Gyroscopic Investing

smurff wrote:

MachineGhost wrote: http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/min ... ail&pid=34

Thanks MachineGhost. This gives me something to think about, for example buying at a coin show and being followed home.

Storm wrote:

smurff wrote:

MachineGhost wrote: http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/min ... ail&pid=34

Thanks MachineGhost. This gives me something to think about, for example buying at a coin show and being followed home.

There's definitely a lot to be said for not storing your coins at home.  A lot of people say "well, I have a safe."  This does you no good when the thief simply holds a gun to your wife's head and says "open the safe."

Storm wrote:

smurff wrote:

MachineGhost wrote: http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/min ... ail&pid=34

Thanks MachineGhost. This gives me something to think about, for example buying at a coin show and being followed home.

There's definitely a lot to be said for not storing your coins at home.  A lot of people say "well, I have a safe."  This does you no good when the thief simply holds a gun to your wife's head and says "open the safe."

Just read most of the replies.  Very interesting discussion.  A few quick thoughts...

1. Storing any significant quantity of gold at home is ALWAYS high risk.  I don't care how fancy your security system is, how many dogs with big teeth you have, or how many firearms you keep on your person and in every room of the house.  Violent home invasion is a far more common crime than bank robbery these days.  Even if you manage to repel the attack without you or loved ones getting killed, is it really worth it?  And seriously, who wants to live in a fortress?

2. Bank robbery has gone out of style like bell bottom pants.  Serious (read smart) crooks don't rob banks anymore.  The risk reward ratio really sucks.  The incidence of unsolved bank robbery in the US is among the lowest for major crimes.  There are just too many ways of getting caught and the FEDS get involved right away.  Most bank robberies these days are done by idiots in need of some quick cash or who are trying to make a name for themselves on the street.

3. In line with #2 above the idiots who do rob banks almost never go near the safe deposit boxes, and for good reasons.  As noted in an earlier post they would need to know what was in which boxes and there are so many.  They would need sophisticated means to break into them and they would need TIME unless they knew which box(es) to hit.  Time is a luxury bank robbers don't have.

All of which said, I am a big fan of diversification.  One easy way to reduce risk is to store your physical in more than one safe deposit box at different bank branches.  The added expense is minimal.  As for gold confiscation, while I would hesitate to rule anything out, I view that as an extremely low risk.  The US is too big to undertake large scale gold confiscation without wreaking havoc on global financial markets.  Huge numbers of Americans own gold stored overseas, either directly or via ETFs.  The implications of an attempt to to seize all of that are mind boggling.  I need an aspirin just thinking about it.  Bottom line: It's not 1933 anymore.  The world and the US have changed.  And so has case law and the composition of the Supreme Court.  I seriously doubt confiscation would fly in the courts today.

Anyways that's just my two cents, which with another buck will get you a small cup of average at best coffee.

Storm wrote: There's definitely a lot to be said for not storing your coins at home.  A lot of people say "well, I have a safe."  This does you no good when the thief simply holds a gun to your wife's head and says "open the safe."

MachineGhost wrote: http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/min ... ail&pid=34

1NV35T0R wrote: I was thinking about from a cost standpoint, holding your physical gold at home is the "cheapest" option potentially. If you have a safety deposit box, you'll potentially have to pay for that and if you want insurance on that box at all.

I was wondering though, if it was worthwhile to purchase maybe an ounce of two in 1/10 oz. gold coins and having a robber safe and your real safe.

If it ever gets out through the grapevine that you have gold and that someone comes to rob you, they go after the easy "honeypot" robber safe and sees you have 20 coins in there. They might think it is a lot just due to the quantity but only would be about 2 oz. of gold. Then you could have a more secretive safe that you keep the other gold coins in.

I realize you are taking more risk keeping the gold in your house but I'm just thinking about this from a probability aspect. What is the probability of being robbed versus a potential guarantee of paying for either insurance or the safety deposit box?

MediumTex wrote:

1NV35T0R wrote: I was thinking about from a cost standpoint, holding your physical gold at home is the "cheapest" option potentially. If you have a safety deposit box, you'll potentially have to pay for that and if you want insurance on that box at all.

I was wondering though, if it was worthwhile to purchase maybe an ounce of two in 1/10 oz. gold coins and having a robber safe and your real safe.

If it ever gets out through the grapevine that you have gold and that someone comes to rob you, they go after the easy "honeypot" robber safe and sees you have 20 coins in there. They might think it is a lot just due to the quantity but only would be about 2 oz. of gold. Then you could have a more secretive safe that you keep the other gold coins in.

I realize you are taking more risk keeping the gold in your house but I'm just thinking about this from a probability aspect. What is the probability of being robbed versus a potential guarantee of paying for either insurance or the safety deposit box?

You may recall that the scheme on which Truman Capote's In Cold Blood was based started with a rumor that there was a safe with some money in it.

The information that there is a safe in your home with something in it of potential value can set in motion all sorts of unpredictable events.

1NV35T0R wrote:

MediumTex wrote:

1NV35T0R wrote: I was thinking about from a cost standpoint, holding your physical gold at home is the "cheapest" option potentially. If you have a safety deposit box, you'll potentially have to pay for that and if you want insurance on that box at all.

I was wondering though, if it was worthwhile to purchase maybe an ounce of two in 1/10 oz. gold coins and having a robber safe and your real safe.

If it ever gets out through the grapevine that you have gold and that someone comes to rob you, they go after the easy "honeypot" robber safe and sees you have 20 coins in there. They might think it is a lot just due to the quantity but only would be about 2 oz. of gold. Then you could have a more secretive safe that you keep the other gold coins in.


I realize you are taking more risk keeping the gold in your house but I'm just thinking about this from a probability aspect. What is the probability of being robbed versus a potential guarantee of paying for either insurance or the safety deposit box?

You may recall that the scheme on which Truman Capote's In Cold Blood was based started with a rumor that there was a safe with some money in it.

The information that there is a safe in your home with something in it of potential value can set in motion all sorts of unpredictable events.

MediumTex,

I just read up on your reference from wikipedia (isn't the internet awesome?)

It looks as though the robber slit his throat because he didn't have a safe there even though the robber thought he did.

If I actually had a safe there with what looks like a reasonable amount of money (if 2 oz. of gold coins then a few thousand dollars), then what is the probability that the robber would still slit my throat if they got the money and what is the probability of me surviving a throat slit?

It still seems like a reasonably low percentage, but wouldn't it be better for this scenario where they actually find gold versus if word got out you had gold, but you actually had it in a safety deposit box and they thought you kept it in your home so out of rage they slit your throat?

Ideally, I'm a big fan of keeping my throat as is, but controlling costs as well.

lazyboy wrote: Reminds me of the famous Jack Benny routine:
A gunman goes up to Jack and says: "Your money or your life."
Benny, who is well know as a cheapskate, stares into space and stalls.
Gunman: "Well, what's it gonna be?"
Jack: " I'm thinking, I'm thinking..."

lazyboy wrote: Reminds me of the famous Jack Benny routine:
A gunman goes up to Jack and says: "Your money or your life."
Benny, who is well know as a cheapskate, stares into space and stalls.
Gunman: "Well, what's it gonna be?"
Jack: " I'm thinking, I'm thinking..."