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Original poster

How much money do you keep in the house?

108 replies

Belindabelle · 13/01/2020 21:23

I received some money for Christmas in cash. I put in my bedside drawer and it is still there. Just wondering if I should keep it in a safe place in the house as I never need to go to the bank and I probably won’t spend it for a while. I mainly shop online now anyway.

I know my Mil has a small safe with a few hundred pounds in it and one of my Great Aunts always had a supply of dollars and euros in case she needed to leave the country quickly!

Just wondering what other people do.

OP posts:
originalcatlady · 14/01/2020 10:15

@BarbaraofSeville I have one account, with TSB. Hadn't seen the news when they crashed a while back and had to have a mate come and bail me out at the petrol station.

TheClitterati · 14/01/2020 10:18

None unless you count the dc money boxes.

MyNameIsMrsGrumpy · 14/01/2020 10:19

Very little...

Maybe £20 in the copper jar and a few £5 notes in the kitchen draws I have about £3 in my purse

We always scramble for cash as we never really use it 🤷‍♀️

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 14/01/2020 10:22

I don't use cash but keep £50 for emergency taxi money.

Emmelina · 14/01/2020 10:23

Probably about £20 across my purse, the loose change pot, a savings tin that usually gets emptied when the DC’s spring a school cake sale/mufty day on me on the morning Confused I tend to draw cash out on the day for activities, kids piano lessons etc. but generally when out we use plastic.

Baaaahhhhh · 14/01/2020 10:30

I never have cash anymore, nor does DH. Window cleaner, taxi's, car parks etc all accept debit card now, or bank payments. The DD's have some cash lying about, but even they don't have much these days.

tooyoungat40 · 14/01/2020 10:36

About 80 kr in my purse, £80 in a cupboard somewhere and 20 euros and whatever is in the children's moneyboxes. So not a lot. Mostly cashless society here. Fondly remember the days of finding money in the street, sadly now gone along with a lot of cash machines.

Keepmewarm · 14/01/2020 10:44

Does Monopoly money count?

I have £36 in coppers. I only know because I emptied the piggy bank yesterday. I put any change found as I’m tidying in it. If you don’t remove change from pockets before putting in in the laundry basket it goes in the pot and eventually becomes holiday spending money.

Kazzyhoward · 14/01/2020 10:45

Both me and OH tend to keep an average of £50 or so in our purses/wallets. We also have a few hundred pounds at home, together with a few hundred Euros and few hundred US Dollars.

The foreign currency is because we buy over a thousand when we need to in order to get a better exchange rate and then bring back what we don't spend and it's not worth losing money to change it back to sterling, so we keep it for next time. It's years since we've bought any more as we spend little cash on holidays these days, so we probably take £300-£400 and bring £200-£300 back, so what we have will last us a few more holidays yet!

The sterling we keep at home is really for emergencies. We suffered badly from Storm Desmond a few years ago, with no power in our city for a few days, so cash machines etc out of order as were card machines in shops etc. Our "emergency" cash was very handy to buy essentials and also to pay for a taxi for our neighbour who needed to get to hospital to visit her terminally ill husband (taxis were only accepting cash as their card machines weren't working either due to the mobile phone system also being down due to no power!). It was quite a nightmare and highlighted the folly if relying on electronic payment methods and the mobile phone network!

BiarritzCrackers · 14/01/2020 10:47

While not an every day occurrence and not something to be overly concerned about, the banks' problems to happen occasionally enough that it's sensible to have a bit of cash around. While not a bank, the Travelex thing at the moment is mad! A fortnight now.

I keep about £60 to £100 at any one time, and DS has about £40 in notes for utter emergencies. Always have about £40 in my wallet; enough for a taxi home from most places in this area.

Kazzyhoward · 14/01/2020 10:48

People who keep cash in the house or travel with it, do they know it os not covered by insurance?

Depends on the policy - our home insurance covers cash to fixed limits.

Kazzyhoward · 14/01/2020 10:51

Travel insurance policies also usually cover cash you're carrying (again with specified limits).

ExhaustedGrinch · 14/01/2020 10:55

Not going to specify an amount but quite a large amount.

My childhood was shit (to put it mildly) and I went on to have numerous relationships where DV was a factor. Although I'm single I have never got over that feeling of being desperate to escape and having no means to do so. I know, logically, that the money would be safer in a bank and I could still access it easily but having it close to hand incase I need to grab it and run makes me feel safer somehow.

BeyondMyWits · 14/01/2020 10:55

£500-£600 - bug-out money.

I was once - a long time ago - in a relationship where my access to credit card/bank card was controlled. Cash gives me the reassurance that I can walk out the door.

BeyondMyWits · 14/01/2020 10:56

oh, cross posted with @ExhaustedGrinch Flowers

Missteebeee · 14/01/2020 10:57

Generally less than £5

I never use cash so it’s rarely in the house

ExhaustedGrinch · 14/01/2020 10:58

@BeyondMyWits thank you, I guess there are many in our situation Flowers

Original poster
Belindabelle · 14/01/2020 11:23

Interesting replies. Thank you.

I think people fall into two camps. Those who never need to use cash and are happy to pay electronically and those who prefer more traditional ways. I totally understand why some of you need the security of having available cash to hand.

I always like to have some cash in my purse but don't normally keep large amounts. I am going to keep my money stashed away I think.

OP posts:
Urkiddingright · 14/01/2020 11:43

We’re cashless and have been for years, we use Apple Pay for everything. I put birthday and Christmas money into my bank.

Dowser · 14/01/2020 12:14

I love cash
I regularly have about £1000 in house and carry anywhere from £500 To £1000 on me

CharlotteMD · 14/01/2020 12:16

Nothing.

Yadaaday · 14/01/2020 12:16

At least £200.

ThomasShelbysBunnet · 14/01/2020 12:27

I've got my own stash of about £500 that no-one knows about, this is part of my rainy day fund, should anything go tits up.
The kids piggy banks, which have a couple of hundred each in them.
And dh has cash in a tin somewhere, that's usually a few hundred. I don't usually pay in cash though.

Itsjustmee · 14/01/2020 12:55

Between 5-6 thousand sometimes more
In a fire proof safe that’s drilled to the floor so very secure and it’s hidden away so you really would have to spend some time looking for it and you would need to come equipped with a crow bar to get it off the floor .
I also keep my passports and jewellery in there
DH has his own safe with probably a similar amount in it
Probably about £100 in cash in my purse

Sn0tnose · 14/01/2020 13:04

I have anything up to £250 in my purse, depending on how recently I’ve been paid. DH will normally have around £50 in his wallet and £100 stashed somewhere for emergencies. There’s a little tin in the glove compartment with around £10 in change for parking and there’s a money tin in the kitchen with anything up to £100 in small change in it.

I much prefer using cash. I don’t do on line banking and I lose track of what I’m spending if I use cards.