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transportation, medical care, more extensive disaster preparedness, and other expenses.
CASH & CARRY It’s easier to manage finances if you have less debt. Pay off credit cards, starting with the one with the lowest balance, and renegotiate interest and payment rates if you have a good track record, until you’re debt-free. Meanwhile, create a budget that lets you pay for everything with cash or debit, instead of further relying on credit.
67 Shelter Your Funds
Ready for something a bit more exciting than a savings plan at the local credit union? These options are higher risk but also give better coverage in case of certain potential disasters. Of course, if all the computers go down worldwide, and your money’s in Bitcoins, you may have a lot of useless 1s and 0s.
GO OFFSHORE If you have some funds to spare, consider investing in foreign currencies in more economically stable regions of the world, or look into having a bank account outside the country. Just be sure that in the event of an emergency, you’ll have a way to access those funds.
GO FOR THE GOLD Precious metals have been used as a medium of exchange for millennia, due to their rarity and beauty. Buying platinum, gold, or silver by the ounce is a little costly but may ultimately be worth it. Their value has stayed fairly consistent or risen over the years (though not so much, of late), and depending on how you buy them, their worth is measured in either intrinsic (the cost of the metal itself) or collectible value (if it is in the form of rare coins or memorabilia, either as a pure metal or mingled). Whatever metal you choose to invest in, don’t just rely on certificates that can be cashed in for metal later; get hold of the stuff itself and store it securely where you can access it Just like any other currency, it’ll be worthless if it’s out of reach.
GET CRYPTIC The last few years have seen the rise of “cryptocurrencies”—created “moneys” used by people on the Internet (and sometimes offline), to buy everything from cupcakes to computers. Bitcoins, Litecoins, and the like are traded all the time by aficionados and can fluctuate in value, but in countries where the local economy and currency have been very unstable (such as Greece and Cyprus) some people have turned to this method of exchange for goods and services. It can be slightly tricky to get into the world of cryptocurrency, but it may be well worth the effort.
68 Stash Your Cash
Once you decide how much money to keep on hand for emergencies, you’ve got to figure out how and where to keep it. In an ideal world you’d have it all in smaller bills, since in an emergency, shopkeepers are probably going to be cranky about making change for those Benjamins. That said, two grand in twenties is a big wad. Use your best judgment, and store as much of it as is reasonable in smaller bills, then use big bills for the rest of the stash for convenience. And we beg of you, whatever you do, don’t hide it under the mattress. That’s the first place burglars will look (the second is taped to the back of paintings, in case you were wondering). So, where to put it?
BURY TREASURE Go all pirate-style and bury the booty in your yard. Be sure you use an airtight, waterproof container. A common mason jar is a great choice. And don’t forget where you buried it!
FREEZE YOUR ASSETS If your freezer is packed with foil-wrapped leftovers, it’s easy to make one of those packages actually contain money, not mom’s meatloaf, as the label suggests. If you have a fairly empty freezer, this is a worse idea, as it may just stand out.
PICTURE THIS Taping cash to the back of pictures is a terrible idea. But if you want to get a little craftier, you can stash currency in between a framed photo or poster and the cardboard backing.
BOOK IT Ah, the old hollowed-out book trick. Corny as it sounds, if you have a bookcase full of hardcovers, it’s not hard to hide your cash among them. Use a sharp blade to
CASH & CARRY It’s easier to manage finances if you have less debt. Pay off credit cards, starting with the one with the lowest balance, and renegotiate interest and payment rates if you have a good track record, until you’re debt-free. Meanwhile, create a budget that lets you pay for everything with cash or debit, instead of further relying on credit.
67 Shelter Your Funds
Ready for something a bit more exciting than a savings plan at the local credit union? These options are higher risk but also give better coverage in case of certain potential disasters. Of course, if all the computers go down worldwide, and your money’s in Bitcoins, you may have a lot of useless 1s and 0s.
GO OFFSHORE If you have some funds to spare, consider investing in foreign currencies in more economically stable regions of the world, or look into having a bank account outside the country. Just be sure that in the event of an emergency, you’ll have a way to access those funds.
GO FOR THE GOLD Precious metals have been used as a medium of exchange for millennia, due to their rarity and beauty. Buying platinum, gold, or silver by the ounce is a little costly but may ultimately be worth it. Their value has stayed fairly consistent or risen over the years (though not so much, of late), and depending on how you buy them, their worth is measured in either intrinsic (the cost of the metal itself) or collectible value (if it is in the form of rare coins or memorabilia, either as a pure metal or mingled). Whatever metal you choose to invest in, don’t just rely on certificates that can be cashed in for metal later; get hold of the stuff itself and store it securely where you can access it Just like any other currency, it’ll be worthless if it’s out of reach.
GET CRYPTIC The last few years have seen the rise of “cryptocurrencies”—created “moneys” used by people on the Internet (and sometimes offline), to buy everything from cupcakes to computers. Bitcoins, Litecoins, and the like are traded all the time by aficionados and can fluctuate in value, but in countries where the local economy and currency have been very unstable (such as Greece and Cyprus) some people have turned to this method of exchange for goods and services. It can be slightly tricky to get into the world of cryptocurrency, but it may be well worth the effort.
68 Stash Your Cash
Once you decide how much money to keep on hand for emergencies, you’ve got to figure out how and where to keep it. In an ideal world you’d have it all in smaller bills, since in an emergency, shopkeepers are probably going to be cranky about making change for those Benjamins. That said, two grand in twenties is a big wad. Use your best judgment, and store as much of it as is reasonable in smaller bills, then use big bills for the rest of the stash for convenience. And we beg of you, whatever you do, don’t hide it under the mattress. That’s the first place burglars will look (the second is taped to the back of paintings, in case you were wondering). So, where to put it?
BURY TREASURE Go all pirate-style and bury the booty in your yard. Be sure you use an airtight, waterproof container. A common mason jar is a great choice. And don’t forget where you buried it!
FREEZE YOUR ASSETS If your freezer is packed with foil-wrapped leftovers, it’s easy to make one of those packages actually contain money, not mom’s meatloaf, as the label suggests. If you have a fairly empty freezer, this is a worse idea, as it may just stand out.
PICTURE THIS Taping cash to the back of pictures is a terrible idea. But if you want to get a little craftier, you can stash currency in between a framed photo or poster and the cardboard backing.
BOOK IT Ah, the old hollowed-out book trick. Corny as it sounds, if you have a bookcase full of hardcovers, it’s not hard to hide your cash among them. Use a sharp blade to
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