Can The Government Confiscate A Safe Deposit Box Contents?

[Glenn in CO]

Interesting Video on a FBI seizure of safe deposit boxes and there view of people holding precious metals, cash, collectibles, etc.

Feds Now Want to Keep Safe Deposit Box Contents

[Steve Herschbach]

Be nice folks. Smells like tinder for politics to me.

[oneguy]

Got all my bullion in deposit box but ready to pull it out.  Reason being is that according to my banks rules I can't designate a benificiary in case I die?  I can have an equal partner who has the exact same access as I do...should I chose one?  Anyways...that's the way I understood it but I could be wrong?  I surely didn't care for the way I heard things and wonder why I can't just choose a beneficiary like I do on my 2 savings accounts and stock market accounts?  I'll be closing the deposit box crap shortly.....

[Steve Herschbach]

The seizure is of privately owned "safe deposit boxes". That is not the same thing as a bank safe deposit box. I can open a business and say I'm selling "safe deposit boxes" but I don't think that is the same thing. I fact I could just take all the boxes and leave. And I'm quite certain a private company has zero protection in this issue. I'd never use a private service over an actual bank, but that's just me.

[Gold Catcher]

3 hours ago, oneguy said:

Reason being is that according to my banks rules I can't designate a benificiary in case I die

The best practice is to buy physical gold bullion through a bank that has an investment arm that offers these services (i.e. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch) and then you store it in the banks designated vault. Then, you make it part of a trust. There should not be a problem with beneficiaries. You will be paying trading commissions and a storage fee/year. However, this is worth it. You can even go and visit the gold you bought at the banks vault. Bring you ML detector...? Of course, this is very different to just having a safe deposit box for which different rules exist. You can designate anyone who you want to give access to. But you both have to show up at the bank to set it up. You can also title the bank safe account to a trust. Buying gold bullion through a bank, as described above, is very different and is usually meant for larger gold investments for asset preservation.

[Valens Legacy]

1 hour ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I'm quite certain a private company has zero protection in this issue. 

Steve, you are correct on that statement as a friend of my grandmother is going through the same thing here with one. The bank that they also had a box at is no problem at all with a family member opening the boxes.

 

[Gold Catcher]

16 minutes ago, Valens Legacy said:

no problem at all with a family member opening the boxes.

Wow. Really? Access to safe deposit boxes are usually strictly regulated and the owner of the box needs to designate who has access to it. Then, this person granted with access needs to show up at the bank, together with the owner!, the ID will be registered and forms need to be signed. Just being a family member is not enough. Just imagine in what legal trouble the banks would get themselves into.

[Valens Legacy]

1 hour ago, Gold Catcher said:

Access to safe deposit boxes are usually strictly regulated and the owner of the box needs to designate who has access to it.

Sometimes that is true, however in this case the husband died, the bank knew the wife, Most states have what is called mutual property because married people own the same piece of property. Such as the home, land, stocks, bonds, and many other items. Marital assets are for both the husband and wife, not the children.

Also local banks, not the big name banks will work with the families much better than some of the others.

My grandfather had several bank accounts and safety deposit boxes that my grandmother had no knowledge about. The local banks called and informed her about them when they learned of his passing. I went to the banks and dealt with them with my grandmothers permission which was notarized. Sometimes you need to check out the banks before doing business with them over these types of issues. 

[Hobo]

Post hole banks are best.