I would do a little bit of each. Some times you need money fast and selling your silver at higher or lower prices will take time and cost you a commission.

 

On the Day Of the SHTF, you may be able to make some Great Purchases with the Cash Money.

In the Months after the shtf, Silver may be useful when the Paper Money System has Collapsed.

I am keeping as much as I can afford in Both, with the understanding that we will spend the cash as long as it is accepted, and the exchange rate looks good. Thereafter, we will switch to PMs and other Barter...

Not having been in such a scenario, I am just surmising/Woolgathering/Spinning my wheels till it happens. No way to judge which (if any) will work.

 

i went through the same thoughts and converted 90% of my emergency fund into silver, just burned another $1100 yesterday. i have no problem converting the other 10%, it will probably happen sooner than later.

 

Just keep in mind that what you think your PM is worth and the person selling the chicken thinks it's worth may be two different things.

The point that I keep bringing up is that in a true SHTF situation:
1. There's no way to ascertain the worth of your PM - compared to what?
2. There may be no way to weigh it.
3. There may be no way to establish if it's real and not just gold/silver plated.

In the past we had centuries for PMs to establish a uniform value. In a sudden worldwide (or even local - if no communications exists) SHTF, what's it worth then? I don't know the answer to this other than, "It's worth whatever the buyer and seller agree on."

My wife is from a third-world country that's had all sorts of problems and it was interesting to hear her opinions on things. They used PMs due to their paper currency's worth being rather arbitrary. HOWEVER, as bad as things got they could always check the world pricing on PMs; something that wouldn't be possible in a widespread SHTF. I'm just saying that having PMs doesn't necessarily guaranty being able to buy things commensurate with what the PM cost in the first place...

 

Where are you going to physically store all this silver? In your house where it could be stolen or burned up in a fire?

No matter what folks on this site claim (which is perhaps the WORST financial advice forum I have ever seen), silver is just as likely to crash even further as it is to go up. PMs have become almost as volatile as the stock market.

My opinion, leave it in the bank. It is simply the safest place for your money to be, and it is completely liquid at all times.

 

Written by someone who has no understanding of history or current economic trends.

To the op, buy some silver. There's a growing awareness of the true, intrinsic value of PMs, and as things deteriorate, the banking/government manipulation will lose control of the situation, and the price of physical silver will depart from the price of paper silver.

When that happens, those holding physical will have their purchasing power increase much more than any other asset has been able to deliver in our lifetime.

 

Honestly, I don't see precious metals being precious after TEOTWAWKI.

I do not bother to keep gold or silver in any form.

I keep spare cash in my safe (in case of emergency).

 

Oh it'll be worth "something", and what that amount is will be up in the air until some sort of standard can be agreed upon. In a real SHTF there'll be no communications, thus no way to determine its worth.

 

I would normally say "both" rather than one or the other. But with the price of silver as high as it is, I'd be hard pressed to buy in now.

 

Back in the early 80s when silver was $7 an ounce I was talking to a guy who ran a silver and gold coin shop. His exact words:

" Now that silver is $7 an ounce we sell maybe 10-20 bars a day. But when it was $40 an ounce we had a line going out the door and wrapping half way around the building."

Even a guy in the heart of the business couldn't figure out the logic.

 

I posted before and said you should put half in silver and keep half in cash in the bank but I want to stress the importance of physical cash at home. I keep a good percent of my cash in bills at home because there are times when the bank is neither open or convenient. If the hydro is off and the bank is closed cash bills are the best way to pay for things.

 

I thanked everyone who posted. Why? Because twice in my life I have flushed ALL of my savings down the toilette on "a 100% sure thing.". Not once but twice. This experience taught me... I don't know squat about finances and I probably never will. But it is damed interesting to see people back up their positions.

 

You still need a fair amount of cash or ready assets, but I agree that putting a fair amount into silver is a good idea.

If you have some time on your hands, you can also work to separate out the pre-1982 pennies from the later ones; the pre-1982 pennies are 95 percent copper, while the later ones are 97.5 percent zinc.

Just in melt value alone, the pre-1982 pennies are worth 2.33 cents apiece. If you want to see about how to do that (and it depends on your having both the time and the inclination), you can check this out:

http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=169558

Others (Rawles, particularly) argue for storing away nickels; they're currently worth 5.07 cents, have been up to 7+ cents. The advantage to nickels is that you don't have to sort; on the other hand, the upside isn't as great as pennies.

Rawles' argument is that if we should happen to hit a deflationary environment, nickels (well, pennies too) would become more valuable and, if there's a currency devaluation, governments tend to devalue the paper money but not the coinage.

His nickels argument is here:

http://www.survivalblog.com/nickels.html

 

I could simply convert it to dollars.

spoken by someone who has never sold silver

don't keep all your eggs in one basket and don't keep any eggs in a basket called a bank

 

Fiat currency is a law, a theory - fractional banking and debt expansion are self defeating by nature.

With that being said what PM's I keep are recognizable - 90% "junk" AG - and older currency - $20, $10 AU pieces etc...I do not own paper metal assets as they are backed by fiat which again is fractional and so valued by multiples... Really? Ummm...show of hands - who here thinks the COMEX has the physical to back the paper trades .....ROTFLOL......

Interesting...no one recognizes a loss until they sell, if they sell. As fiat currency is debased it "buys" less per unit - and so prices rise, this is why fiat has no intrinsic value.

Sure, everything has a value as assigned by its holder or market - so freaking what?

Neat advice posted above - you want to be in all cash? okie- doke.....

 

These threads all go the same.

My favorite quote is:

"I have enough money saved to last 'till I retire".

 

After that the guy starves. lol

 

IF stores and banks are open most likely your money on deposit can be drawn on. If not whatever you wish to use as exchange must be accepted by whoever has what you want. I keep SOME paper money, some coinage, and some PM on hand and in my relocation location. I also have a good stock of firearms, ammunition, seeds, food, tools, fuel, and water. Those pocket tools are affordable and useful, in many situations a fair trade might be a pocket tool for a couple of gallons of gas or a few pounds of rice... The problem with trading in arms and ammunition is that your "customer" might like to re-negotiate the deal after getting his hands on a "boom stick"...

 

Supply / Demand is and will always be the real determiner of worth. Barter is better.

 

Call me crazy but scooters, bicycles, skateboards, and rollerskates might be handy as high value trading items. Razor blades, camp saws, rechargeable batteries, solar cells, LED based lights might be a luxury someone would swap for. Being able to provide a service, if we're talking a situation where you wouldn't catch something contagious, like cherry pitting, canning, milling grain, or recharging batteries might provide "supplimental income" during a crisis...

 

I like to keep a decent amount of money in an emergency fund. Just a hedge against getting laid off, or any other unforseen emergency that might arise and cause me to need cash. I generally keep this emergency fund in a savings account. But over the past few days, I have been thinking about the wisdom of that. And I have almost convinced myself that it may be better to just convert it to silver.

Here is my reasoning. This money is not meant to spend. As long as life keeps trucking along like normal, I intend to sit on it. Simply a rainy day fund.

You've answered your own question. My emergency fund is just that, a fund for emergencies. Like times when I need liquid money very quickly. It's not an investment, and it's not a money making opportunity. It's a form of insurance.

My wife and I keep $2,500 in the house for cash that we need fast acces to. We also have six months of expenses saved in a money market account that has check writing priveledges. Yeah the ineterest rate sucks and it's a lot of money to have not doing anything, but it provides a hell of a lot of security knowing that if the wife and I lost both our jobs tomorrow we have six months of expenses in reserve.

There will be people who will follow up and say when the CME or EMP hits, or when the illuminati collapse the banking system that you'll lose all of your money. I'd ask which is more likely, that TEOTWAWKI occurs, or your boss goes bankrupt and you lose your job, or you're hit by an uninsured driver and can't work for four months while you recover, or a hurricane comes in and you need to evacuate and then rebuild and pay for life before the insurance money starts to come in, or just something crappy in life happens to you.

Whatever you decide to do, remember that the emergency fund is separate from investments, which is probably the more appropriate place for PM's. And also, a survival forum on the internet is about the worst place in the world to get financial advice.

 

Doesn't matter how you invest, it's all risky. I was heavily invested in mutual funds when the housing market busted in 07. My stock value plunged back to what I paid for it in less than a year. I sold the stocks and invested in a good paying CD and gold. The CD paid off well but the interest dropped so I took that cash and bought more gold and some silver! Still had cash on hand just in case. Recently sold some gold ($40 below spot) for my down payment on property. Even with the broker fee I made over $650 an ounce so it was a good investment at the time!

But gold at $1600 and silver around $30 have pretty much stablized in spot prices, plus or minus over the past year so I doubt if it will change much unless the economy takes a big swing one way or the other. It would be a crap shoot to invest much in either right now!

 

yes, we or at least I buy silver and gold to preserve my wealth. its not so much the investment, my "investment" makes me money that i buy silver with to protect it.

im already retired, just need to make sure it stays that way.

 

Not to mention that the banks don't have anywhere near the cash on hand to cover the deposits that are on the books.

 

I try for some of both, but silver is to high for me to buy at this time.
That said, putting anything aside is tough right now. What little extra there is I try to use to stock whatever I can find on sale in a particular week, as I am trying to get the food stock up to a year.
Never pay retail.

 

The dollar is going to hold for a time -- if for no other reason than inertia and the Emperor's New Clothes effect.

When putting silver back, establish a buy/sell channel, get to know the people in the know. There are people in the here-and-now who know full good and well what's coming and are acting accordingly and welcoming others who would be trade partners. No one can do your investigations / sociology lessons for you. Oh, don't be too trusting.

Keep some cash, not a bunch at home in your safe for an emergency, some in the bank (could be lost in the coming bank-runs, but life's a risk), some in silver, some in real items. What with America's power grids being what they are, get an electric generator. They aren't just for SHTF scenarios, I've used mine more than once for downed power lines. I also provided power to my neighbor. If you calculate how much money and trouble you have invested in the meat you have in your refrigerator and freezer, a generator will start looking like it's made of precious metals itself.

 

Cash is still King, although it's crown is a bit tarnished.

Metals are a protector of wealth. They rise and they fall, but they have never been worthless in over 5000 years if memory serves me well.

I think there have been enough suggestions to cover the OP's request. Mine would only be similar. Preps, cash, preps, land, preps, guns, preps, metal.....about in that order.

 

I am putting almost every centavo I have into land; I am finally buying a residence with acreage and it will take all of my savings (except my IRA) to make the down payment.

That said, I will be building my savings back up just in case and I will be leaving it in the bank.

Precious Metals are speculative - more so than cash, be prepared to lose value. I prefer to have cash because I can get it and use it faster.

 

Very good thinking, and that's why I'm buying property now while it's a buyers market and will give me some security when I retire in 6 mths!

 

I was just watching a show about the revolutionary war and they (the Americans) didn't have any money for making war so they started there own money. After a few years you needed a wagon load of money to come home with a wagon load of provisions.

This is starting to sound familiar. I would put half of my money in gold and silver.

Happy Independence day!

P.S. I have nothing but respect for my American brothers to the south.