Posted: 3/23/2013 11:24:14 AM EDT
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With all of the shit going on in Cyprus, it makes me feel uneasy keeping my money in the banking system.
I will continue to use my primary bank for cashing checks and paying bills, but I want to pull out my savings and do something else with it. I only have roughly 4k in savings, but its all I have and I need to keep it safe. I also have about $700 in silver. I am an apartment dweller with roommates, so a safe is not a viable option. I thought about getting a safety deposit box but that costs money, and its not accessible 24/7. I do have a storage locker, that has 2 security points, is made of steel so unlikely to burn. I could get a safe to keep in there, elevated to protect from flooding, however the locker is only accessible 7am-7pm, and I want access to my money when I need it. Anybody have any suggestions? ETA Id love to get a safe and mount it at my parents house, but they live approx 6 hours away. |
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I dont think so. I mean if i need money id have to do 12 hours of driving to get to it. Where as with the storage locker, the longest possible weight for it to reopen is 12 hours.
Plus if its an EOTW scenario i can just climb the fence and have access to my locker. As opposed to driving 12 hours. |
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Nothing is 100% safe, secure and accessible.
Hide some small amount, maybe $500, really good in your belongings in the apartment. This is for immediate use should you need it. Put the rest in your storage locker where you can access it during the day. Either of these could get stolen, but you think that is possible if you keep it in the bank also. Weighing the risk versus the accessibility is something only you can do. |
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With all of the shit going on in Cyprus, it makes me feel uneasy keeping my money in the banking system. I will continue to use my primary bank for cashing checks and paying bills, but I want to pull out my savings and do something else with it. I only have roughly 4k in savings, but its all I have and I need to keep it safe. I also have about $700 in silver. I am an apartment dweller with roommates, so a safe is not a viable option. I thought about getting a safety deposit box but that costs money, and its not accessible 24/7. I do have a storage locker, that has 2 security points, is made of steel so unlikely to burn. I could get a safe to keep in there, elevated to protect from flooding, however the locker is only accessible 7am-7pm, and I want access to my money when I need it. Anybody have any suggestions? ETA Id love to get a safe and mount it at my parents house, but they live approx 6 hours away. I would be looking for something to invest your money in. Remember, cash is being stolen from you when it's sitting in your closet/safe/wherever via inflation. Protecting yourself from inflation is just as important of a prep. I don't have the best advise for how to do that but start reading in the Business and Investing Forum. Lots of good info there. |
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One month, minimum, as per Ferfal, who has lived through this sort of scenario, for all expenses, plus a cushion.
I would add to not put all your eggs in the same basket. If that means keeping a number of separate, differentially located, but secure stashes, so be it. If that means stashing money in a bank, and a credit union--different insurance programs, then that might be an alternative. It might come to pass that any bank and/or credit union might close almost instantly. Has happened in RI during the infamous "Credit Union Crisis" back when, and in the US when FDR declared a week-long "Bank Holiday". Such things have happened in the past, and might happen in the future. |
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It shouldn't be too hard to find hiding places in your apartment. Bury it in the inside of a picture frame on your bedroom wall; put it in a ziploc bag and duct tape it to the outside back of your toilet tank or to the bottom of your sink (if you have your own bathroom). Hide it in your bed frame or behind baseboard trim. Stick some inside the base of a lamp. Basically, put it inside, under, or behind things no one ever even looks at.
Some people make small containers out of pvc pipe and dangle them inside the wall under a switch box or a vent. There's no way to guarantee that any cash you keep at home won't be found by a determined thief or destroyed in a fire. Hide some in your car, under trim panels or under the spare tire. This way you only lose it if your car is stolen or burns up, both highly avoidable events. That way if the banking system locks down when you are driving far from home you've got some cash right there in your car. |
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Frankly what happened in Cyprus isn't going to happen here for several reasons. The first reason is because its not politically expedient. Cypress did not control their own money supply, so they didn't have the option of financing their government via inflation of the money supply. The US is inflating the money supply through the fed, which keeps the US from needing to run a hair cut on everyones banked money. Your risk is much higher that your money would be lost/stolen/burned up in a fire if you pull it out of the bank versus the relatively remote risk that ~10% would be taken by the .gov in a nationwide financial hair cut. Obviously I recommend keeping some cash at home. You need enough to cover emergencies and temporary bank failures. Second I recommend spreading money over different banks. The likely hood of one bank failing is much higher than two or three separate banks. Another reason is in the extremely unlikely event where a national bank holiday is declared (like cypress) it is to your advantage to be able to withdraw your cash from different banks via ATM's. The larger concern is loss through inflation. Money sitting in your bank account or in your closet/safe/safety deposit box is constantly losing value due to current fiscal policy. Once you have enough cash set aside for emergencies the rest should be invested in an attempt to combat loss to inflation. |
I'm not one to keep a ton of cash around, but I do have enough for a couple months worth of expenses plus emergencies. Mine is spread around-safe deposit box at credit union, home, Mom's house etc. The circumstances would have to be pretty extraordinary to not have access to any of it, which is the exact reason why it's not all in one place 
To me, emergency cash is treated like any other prep. My other preps aren't all kept in the same place either, so a single point of failure or loss won't wipe me out. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Take out the drawers from the drawer bank of the kitchen cabinets.
Cut out the bottom of the drawer bank cabinet. Hide cash (1s 5s 10s 20s) in a double ziplock freezer bag.(flood/rain proof) Cover hole with hideous contact paper. Put same hideous contact paper on the rest of the cabinet bottoms. In the event of SHTF...you have your cash in 10seconds. |
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Frankly what happened in Cyprus isn't going to happen here for several reasons. The first reason is because its not politically expedient. Cypress did not control their own money supply, so they didn't have the option of financing their government via inflation of the money supply. The US is inflating the money supply through the fed, which keeps the US from needing to run a hair cut on everyones banked money. Your risk is much higher that your money would be lost/stolen/burned up in a fire if you pull it out of the bank versus the relatively remote risk that ~10% would be taken by the .gov in a nationwide financial hair cut. Obviously I recommend keeping some cash at home. You need enough to cover emergencies and temporary bank failures. Second I recommend spreading money over different banks. The likely hood of one bank failing is much higher than two or three separate banks. Another reason is in the extremely unlikely event where a national bank holiday is declared (like cypress) it is to your advantage to be able to withdraw your cash from different banks via ATM's. The larger concern is loss through inflation. Money sitting in your bank account or in your closet/safe/safety deposit box is constantly losing value due to current fiscal policy. Once you have enough cash set aside for emergencies the rest should be invested in an attempt to combat loss to inflation. +1 The good old US of A has no reason to take 10% of any ones US money because the can make/ print as much as they want 
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Frankly what happened in Cyprus isn't going to happen here for several reasons. The first reason is because its not politically expedient. Cypress did not control their own money supply, so they didn't have the option of financing their government via inflation of the money supply. The US is inflating the money supply through the fed, which keeps the US from needing to run a hair cut on everyones banked money. Your risk is much higher that your money would be lost/stolen/burned up in a fire if you pull it out of the bank versus the relatively remote risk that ~10% would be taken by the .gov in a nationwide financial hair cut. Obviously I recommend keeping some cash at home. You need enough to cover emergencies and temporary bank failures. Second I recommend spreading money over different banks. The likely hood of one bank failing is much higher than two or three separate banks. Another reason is in the extremely unlikely event where a national bank holiday is declared (like cypress) it is to your advantage to be able to withdraw your cash from different banks via ATM's. The larger concern is loss through inflation. Money sitting in your bank account or in your closet/safe/safety deposit box is constantly losing value due to current fiscal policy. Once you have enough cash set aside for emergencies the rest should be invested in an attempt to combat loss to inflation. I quite agree. |
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I keep a few months worth of cash in my house. Like most already mentioned, there is some risk. I feel the benefits outweigh that risk. On a side note, I have purchased quite a few items cheap because I had money on hand during hours banks were closed. When you have "cash in hand" deals just seem to appear. I have cash in each vehicle for garage sales and the occasional ammo score. |
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Having a month's worth of basic expenses in cash is just prudent planning. You may want to consider having more than one "cash stash", for example, some at a local credit union (vs. the too-big-to-jail fraud houses), some in a lock box concealed in clothing boxes under the bed, some at your parents, etc.
When hurricane Isabel came thru here a few years ago, power was out in the urban areas for 5 days, and in the rural areas for 2 weeks. Cash was king and was the only way to buy many things. How long did it take the Gulf Coast to get back on-line after Katrina? Some local banks were simply wiped out. Today, when banks fail, it can take anywhere from 2 days to 2 weeks to be able to get your money out. (Back in the savings-and-loan crisis, 2 weeks was considered good.) So, it doesn't have to be a Cyprus-style bankster rip-off scheme to make you be in a hurt for cash. (But don't think for an instant that it can't happen here. It can absolutely happen here, and we're only one bad election away from the .gov deciding that your money is their money.) |
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Quoted: Find a way to stash a couple grand in your apartment and secure the rest elsewhere. I yanked all my money out of my bank when I found out that I could only withdraw $2k in cash per business day. I've been on cash and prepaid visas since. This must be your bank's policy. If it were mine, they'd no longer be my bank. I've withdrawn much more than this, with the only question being if I'd like 20's, 50's, or 100's... |
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1. A bank safe deposit box is not accessible nights and weekends, and would probably not be accessible if their were problems with our banking system as banks would be closed.
2. If you keep cash on hand, then don't put it all in one place. 3. If you keep cash on hand, then store it in a fireproof container. It would really suck to come home from work to find your home in ashes and your money along with it. 4. OPSEC. Keep your money storage to yourself and your wife. |
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1. A bank safe deposit box is not accessible nights and weekends, and would probably not be accessible if their were problems with our banking system as banks would be closed. 2. If you keep cash on hand, then don't put it all in one place. 3. If you keep cash on hand, then store it in a fireproof container. It would really suck to come home from work to find your home in ashes and your money along with it. 4. OPSEC. Keep your money storage to yourself and your wife. |
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I keep a few months worth of cash in my house. Like most already mentioned, there is some risk. I feel the benefits outweigh that risk. On a side note, I have purchased quite a few items cheap because I had money on hand during hours banks were closed. I was going to mention this. I make a lot of money by being able to buy things when banks are closed. Someone will post something on a local internet site cheap because they need money. Everyone else wants it, but ATM's only spit a couple hundred in most cases. I got a Stratocaster for $100 on a late Sunday from some guy who was desperate for cash and sold it Monday for $400. This happens a lot. Why can't you have a safe just because you have roommates? Bolt that sucker in. |
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I keep a few months worth of cash in my house. Like most already mentioned, there is some risk. I feel the benefits outweigh that risk. On a side note, I have purchased quite a few items cheap because I had money on hand during hours banks were closed. I was going to mention this. I make a lot of money by being able to buy things when banks are closed. Someone will post something on a local internet site cheap because they need money. Everyone else wants it, but ATM's only spit a couple hundred in most cases. I got a Stratocaster for $100 on a late Sunday from some guy who was desperate for cash and sold it Monday for $400. This happens a lot. Why can't you have a safe just because you have roommates? Bolt that sucker in. Exactly, I've bought ammo, guns, car parts, you name it. Hell I've loaned people a few bucks to get them out of jams, had them put up collateral, worth twice the money I loaned them and got a good return on my money for a few days use. Cash in hand is where its at, especially from Friday night at 5pm till Monday morning at 9 am. |
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I would be looking for something to invest your money in. Remember, cash is being stolen from you when it's sitting in your closet/safe/wherever via inflation. JMHO - But given the sum the OP is talking about - only $4000 - I don't think the inflation risk is that big a deal. The first few $K of anyone's savings ought to be a simple emergency fund, and liquidity is the overriding concern there. Cash is great. With bank interest rates on sums that low being close to $0, the loss from holding it in cash at home is negligible. He just needs a safe place to store it, which is somewhat complicated by living in an apartment. After the emergency fund is at his comfort level, any high interest debt should be paid off, and only then should long term savings and investment come into the picture. (The exception being if his employer offers any kind of match, in which case he should take full advantage of that immediately.) |
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Frankly what happened in Cyprus isn't going to happen here for several reasons. The first reason is because its not politically expedient. Cypress did not control their own money supply, so they didn't have the option of financing their government via inflation of the money supply. The US is inflating the money supply through the fed, which keeps the US from needing to run a hair cut on everyones banked money. Your risk is much higher that your money would be lost/stolen/burned up in a fire if you pull it out of the bank versus the relatively remote risk that ~10% would be taken by the .gov in a nationwide financial hair cut. Obviously I recommend keeping some cash at home. You need enough to cover emergencies and temporary bank failures. Second I recommend spreading money over different banks. The likely hood of one bank failing is much higher than two or three separate banks. Another reason is in the extremely unlikely event where a national bank holiday is declared (like cypress) it is to your advantage to be able to withdraw your cash from different banks via ATM's. The larger concern is loss through inflation. Money sitting in your bank account or in your closet/safe/safety deposit box is constantly losing value due to current fiscal policy. Once you have enough cash set aside for emergencies the rest should be invested in an attempt to combat loss to inflation. This is solid advise. Hording cash is just a mistake. Not to mention, makes you an attractive target. |
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Quoted: Quoted: I would be looking for something to invest your money in. Remember, cash is being stolen from you when it's sitting in your closet/safe/wherever via inflation. JMHO - But given the sum the OP is talking about - only $4000 - I don't think the inflation risk is that big a deal. The first few $K of anyone's savings ought to be a simple emergency fund, and liquidity is the overriding concern there. Cash is great. With bank interest rates on sums that low being close to $0, the loss from holding it in cash at home is negligible. He just needs a safe place to store it, which is somewhat complicated by living in an apartment. After the emergency fund is at his comfort level, any high interest debt should be paid off, and only then should long term savings and investment come into the picture. (The exception being if his employer offers any kind of match, in which case he should take full advantage of that immediately.) +1 |
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Well what really raised concern for me was when I went to cash an insurance check I needed 2 days prior (rental ran out the next day and I needed to buy a vehicle asap, and had just gotten the check).
My bank said 2-3 days to clear (understandable). The bank where the check was issued by (BoA) said they could do it until they heard the amount (just under $8K) I had to call all around until I finally found one that had enough. And they had to give it to me in $50s and $20, the teller explained anything over $5k usually requires 2 days notification. If 10 people all want to withdrawal $2K cash, somebodies getting butt hurt. |
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Quoted: With all of the shit going on in Cyprus, it makes me feel uneasy keeping my money in the banking system. I will continue to use my primary bank for cashing checks and paying bills, but I want to pull out my savings and do something else with it. I only have roughly 4k in savings, but its all I have and I need to keep it safe. I also have about $700 in silver. I am an apartment dweller with roommates, so a safe is not a viable option. I thought about getting a safety deposit box but that costs money, and its not accessible 24/7. I do have a storage locker, that has 2 security points, is made of steel so unlikely to burn. I could get a safe to keep in there, elevated to protect from flooding, however the locker is only accessible 7am-7pm, and I want access to my money when I need it. Anybody have any suggestions? ETA Id love to get a safe and mount it at my parents house, but they live approx 6 hours away. You have essentially two issues going against you for cash: - apartment --> fire - roommates and the security breeches associated (their friends, them, security issues they cause by unlocked doors, etc.) I'd say get one of those lock boxes intended for cars, then run the cable through a part of your bed frame (even if it comes apart, they gotta take the bed apart to do it) Considering it's 4k or so, I'd say maybe move some of it into cash, some of it into upgrades you are already going to do (classes, training, outdoor clothing, etc.) whatever you need, but also keep most of it where it is. On the grand scheme, that's not all that much and depositing a whole bunch of cash so you can pay for a new vehicle transmission or something is a pain in the rear. You want SOME cash that mitigates the risk of being completely wiped out in financial crisis, but not to the point that you add more risk elsewhere. That last phrase, "more risk elsewhere" is why precious metals aren't a real good option either. Trading one in 5 million chance of getting screwed for one in 100,000 chance of getting screwed isn't a good transaction. That said, interest rates aren't going anywhere for a while, so you lose basically nothing by keeping it in cash. I did the same, I am going to stop at about 1k in cash. Enough to get me moved to smaller living quarters if global economy crashes and our government pulls a Cyprus.
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This is solid advise. Hording cash is just a mistake. Not to mention, makes you an attractive target. Hording cash doesn't make you a target- people thinking or knowing you have cash does. To the OP, I wonder where he stores the silver. I'd either look for a permenant mod to the furnature or just get a safe deposit box. Mine costs $30 year. Assuming a standard of living that matches $4000 total savings (ie you ain't making 100k/year), I'd keep a thousand at home and the rest in the bank. |
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Ask your insurance folks how much cash they cover for theft. I think 200 bucks might be a common limit on what they cover for theft. Fire always make me think of some tv show or movie where the burned ashes are examined for serial numbers and the money got replaced for some reason. But it was tv and I personally don't expect to get mine replaced in a fire, but I should ask anyway. As far as how much a bank can give out in x amount of time, call around and ask. I used to just smile when someone mentioned the forms that needed to be filled out at some specific amount and I just shrugged and told em to fill out the forms. I had just sold some property and had some cash and was just getting into firearms so me going to a gunshow generally meant I wanted to have some cash on me. I really am amused that banks killed my ability to float a check but it takes several days for some business check to clear. Drives me up the wall because I never did float my checks but I have run into the game of x type of money order or bank certified check needs y amount of time to clear. I think you might want to consider a percentage here and there instead of all the money in one spot. Later on I don't see a problem having 4k in one spot, but you should probably have a few grand in other spots at that time as well. Spread out the risk and always consider how things get trashed by theives. They destroy furniture by overturning it and check drawers for false bottoms and what not. They can usually cut most cables with ease using tools they tend to carry if serious about being a theif. The meth head breaking in a window and taking your change jar is one thing. The theif who takes 5 or 10 minutes to ransak the house and destroy furniture and picture frames is what you want to consider. I also admit I don't expect the cyprus haircut to come to our shores, but I also don't like keeping all my money in one place. I have a bank account and will always have one since direct deposit is so common for employers to use these days. How long the money stays in there is my call. And having some places do automatic withdraws saves me some money on bills, I only do it if they offer a discount. And even then, I would not tie up your only account with automatic withdraws or automatic direct deposit. Multiples. Always think in multiples. And I would not just bank at one branch. If there comes a time where the bank is closed and you need to use an atm for some cash having accounts at two or more banks would offer you a couple different atm cards so suddenly you have more access to your money. I would still keep some cash at the house. But talk to the bank and insurance folks and consider all your options. I personally have no use for bank safety deposit boxes but my aunt and uncle love theirs so they fit some needs. They keep titles and stuff in it and understand the ramifications of what happens if one or both of them pass away and someone needs into that box. To some extent I could actually see spending 1k or more on a nice safe. Find something more than a fire rated locker and it might not even be big enough to hold long guns, but get something pretty serious if you get something. |
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Shop several banks and credit unions. Mine offers a free safe deposit box. Even if you can't get a free one, a small box is relatively cheap. Can you get access to it on the weekends or if the power is out? What do you think the Cyprus depositers would tell you? Don't forget bank "Holidays" 
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You have 700 in silver, and 4000 you need to break up. Basically, you have 4700.
You need to spread it out more. Maybe 1000 cash in apt, 1000 prepaid card of some sort, 1000 savings in one of the larger open saturday banks, 1000 in a credit union, and the 700 silver. Or 500 cash, 500 storage locker, 1000 prepaid card, 1000 bank, 500 safe deposit, 500 credit union, 700 silver...or put some at parents house, too, like 500-1000 for just in case.... Never put all your eggs in one basket.... |
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This is an interesting development along these lines.
Bank witholds access to metals |
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Take them up on their offer to reimburse you at spot and take the $$$ NOW and run. Then buy the PM's elsewhere and hold them. Before everyone else gets the same idea. 
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With all of the shit going on in Cyprus, it makes me feel uneasy keeping my money in the banking system. I will continue to use my primary bank for cashing checks and paying bills, but I want to pull out my savings and do something else with it. I only have roughly 4k in savings, but its all I have and I need to keep it safe. I also have about $700 in silver. I am an apartment dweller with roommates, so a safe is not a viable option. I thought about getting a safety deposit box but that costs money, and its not accessible 24/7. I do have a storage locker, that has 2 security points, is made of steel so unlikely to burn. I could get a safe to keep in there, elevated to protect from flooding, however the locker is only accessible 7am-7pm, and I want access to my money when I need it. Anybody have any suggestions? ETA Id love to get a safe and mount it at my parents house, but they live approx 6 hours away. Six hours away isnt that bad if it means your money will be safe. Given that you live with roommates, sounds as if you'd go over there anyway if theres serious trouble. My advice in general is to have a 2nd fireproof small safe hidden with your cash stash and PM, maybe a handgun in there as well. Your main safe will have a bit of cash, some jewelry, maybe some fake printed bonds or stocks so as to make it look as a large part of your savings, common safe content, so that if you're ever forced to open the safe at gunpoint criminals wont be suspicious of you having a second safe. The thing is as people start keeping more and more cash at home (for all the right reasons I must add) criminals realize this too. It became very much a SOP for home invaders in Argentina to put a gun to a kids head and demand the money, even torture to make sure that no cash was hidden isnt uncommon as well. There was this old man that wasbeaten to death in a home invasion, after the bad guys left and before he died, he told his family of several gold coins he still had hidden, burried and some under flowerpots. Tough old man. The second safe idea is mostly in case of you not being home. Criminals will usually settle with finding one safe. These days you have to puts your eggs in several baskets. Some in the bank, some in cash, some in PM, and finally the one few people are talking about here, the place where rich people keep their money, off shore accounts in Singaproe, Cayman island, Bermuda and a couple others. FerFAL |
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Quoted: You have 700 in silver, and 4000 you need to break up. Basically, you have 4700. You need to spread it out more. Maybe 1000 cash in apt, 1000 prepaid card of some sort, 1000 savings in one of the larger open saturday banks, 1000 in a credit union, and the 700 silver. Or 500 cash, 500 storage locker, 1000 prepaid card, 1000 bank, 500 safe deposit, 500 credit union, 700 silver...or put some at parents house, too, like 500-1000 for just in case.... Never put all your eggs in one basket.... What is the advantage of a pre-paid card? If power is out it is worthless....what if you have to verify the amount of the card before someone will run it....juts curious |
| If I were in your situation I would pull out $2500. I'd keep $500 on me and stick $2000 in a cheap fire safe (one of those small cheap ones for papers). Put the fire safe in a larger box with old clothes or papers, etc on top and stick it in your parents basement with the other junk. Either that or put the 2K in plastic bags and a plastic peanut butter jar and buy it some place no one would ever look at your parents house. |
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Prepaid card is easier to carry than 1000 in 5/10/20's. A savings account or checking account with a debit card is similar, just remember a bank account/debit card has your name on it, and who knows what else that someone could access... You can give a prepaid card to someone else to keep/use, versus you cannot with a visa/debit card. Though, you can cancel a debit/credit card when stolen, and easily get it replaced....
It is not better than cash, by any means, but gives a way to spread things out, somewhat. If the power goes out, yep, not the best option, but when the power comes back on, or you get to an area with power, it gives easier access than a savings account in a bank whose branch is in another town.... |
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Shop several banks and credit unions. Mine offers a free safe deposit box. Even if you can't get a free one, a small box is relatively cheap. were those available when the banks in cypress closed? i am NOT a fan of safety deposit boxes. they are not as secure as a lot of people like to think they are. |
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i do agree with 30 days of cash on hand. during our storms last year local atms were available within 3-4 days, but they were not being stocked and power was intermittent. on top of that many business were cash only for a couple of weeks due to cc processing being down. you could travel 25 miles away and get anything you wanted but everyone else was also going there and things such a food and fuel were scarce for a week or so. having the funds to trade locally came in VERY handy.
i realised pretty quickly that 4-500.00 is simply not even close to enough on hand for anything more than a week or so. |