Gyroscopic Investing

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RENO, NV - The Wells Fargo Bank located at 5100 Neil Road is currently closed to the public due to a robbery that happened earlier in the evening.

Reno police tell our on scene reporter that a man robbed the bank around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 25, 2013.

The man produced a gun and ended up leaving with an undisclosed amount of money, according to Reno police.

The suspect escaped the scene, however, through the use of eye-witness descriptions, police were able catch the suspect in the Atlantis parking lot, according to our on scene reporter.

The suspect is in custody and will be charged with robbery, according to Reno police.

Police tell us no one was harmed as a result of the robbery, and the suspect's weapon was found.

Wells Fargo Bank will be closed until further notice.

This is one of the things that scares me about a safe deposit box at the bank. If the sh** hits the fan, the banks would likely be closed indefinitely and you'd have no access to your cash/precious metals.

samuraidog wrote: This is one of the things that scares me about a safe deposit box at the bank. If the sh** hits the fan, the banks would likely be closed indefinitely and you'd have no access to your cash/precious metals.

If TSHTF, what would be the point of closing banks?  Wouldn't you want banks to be open in such a situation?

That would be like closing the grocery stores and hardware stores when a hurricane hit.

If there were more instances of mass bank closings in the last 80 years or so, I might worry more about this scenario.

Who would benefit from ordering all banks to be closed?  I can't think of anyone.

MediumTex wrote:

samuraidog wrote: This is one of the things that scares me about a safe deposit box at the bank. If the sh** hits the fan, the banks would likely be closed indefinitely and you'd have no access to your cash/precious metals.

If TSHTF, what would be the point of closing banks?  Wouldn't you want banks to be open in such a situation?

That would be like closing the grocery stores and hardware stores when a hurricane hit.

If there were more instances of mass bank closings in the last 80 years or so, I might worry more about this scenario.

Who would benefit from ordering all banks to be closed?  I can't think of anyone.

More to the point, if I'm a bank employee and tshtf, I'm not going into work to help others get their gold and/or fight rioters. Would you? 

MediumTex wrote: That would be like closing the grocery stores and hardware stores when a hurricane hit.

Banks do close when hurricanes hit and they may not open for a long time. Quite a few have suffered flooding during recent hurricanes (Katrina and Sandy). That obviously isn't going to damage gold but I can't help but wonder how well a safe deposit box would hold up in a category 5 hurricane (and possibly subsequent looting at the bank?). Living on the West coast of Florida, that is something I DO have to think about. I've been evacuated a few times before but that was before I owned any gold. It would be a hard choice now whether to drive off and leave the gold behind.

Chinese restaurants and Korean bodegas remained open during Superstorm Sandy as my cousin in Chelsea attested.
I will stash my money there. 

Most SHTF scenarios don't occur with zero warning. If you see problems on the horizon then take some or all of your gold out of the bank. When a bank is robbed, it is a crime scene. Between the cops and insurance people my guess is the bank in question will be closed for 2-3 business days.

Big deal.

When renting a safe deposit box always choose one as high as possible in the vault.

If you live near the coast, perhaps drive inland a bit and rent a safe deposit box there.

If you live near a fault line, drive to a bank that isn't close to the fault line and rent a safe deposit box there.

This stuff should be obvious.

Even if rioters and looters took over a bank, I'm not sure they would care that much about the individual safe deposit boxes.  After they cracked open a couple of them and found some baby footprints and pictures of grandma, I'll bet they would move on to something else.

Safe deposit boxes in bank branches in areas where people live well but have a lot of debt are unlikely to contain a lot of really valuable stuff.  That's what I would be thinking if I were a bank robber or looter.

MediumTex wrote: When renting a safe deposit box always choose one as high as possible in the vault.

If you live near the coast, perhaps drive inland a bit and rent a safe deposit box there.

If you live near a fault line, drive to a bank that isn't close to the fault line and rent a safe deposit box there.

This stuff should be obvious.

Even if rioters and looters took over a bank, I'm not sure they would care that much about the individual safe deposit boxes.  After they cracked open a couple of them and found some baby footprints and pictures of grandma, I'll bet they would move on to something else.

Safe deposit boxes in bank branches in areas where people live well but have a lot of debt are unlikely to contain a lot of really valuable stuff.  That's what I would be thinking if I were a bank robber or looter.

The movies have teached me that safe deposit boxes contain priceless jewlery, bearabonds, and backup cash/passports/guns for spies. 

But if you choose one in a vault, your not going to have time to break in to get your gold.

I've lived through a few hurricanes in Florida.  I can tell you that well before the storm arrives all of the ATMs near the coast get cleaned out, all of the gas stations run out of gas, and yes the banks do close.  Cash, gas, basic foodstuffs, batteries, bottled water and ice are all in short supply because everyone hoards them in advance of the storm, and shortages often last for weeks after the storm has passed. 

Do you have some warning?  Yes, but storms do shift their path suddenly and no one really pays much attention until the storms get close.  Then its a mad run to see who can fill their gas tanks, wallets and pantries the fastest.

So I do  recommend you keep some cash, gas, food, water, etc...handy at home at all times.  I'm not a prepper, but think you should keep enough to last a week or two until things can get back to normal or you can (using your gas and cash) get out of town.

Could the banks close in a banking crisis?  You bet - its happened in Argentina, happened in Iceland, happened in Cyprus, happened here in the US to my Grandparents.  Will they reopen?  Probably - in a week or so.  In the meantime usually cash is king (remember everyone's trying to get their cash out of the bank!).  So some cash on the side is probably better than gold in the short term.  They likely won't have change for you $1500 gold Maple Leaf at the grocery store or gas station in any case.

mortalpawn wrote: I've lived through a few hurricanes in Florida. 

Me too, but if you're in South Florida you've probably seen more than me.

I can also tell you that MT's advice to get a safety box away from the coast doesn't work so well in Florida. When I received a mandatory evacuation order during Charley I packed up my RV and moved it to Orlando. You can ask what's left of my RV how well that turned out.

notsheigetz wrote: I can also tell you that MT's advice to get a safety box away from the coast doesn't work so well in Florida. When I received a mandatory evacuation order during Charley I packed up my RV and moved it to Orlando. You can ask what's left of my RV how well that turned out.

No plan is perfect.  You just have to do the best you can in your circumstances, but for most people there are a few simple things they can do to make their storage plan more secure.

if I lived in a place prone to devastating natural disasters, I would probably split my allocation between paper gold and physical bullion directly held at home. At least then I could always bring it with me if I ever had to evacuate. Of course this would require living in a relatively safe area, owning a home with a sturdy safe, etc.

Pointedstick wrote: if I lived in a place prone to devastating natural disasters, I would probably split my allocation between paper gold and physical bullion directly held at home. At least then I could always bring it with me if I ever had to evacuate. Of course this would require living in a relatively safe area, owning a home with a sturdy safe, etc.

I thought you lived in San Francisco?

notsheigetz wrote:

Pointedstick wrote: if I lived in a place prone to devastating natural disasters, I would probably split my allocation between paper gold and physical bullion directly held at home. At least then I could always bring it with me if I ever had to evacuate. Of course this would require living in a relatively safe area, owning a home with a sturdy safe, etc.

I thought you lived in San Francisco?

Ugh, no way.

MediumTex wrote: No plan is perfect.  You just have to do the best you can in your circumstances, but for most people there are a few simple things they can do to make their storage plan more secure.

My bank is at the top of a steep hill, and the vault is on the main level with the tellers (not in the basement as I've seen with many banks).  The building is brick, and it has been around for many years.