Nearly 1 in 5 Americans are stashing cash at home in fear of a recession | Hacker News Reader

Nearly 1 in 5 Americans are stashing cash at home in fear of a recession

cnbc.com

17 pointsspking22 comments

I think people have stashed cash at home for many years. Its called an emergency fund. Major multi-day power outage - ATMs don't work. Credit cards don't work. Cash works. I also stash a couple of 5 gal. gas cans in the garage. And some food in the pantry. I even have spare clothing in the closet.

Don't forget the solar power, water supply, medical kit. Oh, and guns and ammo, so that you get to keep all that when the need arises.

Seems like they're preparing for something more realistic like the 2003 blackout and not a zombie apocalypse.

Yes, because guns are only useful against zombies, not looters.

Curious what differentiates 'spare' clothing from 'regular' clothing.

You can only wear one outfit at a time, everything else is spare.

I would imagine "spare" clothing would be:

1) More durable than normal clothing. They would not be something stylish enough to wear every day, but useful in a natural disaster. Think heavy duty work clothes.

2) Kept in some sort of safe, sealed container. In case of a flood or fire, your regular clothes could easily get spoiled. Spare clothing would be kept someplace safe and could be retrieved when necessary.

3) Provide extra warmth, in case your house was destroyed or damaged. Depending on the local weather, it might include a heavy coat, gloves, boots, etc.

True, and that is my definition. I'm no Jack Reacher.

You're probably aware but make sure you're rotating out that gas. It will last longer in an airtight container than one with venting like most cans. Smart move though.

All the gas cans I've seen for sale in the last 10 years are self-sealing to limit emissions. I don't think you can even buy the "plain" ones anymore.

Oh neat. Still, even when airtight there is a stable shelf life you need to be mindful of.

I've replaced nozzles on my gas containers, and added vents. Kit cost $7 to refit 2 containers. I also use them to fill my old old car fuel tank which is behind the license plate on the lower half of the bumper. Modern gas container nozzles used on this type of filler leave about 50% on the ground.

Making these kinds of moves can prove costly. If you’re hiding cash in your home, you’re not able to take advantage of compound interest, which helps your money grow exponentially the longer you have it invested.

Over here in the UK the highest interest you'll get on a savings account at the moment is about 0.5%, and most accounts give much less. While compound interest is a factor, it's a trivial one. The interest you're getting on money in the bank isn't going to save you in a recession.

Unless you're stashing Gold or precious metals instead of cash, then you have the benefit of not losing the 2-5% that the feds are printing in money yearly. That's assuming you're in the US.

I have a roll of uncirculated bitcoin buried in the yard... :-)

I totally get the argument for precious metals as a hedge and "insurance policy" against rampant runaway inflation, but don't you lose a lot more than 2-5% when you pay the premium over spot to buy it? Also, how useful/liquid are gold and silver in a serious economic downturn?

>Over here in the UK the highest interest you'll get on a savings account at the moment is about 0.5%, and most accounts give much less

Just looking at the options available from Monzo right now, you can get a 1.15% rate on a minimum £10 deposit (next day withdrawl). Not the most exciting rate of interest, but certainly not quite as dire as 0.5%!

This happened a lot for people that lived through the great depression. A probate lawyer gave me advise, any time you buy a home from someone that lived through, or their parents lived through the great depression, to check all electrical sockets, attics, basements, nooks and spaces for money and jewelry.

Check the pockets of all their clothing before donating it or throwing it out too. That's a common place for them to hide money.

This is meaningless with only one data point.

There's nothing to say that this is a new phenomenon, or whether this number has been the average for decades.

This is MSN start page level news and does not belong on HN.

In another CNBC news, “More than one in five (21 percent) don't save any of their annual income.”

Source:https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2019/03/14/her...

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