Hiding Money around/In the home

[drgolf03055]

Do you keep a small amount of money hidden around the house. Where do you hide the money to be safe from thieves and fire and still be available in the event of an emergency? We keep a couple of thousand dollars, in $20. denomination, in our fire proof safe. But, realize in a break-in, any entry-level thief would look here first and perhaps carry the entire safe off.Looking forward to hearing your suggestions/ideas.

[Sibley]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

Actually, the most useful thing to do is to keep enough cash to fill the gas tank in your car. That way you don't get stranded if your wallet gets stolen and you're out of gas.

[rantk81]

I keep enough gold and silver (in small units) on hand in order to be able to bribe potential militia soldiers in the event I want to move quickly to a new location during a disaster!

[OtherJen]

We usually have a couple hundred in cash stashed in an old wallet in husband's desk, plus our change jar. We haven't had a major system outage that took out local ATMs since 2003, but the cash has come in handy a few times.

[hops]

We keep up to the max loss our homeowners insurance would cover ($200). We've only had to raid it once. Ours is kept in a small fireproof safe that is well-hidden. We also keep a $10 or $20 in the bedside table as a sort of a decoy in case of burglary.

My great-grandfather kept enormous amounts of cash and coins stashed around his house. When he died the place had to be torn apart looking for everything and my grandparents had no way of knowing if they'd recovered it all. He would have lost a small fortune had there ever been a fire or flood or if he'd developed dementia.

[CrustyBadger]

I just keep about $50 on hand in $1 and $5s.   The kids' schools are constantly asking for money in cash -- exact change only, no checks no online payment.  It's always something like $13 or $27

[Dicey]

Fake book usually contains a few hundred. It currently is has a bit more, due to a successful garage sale recently.  In my pre-FIRE days, my friends used to refer to my wallet as "The Five Dollar Wallet", which made me laugh. Now, I like having cash available without actually carrying it. It's nice to know I always have enough to pay the house cleaners. No hate, please. My MIL has ALZ and lives with us. She won't let me strip her bed, but she will do it herself if told the cleaners are coming.

When we cleaned out my in-laws' second home prior to sale, we found $80 under a lamp, about $150 in a cupboard full of linens and $11,000 in a pouch under a nightstand. Who knows what we missed?

[Fire2025]

When we bought our house we found $300.00 in a coffee can, while gutting the kitchen.  We're going to use it to buy fruit trees.

[dcheesi]

I've stashed small amounts here and there, but I don't resort to any elaborate hiding places.

I figure it's a diversification strategy. If my electronic accounts get hacked or frozen (or natural disaster hits, etc.), I have a little bit of cash to get by with. Conversely, if my house or car get broken into, I might lose a little cash, but my online accounts are intact. There are too many possible loss scenarios to create an absolute fool-proof reserve¹, so diversification is the best bet.

¹The best hiding place in the world won't help if the house goes up in a gas explosion, or gets blown away by a tornado, etc.

[TomTX]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

[frugalnacho]

Anytime we receive cash from someone (gifts, reimbursement for buying something for them, etc) we just put it in our fire proof safe.  We use that safe as our ATM if we need cash for anything.  If the balance starts to get too high ($500+) we consider making a trip to the bank to deposit it.  If it exceeds $1,000 we make a special trip to bank so we don't have that much cash on hand.  Our motivation is solely convenience of not having to constantly go to the bank to withdraw/deposit cash.

We don't really hide the safe.  It's not sitting out on the coffee table, but it's also not well hidden.  If someone robbed us and rummaged through everything, there is a a decent chance the safe would be found.  The safe is small and portable, and we keep the key permanently attached and in the lock mechanism.  We are primarily concerned with protection of our important documents (ss cards, birth certificates, passports, etc) in the event of a fire and not so much theft of those items. 

[DadJokes]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

I think an easier solution is to pay your tickets.

[Channel-Z]

20 years of small cash gifts on birthdays and Christmases have added up over the years. Some of it is in a safe. Some of it is hidden elsewhere. If I'm home and need to flee, or I am kicked out for any reason, I would make it my emergency food fund. I also have two jars of coins, which I typically use for coffee or turnpike tolls. And although it does me no good here, I have a few hundred Euros and about $30 Canadian. I'm not actively planning for the total meltdown of society, though.

[John Galt incarnate!]

Do you keep a small amount of money hidden around the house. Where do you hide the money to be safe from thieves and fire and still be available in the event of an emergency? We keep a couple of thousand dollars, in $20. denomination, in our fire proof safe. But, realize in a break-in, any entry-level thief would look here first and perhaps carry the entire safe off.Looking forward to hearing your suggestions/ideas.

Where I live wildfires are a worrisome reality. 

I keep $  in my checking and savings accounts specifically for use in case of a mandatory evacuation order during a wildfire.

The bank is only ~6 miles from my house.

Also, I  always keep  at least five  100-dollar bills in my wallet and I have credit cards.

So I don't need to keep money at home in  a safe or bury it on my property.

If I did want to keep a pile of $ at home I wouldn't use a safe.

I'd bury it to keep it safe from thieves and fire.

I'd do  lots of research to find out which kind of  desiccant and underground storage container are best to prevent paper money from deteriorating.

If you do choose a safe be aware  that their fire ratings and margin of protection may not be as claimed.

This is critical given that paper bills burn so easily.

[geekette]

A neighbor passed away many years ago. His heir decided to add a garage to the house. Let’s just say the character of the digging changed when the first jar of coins was broken by the backhoe. I don’t remember how many jars were found, but a guy with a metal detector wandered the yard for a while before the backhoe went back to work.

Bills were found in his clothes after he died, but the coins were unexpected.

We keep some 20’s in a fireproof safe. Even if they get crispy or wet in a fire, you can send mutilated bills to the treasury for replacement (with caveats).

[MyAlterEgoIsTaller]

I had a fire safe, and it was stolen several years ago.  The burglar kept the smallish amount of cash that I keep in there, but tossed the box in the woods, where I was lucky that it was found by a hiker, who returned it to me with all my important papers undamaged.  Now I keep the papers in a fire-resistant fiberglass envelope.  The safe probably had a better fire rating, but it's too easily recognizable to thieves.  The envelope is easier to hide well. 
I don't keep money with my important papers anymore.

I keep some cash hidden in my car - it's come in handy lots of times, for purchases at garage sales and vegetable stands I happen upon, and once when I discovered at the grocery store that I'd forgotten my wallet.

[ROF Expat]

I think if you're going to keep thousands of dollars in cash in your home, it is a better idea to have a safe than to hide your money.  Get a safe that is appropriate to the value of the items you'll put in it, bolt it into the floor where it isn't easily visible to other people, and don't talk about it. 

As a previous poster noted, safes are often not as fire resistant as manufacturers claim.  They are also often not as secure as they claim.  Many "gun safes" can quickly and easily be opened with an axe or common tools like an angle grinder.  But if you just want a place to keep a few firearms and a small amount of money safe from common "smash and grab" burglars, that might be all you need, especially if you have (and use) good locks and an alarm system.  A safe really needs to be securely bolted to the floor, otherwise, you're just conveniently putting all your stuff in a box for the thief to carry away and open at his leisure. 

[seattlecyclone]

Suppose that you built a rental house and decided to insulate the walls with dollar bills. Would you be allowed to depreciate the cash? Discuss.

[Frankies Girl]

No, because I can't imagine a scenario where I'd need cash that isn't already handy in my wallet.

I technically have silver in the form of a small coin collection. I don't plan on saving specifically for this sort of thing if I can find an easy way to sell it tho, but it has not been a priority at the moment.

I did wonder about how much cash was missed in my father's house and in my grandparents' house when we cleaned them out.

Found over $2K stashed all over the place after my grandmother died. Figure she had no idea and my grandfather had done it decades earlier.I found it hidden in old record albums that had been stored in the garage and I believe my grandfather had done it, and grandmother hadn't gotten around to throwing them out and only found the $ because I like vinyl and was looking at condition to see if I wanted to keep or sell.

If you feel a need to have cash hidden, make sure to tell your kids so they know to check the hiding place if you're gone. Seems a shame for it to be throw away by accident.

[NV Teacher]

My mom kept a few hundred dollars behind a picture in a picture frame sitting on her dresser.

[MissNancyPryor]

I helped someone hide $900 in accumulated restaurant tip money once before leaving on a long trip.  It was the weekend and they just realized having that stack of money sitting around was probably not a good idea while they were gone.   

I suggested taping it behind the kick plate of the dishwasher, and that is what we did (we put it in a zip loc bag and then taped that to the metal plate).  A thief is not likely to grab a screw driver and remove that. 

   

[FireLane]

Yes, I keep a small amount of cash in my house. A few hundred dollars at most. It's in the safe with my important documents.

I consider it SHTF money. If there was a natural disaster or some other reason to bug out in a hurry, it would be good to have on hand just in case it's a few days until I can get to an ATM or whatever.

[Villanelle]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

\\One call to my bank and they do a temp increase on my ATM limit.  I also have a second account at a different bank.  And my spouse (which I know not everyone has, of course) has cards for both accounts.  We would withdraw about $1500-$2000, or perhaps more in less than an hour. 

That said, I've been meaning to start a small cash stash around the house.  We moved this spring and I haven't replaced our old one, and it's not at all unusual for us to have less than $50 total in cash.  I'd prefer to have a few hundred around.    I can't see any good reason to have more than that. 

[use2betrix]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

I think an easier solution is to pay your tickets.

Sometimes things like an accidental toll violation, red light ticket, electronic speeding trap, etc., can get lost floating around the mail, or to an old address if your current drivers license isn’t up to date.

Yes, there’s always a “well then don’t break the law” statement to be made, but sometimes accidents like the above can just happen..

[Sibley]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

I needed $800 in cash last year. I went to the bank branch assuming that the ATM wouldn't do that much. They told me that the standard ATMs outside would do up to I think $1000, and they had a couple in the lobby that would do $2 or 3k. You might want to check what the ATM limits are.

[Sibley]

So, reading through everyone's posts - I'm seeing justification for keeping a couple hundred in the house. Any more and it seems to be a quirk/comfort item. Which is fine, but please acknowledge it for what it is.

[MrMathMustache]

I do but only because that was one of my favorite little things in The Sopranos when Carmela would take out a roll of $100s from a tomato sauce can for incidentals.  It's just kind of fun to have a bunch of cash hidden.  Stupid, but whatever!

[soccerluvof4]

I keep up to 1k in the house mostly for haggle money and I havent used and ATM since probably a year or two after they came out. Anything over that goes into my account but I have gotten some pretty good deals having cash on hand on things and with 4 kids it just becomes handy at times. I dont think about it though unless I need it so it doesnt make me spend more or anything.

[TomTX]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

\\One call to my bank and they do a temp increase on my ATM limit.  I also have a second account at a different bank.  And my spouse (which I know not everyone has, of course) has cards for both accounts.  We would withdraw about $1500-$2000, or perhaps more in less than an hour. 

I didn't have either a spouse or a second bank while in college, nor a bank accepting phone calls on a Sunday - just a friend who was dumb about a ticket. She didn't need to spend a night in jail, so I consider it a win.

[Sailor Sam]

So, reading through everyone's posts - I'm seeing justification for keeping a couple hundred in the house. Any more and it seems to be a quirk/comfort item. Which is fine, but please acknowledge it for what it is.

I keep waiting for people to acknowledge that I'm the rightful leader to the Land of Thut, but they refuse!

Isnt it annoying?

[svosavvy]

I will offer out a suggestion that I give to my family members when they become obsessed with keeping precious metals around their home in case of emergency.  First thing: if you keep bullion around your home (including non collectible bullion coins) and you are a victim of theft homeowner insurance will not cover your loss.  If you become a victim of theft because someone finds out you have PM's consider yourself lucky if you don't get physically harmed in the process.  A "coin collection" will require a separate rider on your homeowners in most cases.  One "hack" that I offer is to look at your homeowners insurance policy most offer replacement value for your kitchen/table service (silver) mine is to the tune of $5000 included no added line item charge or rider just the deductible.  I have noticed that silver tableware or anything seems to be not as in style to upper middle class families as it was in the 50'-60's so you can usually get it for slightly above melt value.  It is denominable for your end of the world scenarios.  Trade a fork for some bullets or butter haha.  I personally have decided to not worry about the end of the world till it actually happens.  Find a reputable seller with items selling at a slight premium to melt.  I had luck on eBay with a guy who had thousands and thousands of positive feedback and this is basically all he does.  Find items that appeal to you and you would find a joy to own.  Some of the patterns are just gorgeous.  My fave is Wallace grand baroque.  Do your homework so you have less of a chance at getting burned. Use these items to entertain and create happy experiences with.  Over the long haul they will depreciate less than cash plastered into the wall.  A little cash never hurts.  You satisfy your end of the world prepping paranoia and get compliments from your friends when entertaining.  Win win.

[nereo]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

\\One call to my bank and they do a temp increase on my ATM limit.  I also have a second account at a different bank.  And my spouse (which I know not everyone has, of course) has cards for both accounts.  We would withdraw about $1500-$2000, or perhaps more in less than an hour. 

I didn't have either a spouse or a second bank while in college, nor a bank accepting phone calls on a Sunday - just a friend who was dumb about a ticket. She didn't need to spend a night in jail, so I consider it a win.

Round here, banks are open on Sunday. They also have a 24/7 call center.  The days of "banking hours" are long gone (thank god!).

Between spouse and me it wouldn't be hard to come up with $1,500 in under an hour. We could easily triple that if we went to close family/friends hat in hand.

Having cash on hand made sense a few decades ago, today... I struggle to find a good reason for keeping more than $100 on hand. An emergency kit and spare gas has been more useful to me in emergencies than paper money.

[Sugaree]

My grandfather did this.  He had a stash of cash in an Advil container in his medicine cabinet.  I always just assumed that it was something that the children of the Depression era just did.

In college, when I was waiting tables I would stash cash around.  The problem was that I would forget where I hid it.  So inevitably I'd open a cabinet or drawer and find a couple of $5 bills (and sometimes a joint, hence the reason I would forget where I put the cash).

[Dicey]

So, reading through everyone's posts - I'm seeing justification for keeping a couple hundred in the house. Any more and it seems to be a quirk/comfort item. Which is fine, but please acknowledge it for what it is.

So It's just not important to you, then. Got it. Keep doing you.

That doesn't make anyone else wrong/quirky/in need of comfort.

I live in a place where the power company is currently shutting off the power completely when there is high fire danger, sometimes for days. Having a little extra cash on hand is just plain smart. What constitutes a sensible amount? As a portion of my NW, it's negligible, not even a rounding error.

[EscapedApe]

Cash, no. Guns, yes.

[ysette9]

Cash, no. Guns, yes.

I really hope this is a joke

[partgypsy]

So, reading through everyone's posts - I'm seeing justification for keeping a couple hundred in the house. Any more and it seems to be a quirk/comfort item. Which is fine, but please acknowledge it for what it is.

I keep waiting for people to acknowledge that I'm the rightful leader to the Land of Thut, but they refuse!

Isnt it annoying?

My Mom asked if I wanted the old family silver. It's somewhere in my lil' brother's house, not being used. But it's not like I entertain in grand style. Same thing for her china. It's gorgeous and one of the rarer designs Maybe when I declutter some more.
I try to keep around 100-150 in the house because I have been having a number of things fixed around the house and some of the workers prefer cash over check, other payments. More than that and well, houses burn down, places get robbed, etc.

[Dicey]

I keep a couple thousand around and use it as my ATM. I wrap it in tin foil and put it in a jacket pocket with a spare CC. That way when the SHTF I can just grab the jacket. I often reuse the tin foil. It makes nice hats ;-).

I remember 2 times I needed cash. Once after 9/11 when banks (and just about everything else) shut down and I couldn't get needed cash. Then during a huge power outage from SoCal to AZ that left everything electrical (gas stations, food, atoms, etc) shut down for more then 24 hours. Lots of people stranded overnight in their cars and most places only took cash.

That hat looks damn good on you, lol!

[fat-johnny]

I keep some cash hidden in my car - it's come in handy lots of times, for purchases at garage sales and vegetable stands I happen upon, and once when I discovered at the grocery store that I'd forgotten my wallet.

I keep a $20 bill folded up and tucked inside my cell phone case.  Nobody but me would ever know it was there.   I have never lost/misplaced my cell phone, but if I did, losing my $500+ cell phone would be more worrisome than losing the $20 bill.

It comes in handy about once every 3 moths when I need cash for something, or forget my wallet, or what have you.  Nice little emergency stash.

FJ

[nereo]

I keep some cash hidden in my car - it's come in handy lots of times, for purchases at garage sales and vegetable stands I happen upon, and once when I discovered at the grocery store that I'd forgotten my wallet.

I keep a $20 bill folded up and tucked inside my cell phone case.  Nobody but me would ever know it was there.   

Well, I mean... no one but anyone who's on this forum :-P

[DesertRatNomad]

Living in south Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina and needing to stay in town due to my job at the hospital I definitely see a use for keeping extra cash handy - especially multiples of smaller denominations (and food and fuel).

 In Hattiesburg, many businesses (including the liquor store where I worked part time) re-opened cash only.  I don’t recall the exact  banking situation but I do recall being sent to evacuate  patients to Jackson as the hospital had no water and was experiencing generator problems. Those of us on the transport were grateful for the opportunity to get cash and fuel from an area that had resources. 

I also agree with others that having cash on hand for various opportunities is preferable to running around to multiple ATM’s to scrape together the needed amount.

[MilesTeg]

Fire proof safe, concealed and preferably semi-permanently attached to cement. Unless you live in a high crime area, you don't need to get too elaborate.

[MilesTeg]

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

In college a friend was picked up on a "warrant roundup" for an unpaid ticket. On a Sunday morning.

Bail was effectively* cash or bond only, and the amount was higher than most ATM limits - but not enormous. I think it was around $800. Unless one wanted to pay additional fees to a bail bond company, the only way to avoid spending a night in jail was having friends/family with cash.

*Think you're going to get a certified check on a Sunday?

\\One call to my bank and they do a temp increase on my ATM limit.  I also have a second account at a different bank.  And my spouse (which I know not everyone has, of course) has cards for both accounts.  We would withdraw about $1500-$2000, or perhaps more in less than an hour. 

I didn't have either a spouse or a second bank while in college, nor a bank accepting phone calls on a Sunday - just a friend who was dumb about a ticket. She didn't need to spend a night in jail, so I consider it a win.

Round here, banks are open on Sunday. They also have a 24/7 call center.  The days of "banking hours" are long gone (thank god!).

Between spouse and me it wouldn't be hard to come up with $1,500 in under an hour. We could easily triple that if we went to close family/friends hat in hand.

Having cash on hand made sense a few decades ago, today... I struggle to find a good reason for keeping more than $100 on hand. An emergency kit and spare gas has been more useful to me in emergencies than paper money.

The thing about emergencies is you can't anticipate all of them. A few hundred bucks stored in your house will not significantly impact any investment strategies but could be extremely useful in a variety of not unlikely scenarios.

You don't have to have an unreliable banking system to be put in a 'cash is necessary' state. Any number of natural disasters (or just extreme weather or other mundane things) can take out networks and make businesses unable to take plastic or even checks for a few days.

I mean, spare gas is good but doesn't keep for more than a few months. :)

[fat-johnny]

I always keep about $1,000 around the house, locked up in my toolbox.  One reason (as someone else stated) is bail money.  I have some pretty crazy friends, and you never know when that midnight phone call may come.  Another (better) reason is Craigslist and FB Marketplace.  An example from a few years ago:  I got divorced, ex took my grill and I soon after found a VERY nice Weber grill (list price like $1200) on Craigslist, guy bought it, used one year, always stored indoors, and was moving to an apartment.  He was asking $800.  I texted him “I have $500 cash and can be there within the hour”, and that sealed that deal.  If you like to purchase/flip Craigslist and FB items, cash is king…..and having cash on hand gives you a leg up on other people who don’t.

Another reason:  garage door spring broke, service guy comes out within 2-3 hours.  Quotes me $250.  I ask “Do you do a cash discount”, he says “Yes….$200”…..and he did it kinda as a “side job”.  Saved me $50 (20%)

Funny on-topic story:  I was at a poker game a year or two ago, it was a season long thing with a buyin of $200.  Guy pays in old-style $20 bills.  Sparks up a conversation, turns out his father had recently passed, and on hid death bed, he tells the kid “You know that picture of the deer in the basement?  Take it off the wall, pull up the carpet, and start digging”.   Dad was a union auto worker through the 50’s-70’s, and had a little “chute” built into the wall that emptied into a metal box cemented below the floor in the basement.  Kid dug it up the cement, opened the metal box, and found like $60k in old style $20’s, $50s, and $100s.

FJ

[trollwithamustache]

Any home owner should keep 1k in cash on hand. We use a safe, and its bolted down, so I am not super worried about a thief carrying it off.

There are a lot of tradespeople out there who can knock out odds and ends for you around the house. it can be hit or miss on your needs vs what they can do, but one can get some great cash in hand deals out there.  For example, I've gotten some great deals on disposal... the guy was going to the dump anyways, or the guy did his paid run and had no work for the rest of the day so his cash rate to me was such that we were both happy. 

A buddy of mine even got a well drilled for a 100 bucks because the guy had the rig at the neighbors house and there was a delay for a day so he came over and did it for cash. (yes it was shallow, and yes he had to run to the store to get some casing pipe, as you do)

[EscapedApe]

Cash, no. Guns, yes.

I really hope this is a joke

Why would it be?

[Villanelle]

I keep a couple thousand around and use it as my ATM. I wrap it in tin foil and put it in a jacket pocket with a spare CC. That way when the SHTF I can just grab the jacket. I often reuse the tin foil. It makes nice hats ;-).

I remember 2 times I needed cash. Once after 9/11 when banks (and just about everything else) shut down and I couldn't get needed cash. Then during a huge power outage from SoCal to AZ that left everything electrical (gas stations, food, atoms, etc) shut down for more then 24 hours. Lots of people stranded overnight in their cars and most places only took cash.

Atoms were shut down?!  You know the SHTrulyHTF when they suspend the laws of physics!   ;)

[Villanelle]

Funny on-topic story:  I was at a poker game a year or two ago, it was a season long thing with a buyin of $200.  Guy pays in old-style $20 bills.  Sparks up a conversation, turns out his father had recently passed, and on hid death bed, he tells the kid “You know that picture of the deer in the basement?  Take it off the wall, pull up the carpet, and start digging”.   Dad was a union auto worker through the 50’s-70’s, and had a little “chute” built into the wall that emptied into a metal box cemented below the floor in the basement.  Kid dug it up the cement, opened the metal box, and found like $60k in old style $20’s, $50s, and $100s.

FJ

I find stuff like this astounding.  Had that guy died suddenly, most likely his cash would have been lost to his family.  Likely some random person in possession of the home and either leveling it or doing major work 50 years later would have come across that money. 

Unless you don't trust even one person in your family (or someone else), if you [global] had a significant stash of cash or valuables hidden somewhere,  it probably pays (ha!)  to make sure your heirs or someone you trust knows about it.  I don't think I looked in grandma's cereal boxes before tossing them after she died.  Nor did I check inside every shoe, or to see if there was anything taped to the underside of the dresser drawers before I donated it.  If there was cash, if was lost to her family, which is where she would have wanted it to go. 

I also think that ic you skip the most obvious hiding placed, your valuables are probably fairly safe even in the event of a break in. Most thieves don't seem likely to spend more than a short time in a house after they've broke in.  They are going to check the underwear drawer because that's a common hiding place, but probably not a lot of other places.  So you could semi-protect that cash without the risk of having it be inadvertnedly thrown away, donated, or left in the house by your heirs.

[Sibley]

I agree with keeping some cash on hand for the types of situations listed.  @Sibley, consider that having the flexibility of folding money on hand allows the Mustachian to follow one of the tenets and of this pseudo religion and operate from a position of strength as noted by the examples above.  Not a quirk or false comfort.   

When we had a wind storm and power out for 8 days I needed a larger gas can to avoid trips to the station for my generator.  The hardware store could not run their cash registers so they were doing everything by hand, in the dark  using flashlights, and wrote up paper receipts.  They escorted customers to the shelf to pick up the needed items and then escorted us to the registers and stayed with us until we were out the front door.  It was very apocalyptic feeling and a good reminder to strive for some level of self-sustainability during multi-day regional disasters.  A small wad of cash should be part of any good disaster kit.  Not $60K, but a few hundred bucks is a good idea.   

Um, you just agreed with me.

[simonsez]

I agree with keeping some cash on hand for the types of situations listed.  @Sibley, consider that having the flexibility of folding money on hand allows the Mustachian to follow one of the tenets and of this pseudo religion and operate from a position of strength as noted by the examples above.  Not a quirk or false comfort.   

When we had a wind storm and power out for 8 days I needed a larger gas can to avoid trips to the station for my generator.  The hardware store could not run their cash registers so they were doing everything by hand, in the dark  using flashlights, and wrote up paper receipts.  They escorted customers to the shelf to pick up the needed items and then escorted us to the registers and stayed with us until we were out the front door.  It was very apocalyptic feeling and a good reminder to strive for some level of self-sustainability during multi-day regional disasters.  A small wad of cash should be part of any good disaster kit.  Not $60K, but a few hundred bucks is a good idea.   

Um, you just agreed with me.

Can you clarify what you meant when you said the following?

Um, why? I can totally see keeping a couple of $20s in the desk drawer or something, but thousands? Unless you live somewhere that has a corrupt/unreliable banking system, I really can't see a situation where keeping a large amount of cash on hand is necessary. And if your banking system is that bad, I'd suggest seriously considering immigrating.

Actually, the most useful thing to do is to keep enough cash to fill the gas tank in your car. That way you don't get stranded if your wallet gets stolen and you're out of gas.

Having enough cash to fill a gas tank or a couple of $20s ($40) is not the same order of magnitude for buying food supplies for an extended period of time, paying a pricey ticket, making bail, haggling money for great cash deals, etc.  This would be several hundred dollars and possibly exceeding a thousand.  This seems more useful compared to the $40.  You say you agree with this but this contradicts what you said earlier.