It was $10,000 or more years ago but so many criminals started depositing just under $10,000. I thought that they lowered the reported amount to $5,000 but I could be wrong.

Gweempose! Hope all is well with you and your family. Its been a while. 10k will be reported. It has and still is 10k in a single transaction. A quick google search will confirm this. The most that will happen is you will be sent a questionnaire confirming that the money is exempt from tax. If you answer wrong they can try and tax you on the transaction. They are looking to lower this down to $600 which is a joke.

I don’t want to start a political debate on pinside but it’s going to be hard to hide these transactions from the IRS soon.

The Biden administration is proposing to require financial institutions to report any deposit or withdrawal of more than $600 to the IRS.

It’s part of the Reconciliation Plan that’s being debated in Congress.

Right now, banks are required to submit currency transaction reports to the IRS if someone deposits or withdraws more than $10,000 in cash.

Cash from the freezer will be king for my future pinball purchases. Lol

I live in a small town and last went to my local bank with a check drawn on my checking account for $4500. Looking at replacing my work truck and wanted more cash on hand in addition to the stash I normally keep. Plus York is soon. Ahead of me in line was an elderly gentleman who wanted $5400 from his "Christmas club account" (Didn't even know club accounts existed anymore). They pulled his cash from the vault and I ended up with a different teller. He had my $4500 in his drawer and below. So that was almost 10K withdrawn in 10 minutes and I doubt they were running low.

I know a guy who buys and sells antiques.
He works in all cash.
He told me that he once tried to pay for a house with $165K in cash at the closing.
The title company sent him to the bank to convert the cash to a bank check.
I'm liking his system more and more.

I too am trying to keep this non political, this is just an observation on my part. If that bill passes as is with $600 being the limit, there may possibly be a temporary run on the banks. Also very possible, would be a massive cash only underground economy which could ultimately result in less tax revenue for the government. Which of course is the exact opposite of what they're trying to achieve.

When's the last time a government program worked?

I’m self employed and after the Patriot act was passed things changed when making larger deposits and withdrawals

From a credit union last month emailed to all customers.

8CAB7BEF-065E-4FEF-8AD7-AD2D4515E493 (resized).png

I’ve walked into my credit union multiple times this year and withdrew 12k+ no problem. For sure need a new bank. It’s your money.

You won't have issues with Chase bank, can get large sums of $100 bills very easily.

Cash from the freezer will be king for my future pinball purchases. Lol

Rockin like a congressman!

018D1EC2-F0F0-4AD5-9407-0AD446809768 (resized).png

Don't get pulled over with a large amount of cash on board.

Thats silly. It’s your money. It’s not illegal to have cash

This thread has been some interesting reading. So for a bit of a history lesson: banks have never held enough currency on-hand to be able to cash-out all of their customers' accounts at once. Instead, they use a large portion of people's deposits for investments and for giving out loans. Which will earn the bank money. This is one of the reasons why banks went out of business during the great depression, they didn't have enough cash on-hand when there was a run on the bank. The movie "It's a Wonderful Life" includes a scene of this playing out.

Anyway, point is you shouldn't necessarily expect a bank to be able to automatically pay you out large amounts of cash without any prior warning. Now generally they should have enough to cover a pinball purchase. But in the case of my bank, they don't always have enough 100s on hand, unless I give them notice. They could still potentially give me all the cash I need, but it just won't necessarily be in bills I'd prefer. But that's why I always have some cash taken out ahead of time when I know that I'm on the hunt for a pin.

Lastly, there's a big difference between the amount of cash a large bank in a big city carries, and a small one in a rural area. There are 3 banks in my hometown, and only one of them is a "national" bank. So I don't actually have a lot of choice in whom I bank with, and I wouldn't expect the two regional banks to be carrying more cash than the big chain one. But I suppose it's possible. I stick with Wells Fargo as my local bank because it's the most convenient bank for me, but I certainly don't love how they operate. Although, I'm quite friendly with our local bankers. And I use Navy Federal for my general banking.

QFT...

https://jalopnik.com/heres-another-reminder-that-the-police-can-just-steal-y-1847606139

What you have is an isolated situation due to your location. Zero issues getting any amount of cash out here in Los Angeles. This has always been a cash first hobby….

/thread

Still a cash first hobby. Always has, always will be.

EricHadley Look up Civil Asset Forfeiture laws. They are ridiculous. Colorado has reformed theirs within the past few years, feds have not.
https://www.davidfoley.net/blog/2017/08/about-civil-asset-forfeiture-in-colorado/
Basically, if authorities want to take your cash they will and you have to prove it's legit. They charge the asset (cash in this case) with a crime and since it's an inanimate object it has no legal protections like a person does. It's bonkers.

https://www.nemannlawoffices.com/blog/law-enforcement-seized-more-from-people-than-burglars-stole-last-year.cfm

Re: cash being seized during traffic stops.

They can ask to search your vehicle if they want but you have every right to say no. Problem is people are too scared to say no and a lot of those stories could have been avoided. Unless there is immediate threat of a weapon or drugs it’s a bad search if you say no.

I feel bad people went through that but seriously, say no if you’ve done nothing wrong. It’s ok and legal.

Just keep $25,000 on hand at your house at all times.

That’s easy, tell them they don’t have a valid reason. Saying No doesn’t imply any guilt.

But yes, LOTS of people get tripped up on this.

Try pulling this off if your black.

My advice, like Fox Mulder says, trustno1...

No you don’t. Many of them are perfectly willing to lie enough to do whatever it takes to search or arrest you anyway but you absolutely are not legally required to give a reason they can’t search your vehicle.

This is absolutely false.

I work with both state and local law enforcement officers on a daily basis, because we use them for traffic control.

They will be the first to tell you that you shouldn't make their job any easier when it comes to jamming you up.

The old "Is it ok if I take a quick look around in your car since you don't have anything anyways?" should always be met with a resounding "NO". If there was any legal reason for them to search your vehicle, they wouldn't ask you in the first place. The amount of people that consensually send themselves to jail because they are dumb is a lot more than you think. Assuming you don't have any type of contraband in sight within your vehicle, a simple, polite, "no you may not officer, I'm on my way to an appointment/work/interview/etc. and do not want to be late" will 99% of the time be met with an "Ok" from the officer.

Ignorance isn't bliss.

Cash is preferred but not always available, especially on weekends. I’ve written a couple checks. People are more understanding when they see personally identifiable information like driver’s license, business card, professional license, bank account status (on mobile phone), etc. Pinside feedback definitely helps. I’ve made good friends in the hobby this way. Rare, but it happens.

Little slow on the draw this morning, coffee hasn't kicked in yet, haha...

My basic thoughts on dealings with law enforcement: Most importantly, don't invite the man into your life in the first place, and you'll never have to deal with them. Most people should read and stick to that first sentence. Fly under the radar. YOU will generally dictate how an officer treats you. Don't talk yourself into jail, but be polite and reasonable if you think you may be able to make their job easier if it won't jam you up.

Interacting with law enforcement can be a weird "game", that can take years to master. There are subtleties to it. The human factor plays a big part of it. If you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar, expect to get a ticket or be arrested, but be polite, cooperative without incriminating yourself, and you may just get a warning. Weigh your likely outcomes vs your "but muh rights!". I'd rather deal with an officer on the side of the road and get a speeding ticket, than have to get hassled with going to court, paying fees, etc. Sucks, but that's the facts of life.

Are you sure? I thought it was 10k

Before any one puts money , silver or gold coins in a "Safe " deposit box you should Google Lehto's Law # 7.412 . Feds. seize 1,000 " Safe " Deposit boxes at a private bussines . Feds seize all assets now its up to you to prove your not the one doing any thing illegle . It will make you sick if it's your money ! He also has a few stories where cops pull you over and during a search find the $5,000. cash you had to buy a pinball game - take that cash and you have to hire a lawer to get it back at $5,000 .

Let me tell you from experience if the cop wants to search your car, they are going to. Doesn't matter if you "just say no".

When you say "no", they don't just hand your license back and say "ok well have a good day then, sir".

They say "ok no problem, let me get a dog out here. Dog arrives and walks around your car then the cop will tell you "well the dog hit on your car so now we're going to search it and don't need your consent."

Did the dog actually hit on your car? doesn't f'ing matter, they will tell you it did.

This has happened to me 2 different times in my life. Both times they found nothing and I feel positive the dog didn't actually signal that there was anything in the car.

A dog "hitting" was recently thrown out as not reasonable suspicion, if I recall.

Here's the cold, hard facts...it sucks, but it's the way it is:

Don't drive an old, poorly maintained, rusted out, shit box. Make sure all the lights work. Make sure it's registered and insured to the requirements of your state. Don't drive flashy vehicles, or modify them heavily. Sometimes the attention people seek, isn't the type that they want...Blending in with your surroundings has never looked so good.

I do not have a defeatist attitude, but I prefer to weigh my options on civil liberties, vs getting hassled constantly for inane crap.

When I was a kid my dad always said "cash talks / BS walks" and he taught me having cash on hand is the only way to make great deals on anything (or to jump on a great deal when you find one). So for the past 50 years I have always tried to keep at least a couple grand in cash within reach all the time. These days if I don't have at least $5k in an envelope somewhere in the house I feel broke.

As far as "worrying" about having cash sitting around. It really isn't any big deal. Find (or create) a good hiding spot, never tell anyone else where that is, and then just grab the cash when you need it and replace it as quickly as possible when you use it.

To me that is the only way to "be ready" if a deal comes along.

This is a challenge on several fronts. Banks do not do the volume of cash business they did in the past because most commerce has transitioned to electronic forms of payment. 20 years ago restaurants sales were 80-90% cash, now they are 70-80% credit card. Less cash deposited means less cash on hand. Banks now have less staff on hand as the volume of in person and cash transactions is way lower. Add to this the challenge of complying with the labyrinth of federal regulations to prevent criminal activity and banks just don't do things like they used to.

Someone earlier in the thread mentioned electronic check deposits. I'm sure there are outliers but most of the banks I've seen have ridiculously low daily and monthly limits on electronic check deposit. My main bank only allows electronic deposit of checks up to $1,000 and then a total of only $5k per month.

Certified or cashier's checks are a major source of fraud. I would never accept one for any transaction for which there is no recourse.

Wire transfers are not a bad way to go, as the cost is only typically $15-25 for a bank to process a transfer, but how many individual sellers out there would be willing to give a stranger their bank routing and account information?

I sold a jukebox recently through Paypal Friends and Family and it worked well, but only because the buyer paid me several days before the pickup of the machine was scheduled, and I had time for the transaction to process and transfer the money into my bank account. I wouldn't have done it with an immediate delivery of the merchandise.

I think cash is still king on transactions like a pin purchase but it's just getting more painful all the time.

Yeah, banking in the US generally sucks. The ACH system is slow and ancient. Kinda crazy when you learn how ubiquitous wire/digital transfers are elsewhere.

Keep a secondary account in which you maintain a minimal balance.

They track this too. You need to spread it out over months. Or different banks.

Also, there's money in the banana stand.

Breaking up transactions to evade a Federal reporting requirement is called "structuring" and is a crime. Be careful. Deposits and withdrawals of more than $10,000 in cash are required to be reported to the Treasury Department, but it is perfectly legal to do so. If you are ever investigated for a crime--money laundering, tax evasion, what have you, the form will be there and could come back to bite you but should not be an issue if you are not pulling Bernie Madoff or Al Capone shenanigans.

Banks can also file a "suspicious activity report" if they have reason to believe the transaction (not keyed to a specific dollar amount) is related to criminal activity in the bank's judgment. Theoretically, such a report could lead to an investigation if law enforcement thinks you are engaging in criminal activity, but the reports by themselves are not evidence of any crime. As a practical matter, if you are not a criminal you should be fine. If your line of work subjects to you investigations into your financial background (security clearance, e.g.), you may want to avoid potential hassles and do wire transfers instead of large cash transactions.