in May. Its online prices, however, were about 3 to 5 percent more. A Goldline rep told us that is because you have to pay by check or wire transfer when you buy by phone, which saves credit-card transaction fees.

But its prices for collectible coins are inflated. For instance, a four-piece Proof Gold Eagle coin set was selling for $5,924.63 on Goldline's website in May. The American Precious Metals Exchange offered the set at $3,295. A Goldline adviser recommended buying collectible coins because they're safe from confiscation. He also said you could sell them anonymously—you wouldn't have to report Social Security numbers to the government, as is done when buying most bullion. 

If you buy from Goldline you'll face several fees, starting with shipping costs. The company will also store bullion for you, at a cost of 0.75 percent of your gold's value annually. Goldline promises to buy it back for a 1 percent liquidation fee and about a 4 percent discount on gold's price that day.Consumers don't appear to have many complaints about Goldline. It has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

Bottom line:

Financial experts generally advise against holding physical gold and instead recommend buying shares of an exchange- traded fund that purchases gold for clients and stores it in a bank. Buying gold ETFs involves trading fees and annual expenses of about 0.4 percent.

There's nothing magical about gold, or any other investment? Remember when real estate was the thing? All investments should be made as part of a portfolio balanced according to your specific needs.