Elderly relative hiding $$ in the freezer

[Anonymous]

Interesting hiding place, but how do you defrost the money and keep it in good shape? Are the bills all stuck together?

[Anonymous]

Talk about cold, hard cash!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Interesting hiding place, but how do you defrost the money and keep it in good shape? Are the bills all stuck together?

The freezer used to be a popular hiding spot. Just thaw the money out.

[Anonymous]

This is tax evasion. I agree about treading carefully.

[Anonymous]

I’d just start using this cash to pay for everything that you would normally pay with credit cards. Use it to buy gasoline, groceries, etc. Get money orders and use them to pay your electric bill and gas bill and other stuff like that too. Then use your extra cash in the bank to make extra mortgage payments.

[Anonymous]

I agree with PPs that suggest that she start using the cash for daily expenses and not worry about the mortgage. If she really really wants to start paying down the mortgage, then she gives OP $5K or so at a time and OP sends a check to mortgage company and spends the cash.

But about the tax angle: if she really piled up this amount over a period of 20 years, that's $5K/year? Is her income even high enough for $5k/year to matter? Even so--bottom line--don't borrow trouble by doing big cash transactions. And OP, I'd use the phrase "asking for trouble" with her as you review her options.

[Anonymous]

She's this fussy and she has a VARIABLE RATE mortgage? I'm not buying this.

[Anonymous]

That’s called “frozen assets.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That’s called “frozen assets.”

BAHAHHAA

What OP wrote already had me giggling but this put me over the top.

I don't think the government cares if she deposits 5 grand every month and makes double or triple payments over the next few months.

[Anonymous]

My dad’s cousin had almost this much cash stashed away in a safe and his family didn’t know about it until he died. I don’t know what they ended up doing with it but it caused his wife a lot of anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that suggest that she start using the cash for daily expenses and not worry about the mortgage. If she really really wants to start paying down the mortgage, then she gives OP $5K or so at a time and OP sends a check to mortgage company and spends the cash.

But about the tax angle: if she really piled up this amount over a period of 20 years, that's $5K/year? Is her income even high enough for $5k/year to matter? Even so--bottom line--don't borrow trouble by doing big cash transactions. And OP, I'd use the phrase "asking for trouble" with her as you review her options.

Personally, I don't believe it's provable that she evaded taxes.And the amount is super small accumulated over many years, so IRS won't care much anyways.

She could have just taken money from her bank accounts (some people don't like keeping cash in banks, particular elderly or those who lost savings in developing countries bank collapses). And she kept the cash in the freezer. That was very typical in my former USSR country to cash your legal salary and hide savings at similar places at home. Under the mattress, cement into floor, in the toilet tank etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She's this fussy and she has a VARIABLE RATE mortgage? I'm not buying this.

Somebody might have assisted her with mortgage processing, I helped my elderly mom to get a car loan. It's all online nowadays. If she's so cash based, she probably doesn't use credit cards much for her daily expenses, so mortgage would be her only obligation.

I think OP should help with methods described above (just don't put her SSN on any transactions and keep them low under 10k).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that suggest that she start using the cash for daily expenses and not worry about the mortgage. If she really really wants to start paying down the mortgage, then she gives OP $5K or so at a time and OP sends a check to mortgage company and spends the cash.

But about the tax angle: if she really piled up this amount over a period of 20 years, that's $5K/year? Is her income even high enough for $5k/year to matter? Even so--bottom line--don't borrow trouble by doing big cash transactions. And OP, I'd use the phrase "asking for trouble" with her as you review her options.

Personally, I don't believe it's provable that she evaded taxes.And the amount is super small accumulated over many years, so IRS won't care much anyways.

She could have just taken money from her bank accounts (some people don't like keeping cash in banks, particular elderly or those who lost savings in developing countries bank collapses). And she kept the cash in the freezer. That was very typical in my former USSR country to cash your legal salary and hide savings at similar places at home. Under the mattress, cement into floor, in the toilet tank etc.

OP is getting conservative responses because so many folks in the DC area are attorneys or work for the gov't and have security clearances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She's this fussy and she has a VARIABLE RATE mortgage? I'm not buying this.

Somebody might have assisted her with mortgage processing, I helped my elderly mom to get a car loan. It's all online nowadays. If she's so cash based, she probably doesn't use credit cards much for her daily expenses, so mortgage would be her only obligation.

I think OP should help with methods described above (just don't put her SSN on any transactions and keep them low under 10k).

Why would someone have assisted her in getting a variable rate mortgage when it was crystal-clear that rates would be rising? Still not buying it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with PPs that suggest that she start using the cash for daily expenses and not worry about the mortgage. If she really really wants to start paying down the mortgage, then she gives OP $5K or so at a time and OP sends a check to mortgage company and spends the cash.

But about the tax angle: if she really piled up this amount over a period of 20 years, that's $5K/year? Is her income even high enough for $5k/year to matter? Even so--bottom line--don't borrow trouble by doing big cash transactions. And OP, I'd use the phrase "asking for trouble" with her as you review her options.

Personally, I don't believe it's provable that she evaded taxes.And the amount is super small accumulated over many years, so IRS won't care much anyways.

She could have just taken money from her bank accounts (some people don't like keeping cash in banks, particular elderly or those who lost savings in developing countries bank collapses). And she kept the cash in the freezer. That was very typical in my former USSR country to cash your legal salary and hide savings at similar places at home. Under the mattress, cement into floor, in the toilet tank etc.

That is extremely unusual behavior among documented Americans who aren't engaged in shady activities.