I Bonds, anyone?

[Rukh O'Rorke]

my 2500 did get credited for Jan 1st!

Super thanks to MPL for pointing out you get a whole month of interest for only a day.

Can't beat that deal with a stick!

[seriousthistime]

Thanks, MPL.  That's very helpful.

I'll have to even it up between the three kids with future purchases at some point.  I got onto this train fairly late so I only have two purchases to change right now, and I've maxed out for 2022.  I will have another purchase for the paper bonds with my income tax refund though. Then next year, I can start out purchasing the appropriate amounts to even things up amongst the kids. 

[Rukh O'Rorke]

Jan 31, 2022 18:48:46 GMT -5 seriousthistime said:

Has anybody with a Treasury Direct account managed to figure out if it's possible to name multiple beneficiaries for I bonds?

If so, how? I can see information about naming someone as payable on death (POD) but it looks like it needed to be done at the time I set up the account (which is ridiculously because people's lives change) and it doesn't look like I could even name multiple people for POD. What if I want a few kids? 

I have another question! So if you do have beneficiaries, and say you die with 100k in ibonds - can the beneficiary keep it in the ibonds? So they don't have to build it up over a decade?

[minnesotapaintlady]

Feb 1, 2022 12:57:24 GMT -5 Rukh O'Rorke said:

Jan 31, 2022 18:48:46 GMT -5 seriousthistime said:

Has anybody with a Treasury Direct account managed to figure out if it's possible to name multiple beneficiaries for I bonds?

If so, how? I can see information about naming someone as payable on death (POD) but it looks like it needed to be done at the time I set up the account (which is ridiculously because people's lives change) and it doesn't look like I could even name multiple people for POD. What if I want a few kids? 

I have another question! So if you do have beneficiaries, and say you die with 100k in ibonds - can the beneficiary keep it in the ibonds? So they don't have to build it up over a decade?

Yes, they just automatically become their bonds.  They can cash them in immediately, leave them as they are and cash them in later, or get them reissued with their name as the account owner and designate their own beneficiary.

[countrygirl2]

I have some of my paper ones with son as beneficiary and some with hubs, need to change them all to son.

Right now I don't seem to be doing anything, need to get with the attorney also. We have half of everything to DD and half to son. Hers will just go to the state. As hubs said if we had millions to take care of her the rest of her life it would be different. We can just make that small change and I need to. I told hubs we need to put about $50k aside for her, that should cover clothing, shoes, hair, and dental cleanings. But will the state do it? We both hate to even talk about it, it will go in a trust. But I talked to her case worker in Texas. His wife handled funds for adults. He said a lot of parents would do a trust and the state would do everything they could to get every penny, he said it stressed his wife to no end, that it was terrible.

Anyway off my bonds issue, I have so many things I need to do and I'm just kind of tired and stuck. Still have stuff with MIL to do.

[jerseygirl]

CG suggest you do NOT give money to your DD. Have it put into a special needs trust . If she doesn’t use it all, the lawyer can put your son down as beneficiary for any remaining money. If you give her the money she won’t be eligible for lots of programs, Many programs won’t accept her if she has more than $2000. If the money is in a special needs trust she can have hundreds of thousands and will still be eligible for Medicaid etc. she’ll probably be able to get(if not already) Medicare from her parents as well as Medicaid. Medicaid has programs in many states that pay for a home aide to help with cooking, shopping cleaning etc


I used money in the SN trust to pay for a live in aide and also bills for condo, food, her travel when she was able etc

Medicaid won’t ‘go after’ money in special needs trust - My sister had large medical costs paid via Medicare and Medicaid. After she passed, Medicaid wanted the medical bills paid back from her estate. There was no estate!! Her condo wasn’t hers! It was in a special needs trust - she didn’t own it! After we sold it the proceeds went to her niece and nephews.

Be sure to set up the special needs trust BEFORE she is 65. It’s not valid if set up after she is 65



Get a good lawyer who specializes in disabled children, if your DD gets SSI there are different rules than if she has regular SS from her parents accounts

[minnesotapaintlady]

Finished my taxes and got a pile of paper bonds coming, but not sure what I'll do with them after I roll around on the floor in them for a bit.  I don't have a safe deposit box at the bank anymore and I locked my personal safe years ago and forgot the combination.    Maybe I'll just record their SN's in a few places and tuck them away somewhere in the house.  If it burns down they're 100% replaceable.  I considered converting them to digital, but I honestly feel safer with paper than Treasury Direct. 

[countrygirl2]

We already have a special needs trust set up in our Wills. The money ONLY goes into it after our deaths so it will not mess up her benefits. Our attorney set it up. If we put money in it now and do not withdraw or use any of it, taxes on profits are 50%. So it has a $1 in it to just set it up for later.

[countrygirl2]

I keep mine in a safety deposit box, only costs $50 a year and hubs, our son and DIL are signers on it so can get in it.

[minnesotapaintlady]

I had a lifetime free safety depoist box at Wells Fargo, but all the branches in our town that had them shut down so I don't have one anymore, but I do see now that my credit union offers them.  I didn't think they did because I never noticed a safe in the small branch office, but I guess it's somewhere in there.  

Box Size: Annual Rental:
3 x 5 x 21 $25
3 x 10 x 21 $35
5 x 10 x 21 $45
7 x 10 x 21 $55
10 x 10 x 21 $65

I would rather get my safe open.  I wonder what a locksmith would charge?  It's a BIG safe.  I'm really mad I lost the combination.

[stillmovingforward]

Can you contact the manufacturer, prove you own it, and get the combo?

[minnesotapaintlady]

I'm going to look it over tonight.  I think I checked once before for a serial number and couldn't find one.  It's pretty old.  My parents gave it to me when I bought my first house in 93. 

I just don't know what to do with it if I CAN'T get it open.  It's not like I can just throw it in the garbage. 

[CCL]

Can't you get a locksmith to come out and open the safe?

[minnesotapaintlady]

Probably, but I'm guessing it would cost more than the safe is worth (I don't think there's anything in it).  Looks like similar ones are about $200 on Amazon. 

BUT, I found the serial number tonight!   I have looked before, but this sucker was disguising itself as a piece of random duct tape and the numbers were printed way towards the edge so I didn't see them when I was inspecting for something that looked like an actual serial number plate. 

village.photos/images/user/df4d496d-1af8-4e4e-b066-4f95071b7838/be3d35c5-9d7c-47aa-b7bf-476bb1c9dd0c.png


The numbers were super light and the last one was partially cut off, but I took a chance and paid the $32 to Sentry to get my combination replaced.  So, crossing my fingers.  I sure hope I got all the numbers right and that if the serial number doesn't match with the model number (because I messed up a digit) they won't charge me. 

[countrygirl2]

We have a fire-proof file cabinet downstairs, I couldn't find the key forever, hubs said he found it. I need to go through it, used to be meds and papers in it. Hasn't been opened since before we left Texas. That thing is so heavy I don't know how he got it down there. But I need to move items down there.

[jerseygirl]

I don’t lock our safe, just glad it’s fireproof and a good storage for mostly documents

[minnesotapaintlady]

Feb 24, 2022 13:31:19 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

I don’t lock our safe, just glad it’s fireproof and a good storage for mostly documents

I don't either.  My two year old at the time (now 19) had different ideas.

[minnesotapaintlady]

I was about to dispute the charge on my credit card for getting my combination from Sentry since they processed the payment a week ago and I haven't heard anything from them, not even an email receipt, but today checked my junk mail and there it was.  They had sent it within 12 hours of my request.  Pretty impressive they still have that after 27 years.  I registered it with them now, so won't have to pay if I ever lose it again.  It will be interesting to find out if I actually have anything in there.  Maybe I stuck thousands of dollars in there and forgot. 

[Rukh O'Rorke]

Questions for the ibond crowd. does the interest compound over time or just straight off the purchase price?

I ask becaue in TD they have an "amount" column that is static, just the orig purchase price, and the value shows with the interest. wondering why they are kept separate.

Also - what happens to an ibond at maturity?

[minnesotapaintlady]

Mar 2, 2022 21:06:40 GMT -5 Rukh O'Rorke said:

Questions for the ibond crowd. does the interest compound over time or just straight off the purchase price?

I ask becaue in TD they have an "amount" column that is static, just the orig purchase price, and the value shows with the interest. wondering why they are kept separate.

Also - what happens to an ibond at maturity?

I bonds earn interest monthly but only compound every 6 months, but yes, they do compound.  When they mature (in 30 years) they quit accruing interest, but aren't automatically redeemed, they'll sit there forever earning nothing.  

[minnesotapaintlady]

I got my safe open and good news, it was full of money!  Bad news is it was collectors coins and American Eagles and lots of them had their cardboard cases destroyed by the moisture of being in a safe for so many years without it being opened.     I had loaded them up with dessicant packs from work, but they're only good for so long before they need to be replaced...definitely not 17 years.   Kind of a bummer.  These were all gifts from my grandpa back in the 70's and 80's.  

[Tiny]

Mar 2, 2022 21:06:40 GMT -5 Rukh O'Rorke said:

Also - what happens to an ibond at maturity?

I had another old EE bond mature.   Treasury Direct sent me a polite email: 

Dear Tiny,

Your savings bond XXXXX has matured. The proceeds from this matured bond has been used to purchase a Zero-Percent Certificate of Indebtedness (C of I) in your account. This security earns no interest. For more details, log into your TreasuryDirect account, select the History tab, then select Security History and look for the confirmation number provided above.

You may redeem the Zero-Percent Certificate of Indebtedness (C of I) to your bank account. First, you may want to verify that the bank information listed in your Treasury Direct account is current.

Instructions on how to redeem your C of I can be found within your TreasuryDirect account under the How Do I link, which has been provided below:
                    A treasury direct link here
 
For more information regarding Zero-Percent Certificate of Indebtedness (C of I), please visit our website using the link provided below:
                    Another treasury direct link here

Thank you for investing through TreasuryDirect.

I'm guessing mature I bonds are handled just like mature EE bonds:  You can move the money from your Zero-Percent Certificate of Indebtedness (C of I) account  to your personal bank account (if you have it set up with TD)  OR you can use the money to buy a new bond.

If you don't do anything the money just sits there not doing anything (getting no interest).   It was the email about an old EE bond maturing that sent me down the rabbit hole of getting back into my TD account and then getting the my bank account  set up  for the TD account updated (as I had closed the bank account about 10 years ago).   By the time I got a valid bank account connected to the TD account - the buzz about the "high" variable rates started making news (just over 3%) so I rolled the  EE bond money into an I Bond.       my money sat getting no interest for about 3 months (I ignored the email about it maturing for awhile, and then got locked out of my TD account, and then needed to get a "medallion signature stamp" thing and mail in a form and then I had to wait, and then I got locked out of my account again... and yeah... I am my own worst enemy (fat fingering, using the back button) when I use the TD website.).    

I'm kind of stuck for the old bonds that will come due in 2022 - because I got 10K in Ibonds for 2022. so now I have to figure out what to do with my "matured" bond.... it was probably a $25 or $50  bond when I bought it.   And I've probably got 5 or 6 more just like it maturing thru out the year.  

 

[Tiny]

Mar 2, 2022 21:34:03 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I got my safe open and good news, it was full of money!  Bad news is it was collectors coins and American Eagles and lots of them had their cardboard cases destroyed by the moisture of being in a safe for so many years without it being opened.     I had loaded them up with dessicant packs from work, but they're only good for so long before they need to be replaced...definitely not 17 years.   Kind of a bummer.  These were all gifts from my grandpa back in the 70's and 80's.  

I have a bunch of "collector coins" and a handful of circulated gold coins from the "olden days" - none of which are worth very much now - other than as curiosities.  They are from my grandparents and parents.     That's not a bad thing    Just a comment on the potential "cool" factor of what you have. 

[susana1954]

I have a bunch of my husband's coins in the safety deposit box at the bank.  I wonder if I should go check on them.  Is the room where they are stored climate controlled?

[Tiny]

Mar 3, 2022 9:09:45 GMT -5 susana1954 said:

I have a bunch of my husband's coins in the safety deposit box at the bank.  I wonder if I should go check on them.  Is the room where they are stored climate controlled?

I would think it is.   I have my coins in a safe deposit box at the bank.    The coins do tarnish (if they they are the kind that tarnish due to contact with air -- but all of my stored paper work and boxes have not suffered any "moisture" damage.  And my stuff has pretty much been in a safe deposit box at a bank for over 40 years.... 

But, safe deposit box "rooms" come in all shapes and sizes.  As do the bank buildings.   

Back in the day my parents safe deposit box was at an old bank - the kind that looked like a roman/greek temple and had marble floors and a soaring ceiling in the main "room".  The Safe Deposit boxes were in the basement - down a flight of white marble stairs.  You had to pass thru a gate - it was like a wall of ornate prison bars with an ornate two sided gate that locked.  And then you could sign in and be taken back to the "vault" and step into the "vault" thru a huge "safe door" - just like in the movies.  And all the boxes lined the walls of the vault.     As a kid - this was awe inspiring.   

As an adult - My box was at a smaller local bank - and they too had a "vault" with a giant thick "safe door" just like in the movies - that you were escorted thru to get to your box.  It was just a room at the back of the bank building (which was just a building - no greek/roman theme and no marble).    

My current savings and loan has a room in the basement that's lined with the deposit boxes.  This bank building looks just like an old time "office building" from the 50's - cause it is.    No vault.     you still have to go thru several run of the mill  electronically locked doors though.    

Homes in my area  are prone to "flooding" - via the storm sewers and regular sewers being the same thing... so it's not flooding from an overflowing body of water.     I'm confident that the local banks with basement offices/vaults/rooms  have taken the storm water back up problem into consideration and that their basements do no flood. 

[minnesotapaintlady]

Safe deposit boxes are different than the sealed insulated home safes. The box is just metal and the room is what is insulated but people are going in and out all the time. Ours leaves the vault open during the day.

[minnesotapaintlady]

My paper bonds are here!  Just two weeks after I filed my taxes.  And in true government wastefulness form, there are 18 of them.  All mailed individually.  Twelve 50's, two 200's and four 1000's.  

I forgot how much I liked having "real" bonds.  When I first started working I'd always get EE bonds sent to me via payroll deduction. 

[CCL]

You mail carrier may think you are rich MPL.

[susana1954]

I am curious as to whether you guys bought one single bond in a high denomination or multiple, smaller ones?

I finally decided to move $5000 from my EF into I-bonds.  I was already buying really small ones ($50) here and there.  My small ones are equally divided with each of my two children as beneficiaries.

It seemed "unfair" to make one child the beneficiary of this large bond.  Yet I try to keep as much stuff as possible out of probate.  And then it dawned on me . . . what if I had to cash it just to get part of it out?  So I ended up buying 4 $1250 bonds, again equally divided with each of my two children as beneficiaries.

Yes, I over think stuff.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Apr 6, 2022 8:14:30 GMT -5 susana1954 said:

I am curious as to whether you guys bought one single bond in a high denomination or multiple, smaller ones?

I finally decided to move $5000 from my EF into I-bonds.  I was already buying really small ones ($50) here and there.  My small ones are equally divided with each of my two children as beneficiaries.

It seemed "unfair" to make one child the beneficiary of this large bond.  Yet I try to keep as much stuff as possible out of probate.  And then it dawned on me . . . what if I had to cash it just to get part of it out?  So I ended up buying 4 $1250 bonds, again equally divided with each of my two children as beneficiaries.

Yes, I over think stuff.

With the electronic bonds, you don't have to cash the entire bond at once, you can withdraw in whatever increment you want.  I bought one 10K bond each year.