Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: K Frame on February 02, 2023, 07:53:55 AM
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Interesting, short article.
https://lifehacker.com/here-s-how-much-emergency-cash-you-should-keep-at-home-1850048816?utm_source=pocket-newtab
I've always kept some cash on hand, but I'm way guilty of dipping into it and not replacing it. I've not looked in awhile, but I wouldn't be surprised if I were under $300.
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even as little as $200 can be useful. More than that is probably overkill—the money would be better off in a bank where it will be insured and earn interest.
A couple tenths of a percent bank interest is essentially useless, and FDIC just barely survived the crash 15 years ago and currently has 1.3percent of the funds needed to cover what they think will happen this year.
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Enough for a couple fillups at the gas pump and some groceries
IOW about $6000. That’s $1k in cash at home and $5k cash in the bank safe deposit box.
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At least several thousand dollars.
I also keep a couple grand in a second wallet I can grab when I'm on my way to a gun show, "just in case" I come across something I really want.
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Before my little one arrived I had finally managed to keep a grand in the safe. Long time to get to that. I have lots of other readily convertibles as in I can pay the house note awhile by selling ammo or other shiny stuff. My emergency cash is low now but the coffee cans of change are probably at least 300.
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Enough for a couple fillups at the gas pump and some groceries
IOW about $6000. That’s $1k in cash at home and $5k cash in the bank safe deposit box.
Better double that if you want a dozen eggs.
I generally keep between $500 and $1,000 on hand in my safe, but that has dropped considerably since COVID.
I need to bulk that back up.
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More than I should. Cashed in about 7 years worth of rolled coin last April. It was enough to cover a week long road trip to Cooke City MT with a big loop through the heart of Wyoming for me and my 17 y.o. daughter.
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Enough for a couple fillups at the gas pump and some groceries
IOW about $6000. That’s $1k in cash at home and $5k cash in the bank safe deposit box.
The bank safe deposit box is only viable if the bank is open for business ...
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One months take home pay.
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Couple grand. It's been handy to score "I can show up right now with cash" deals
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At least several thousand dollars.
I also keep a couple grand in a second wallet I can grab when I'm on my way to a gun show, "just in case" I come across something I really want.
I would have that. But things I "really want" come around too often.
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One months take home pay.
I think that is a good plan. I have maintained a decent emergency fund for several years now, but not in cash. Keeping a portion of that in cash (where you can access it) is likely a good idea.
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And with this crowd, I probably don't need to mention that this cash is something you don't talk about. I think most people treat it that way, but you never know.
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I got a coffee can full of nickels.
:O
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And with this crowd, I probably don't need to mention that this cash is something you don't talk about. I think most people treat it that way, but you never know.
Except to strangers online.
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Except to strangers online.
My cash is all in pesos. [tinfoil]
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My cash is all in pesos. [tinfoil]
I've got a gold 2 peso piece from the 1920s.
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I've got a gold 2 peso piece from the 1920s.
And today it probably has more or less the same buying power it did back then.
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The bank safe deposit box is only viable if the bank is open for business ...
The $1K is to get by on until the bank is open.
In the case of a prolonged shutdown due to natural disaster or civil unrest or zombie alpaca lips, I can likely still access it because of certain “connections”. (Not trying to be dramatic but it’s a small town and we have small town relationships.)
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My cash is all in pesos. [tinfoil]
I got the pistols so I’ll keep the pesos.
Down to my cans of change, unloaded what little I had in the safe to get a straight truck worth of future firewood dropped in the yard
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The prudent amount seems to be going up at about 10% a year.
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Enough for a couple fillups at the gas pump and some groceries. IOW about $6000. That’s $1k in cash at home and $5k cash in the bank safe deposit box.
Uh, this may be a dumb question but, in the event of a natural disaster (hurricane/tornado), who says the bank will even be open?
I use credit cards very sparingly, mainly because I don't like them.
And, in reading that article, I am way over what they seem to believe is "appropriate". :rofl:
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Uh, this may be a dumb question but, in the event of a natural disaster (hurricane/tornado), who says the bank will even be open?
I use credit cards very sparingly, mainly because I don't like them.
And, in reading that article, I am way over what they seem to believe is "appropriate". :rofl:
See my second post #18 above.
And for sake of discussion when I say “small town relationships” I mean something like being on the board of directors for the financial institution where said safe deposit box might be located.
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See my second post #18 above.
And for sake of discussion when I say “small town relationships” I mean something like being on the board of directors for the financial institution where said safe deposit box might be located.
In all likelihood, over 95% of the public is not so "connected". It is much easier to find a used safe company and buy a fairly sizeable one that can't be hauled away with specialize equipment.
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Because I don't have a branch of my credit union locally or even an ATM in their name I will usually keep about 1500 dollars in folding money stashed in the safe. I just replenish it as needed when I go to the big city.
bob
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Ammo is my emergency cash…. [ar15]
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Ammo is my emergency cash…. [ar15]
If nothing else, you can trade it to the people who think 100 rounds is a stockpile.
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I was doing pretty good till my daughter got the idea in her head that I was an ATM.
:facepalm:
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In the functioning society ATM card strategy is an emergency plan too. If you and your partner have between you four bank accounts and a few credit cards with open cash advance lines you can head to the ATM and put hands on a fair amount quickly.
Does not apply in the hurricane, amazing how many people thought the ATM or the swipe at the store was going to work.
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Actually the fed bank examiners/regulators require banks to have all kinds of contingency planning for various disasters, etc, rational being that’s when customers need access to cash the most.
Anything short of the rapture or the zombie alpaca lips, they won’t be closed long.
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Since savings interest has been pitiful, I keep a pretty hefty stash of cash in my safe. I have a large, heavy, safe that has a top fire rating as well as being quite secure.
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Since savings interest has been pitiful, I keep a pretty hefty stash of cash in my safe. I have a large, heavy, safe that has a top fire rating as well as being quite secure.
Same here. Not sure how I’m gonna ever get the safe back up the stairs if we ever move.
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I've got most of my free cash riding in treasury bills right now.
Current investment rate for my latest tranch is 4.58%.
Yeah, still not great, but better than anything a bank is offering and with the added advantage that the interest isn't taxable at the state or local level, so that makes them more attractive.
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Six months of expenses. Rent, car, insurance, electric, internet, and food for us and the dog. Plus a little buffer just in case. Probably a bit excessive; but I’d rather have it sitting accessible in case of an emergency rather than in a bank that’s basically paying the same amount of interest. I figured this way we’re covered for a bit in the event of a banking failure, or in case the next Weather Baroon has an emp device attached.
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Since savings interest has been pitiful, I keep a pretty hefty stash of cash in my safe. I have a large, heavy, safe that has a top fire rating as well as being quite secure.
Several local banks are offering CD rates of up to 4.6%, which is just a few tenths of a percent less than what 6 month T-bills have been going for lately. It doesn't match Bidenflation, but it's a lot better than what they were paying a couple of years ago. (A lot better? Perhaps I should say not as bad)
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I've got some cash in a money market account from Capital One currently at 3.4% APY. Not a terrible place to put cash I need ready access to. I've also got some in a Federated Prime Cash Obligations Fund (PCOXX) which adjusts APY daily. Current return on that is 4.61%.
We definitely don't keep six months of expenses in cash at home, although I've got well over 6 months of expenses in the bank or liquid investments. I respect the preparation that having such cash on hand represents, but I would worry about taking that kind of risk. My insurance doesn't cover the loss of more than $2,000 in cash as I recall, and while a fire or theft would suck already having it wipe out my emergency fund on top of everything else would be much worse.
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but I would worry about taking that kind of risk. My insurance doesn't cover the loss of more than $2,000 in cash as I recall, and while a fire or theft would suck already having it wipe out my emergency fund on top of everything else would be much worse.
Good point. I have some cash in the gun safe, but your post has me reevaluating on splitting the stash up, or maybe getting one of those fire resistant money pouches and placing that in the fire resistant safe. I'm not sure how well that would work as far as added protection. Or maybe converting to gold coins and burying it in the yard. =D
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Good point. I have some cash in the gun safe, but your post has me reevaluating on splitting the stash up, or maybe getting one of those fire resistant money pouches and placing that in the fire resistant safe. I'm not sure how well that would work as far as added protection. Or maybe converting to gold coins and burying it in the yard. =D
You know, I got one of those fire resistant document pouches a while back thrown in with a pistol safe. I don't have much faith in it, but I'm up for sacrificing it and a couple of $1 bills for science. Think I should just toss it in the burn barrel with some cardboard or should I build a drywall box to put it in to try to replicate a safe's fire resistant layer?
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Some of my "old timer" relatives kept important papers, car titles, deeds and such in waterproof(ish) containers in their big freezers.
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Some of my "old timer" relatives kept important papers, car titles, deeds and such in waterproof(ish) containers in their big freezers.
My grandpa keeps a copy of his will in his chest freezer in the basement.
No idea how that would stand up in a fire, but I'd bet better than the little fabric "fireproof" baggies.
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My grandpa keeps a copy of his will in his chest freezer in the basement.
No idea how that would stand up in a fire, but I'd bet better than the little fabric "fireproof" baggies.
File it at County Clerk's office.
Brad
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A freezer is better than nothing, but it's not a great choice.
Any really important stuff goes into a small fire resistant lock box that goes in my fire resistant gun safe.
I also scan important documents so that I have an electronic record.
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Important paper documents go into a fire-resistant lock box and are also scanned to my Google drive, so I can access them anywhere I can get computer access.
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You know, I got one of those fire resistant document pouches a while back thrown in with a pistol safe. I don't have much faith in it, but I'm up for sacrificing it and a couple of $1 bills for science. Think I should just toss it in the burn barrel with some cardboard or should I build a drywall box to put it in to try to replicate a safe's fire resistant layer?
That would be a great experiment. I would think maybe use the drywall box. I'm guessing the box would be much less fire/heat resistant than a decent safe, so if the money in the bag survives in there, it would survive inside of a fire resistant safe.
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You could probably use plan paper and find out what you need to know.
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I'll see if I can find a good way to strap together a drywall box so that it might survive a fire. For science. I think I've got some angle iron I could weld together to hold it.
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You could probably use plan paper and find out what you need to know.
Or a mix of a couple of dollar bills and some plain paper, because I'm wondering if the paper used for currency is more heat resistant than plain old copy paper or newsprint or whatever.
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Then again, we could save Cordex some work:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=testing+fireproof+money+bag
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Or a mix of a couple of dollar bills and some plain paper, because I'm wondering if the paper used for currency is more heat resistant than plain old copy paper or newsprint or whatever.
IIRC currency paper ignites at a slightly lower temperature than pulp paper, but essentially the same temperature range.
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Then again, we could save Cordex some work:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=testing+fireproof+money+bag
Bah, those just involve tossing the bags directly in a fire.
I welded up a frame yesterday but realized I must have tossed the scrap drywall I thought I had. I'll have to grab a scrap from somewhere.