Instead of buying an expensive safe, here are six hot spots to hide your money at home, courtesy of Wise Bread’s 10,001 ways to live large on a small budget.
1. Tampon box – “By leaving a little ‘product’ in the box for authenticity and taping a wad of cash to the inside, you can be sure a robber won’t think to look there. (Ladies can be certain that a husband or boyfriend won’t find it, either.)”
2. Fake drain – “By constructing a false drain in the floor of your garage or basement, you can place a pipe full of money where no one can see. (Just make sure your cash is stored in a waterproof container or baggie, in case an unknowing person tries to use the drain!)”
3. The yard – “Digging holes and hiding money is an age old practice. The key is to remember where you put the cash and keeping it safe from the elements. Most experts recommend using some kind of PVC piping to keep the dirt away from the stash and to discourage the ground from caving in. This will also prevent a pesky underground burrowing creature from discovering your secret.”
4. Return-air vent – For detailed directions pick up November 2008 issue of The Family Handyman magazine. The set up involves magnets and sawed-off screw heads.
5. Frozen food – A wad of twenties will find a cozy home in a box of cold grub, empty or not!
6. Fake electrical outlet – No need to rig one yourself, stores sell them pre-made.
The chapter also suggests NOT hiding cash in three obvious places like under the mattress, in the toilet bowl, and in a purse. If you have a significant amount of cash at home, add it to your home owner’s insurance policy.
Now that you’ve hidden so much cash at home, how to you remember where it is stored?
Welcome to Bargain Babe! I’m Mara, and I’m so glad you’re here. I am an obsessive bargain hunter and penny pincher, and I am determined to live a full life without EVER paying full price. 
Why does anyone need to keep significant amounts of cash at home? If you have multiple credit or atm cards, hide most of them in one of those best spots and just carry the minimum number of each with you.
I hide bills under the ironing board cover.
They must be very flat. 🙂
I’ve been keeping cash around the house ever since the Northridge earthquake. If there is a disaster, you will not be able to use credit/debit cards and you won’t have immediate access to your cash. Another friend hords $1 bills, so that in the event of a disaster she won’t be negotiating with larger bills.
well now it’ll be funny to see where robbers go to find cash now….
LOL – I can see them caught red handed with their arm down a fake drain STUCK!
teehee
I can only hope that you meant to type toilet TANK and not bowl above in your list of obvious places. If people are hiding their money in their toilet bowl then I’m never using cash again!
LOL
Ha ha, you are right. I did mean toilet tank.
Cash in earthquake kits is a good idea. If the big one hits, there won’t be electricity for ATM’s or credit card machines.
these are good ideas…i’d be afraid that the tampon box would accidently get thrown out, lol. guess its really about being creative & thinking outside the box…
You could also buy a book that “looks” like a book, but is really a place to hide stuff.
I have a jacket that used to belong to my mom and I stash some cash in the pocket. It’s something sentimental, so I would never accidentally throw the jacket away and I’d like to think my mom is watching out for me!
hoarding $1’s is a great idea. Seems like robbers
trash the place to find the secret places nowadays,
and I think about that.
I like the idea of fake electrical outlets or something
that is not trashable. And have thought of burying it in yard if i had one. I don’t think burglars would
want to spend enough time digging in the garden, so I like that idea.
Hey maybe in a potted plant with a fake waterproof bottom! For those without a
yard.
I think tampon and kotex boxes are great ideas. Also consider any container with powdered cleanser that you keep deep in your messy cabinets under the bathroom sink.
Your post is very well crafted and I have learned. I