Gold coins

[scottishmoney]

The economy here is descending to hell, so people are parting with things that were precious, but not so much as making a mortgage payment etc.  Seriously I am pondering coming to Europa with my € and banking it there, the way the dollar goes south south south.  Just look on forums and see people snapping up gold sets etc. from people needing the money.

[Paint Your Wagon]

The economy here is descending to hell, so people are parting with things that were precious, but not so much as making a mortgage payment etc.  Seriously I am pondering coming to Europa with my € and banking it there, the way the dollar goes south south south.  Just look on forums and see people snapping up gold sets etc. from people needing the money.

Like a German advisary lettre remarked you are now going from recession into depression right now
However we probably are only six months behind you not knowing yet we entered recession allready here
Be aware that all European Union banks have reporting laws . Anywhere between 10 000 and 20 000 euro in a single
deposit will be reported to the law ( yay we imported your anti dirty money laws too ) on top of that state insurance is
different in all countries . In my country I am ensured 20 000 euro for me and 20 000 euro for my wife against bank bankruptcy
If I have more money then that I need to go to a second and a third bank etc
But the government fund does not even have enough money to cover the failure of one big bank .

Intrest rates are orfull : I get 3.6% net which certainly is below real inflation (not the reported keep them happy figures)

If European coin forums start to offer sets at melt I will be ready and waiting .
Remember I have an agreement with my wife : if gold gets worhtless she can have it and drape it around any and all bodyparts she wants 
In the meantime I can buy whatever I want as long as she can go on renovating the house 
Since our houses are built to last 200 years at least this should enhance the value . Our house prices are not coming down because
all Belgium is built full and there is no place left for new houses so no oversupply possible

[scottishmoney]

The insured limits on accounts here are $100,000 but interest rates are 2.75% on short term accounts, lower for longer term accounts.  But if we have the bank failures that might result here from the fallout from the subprime crisis, I seriously wonder that the FDIC can cover all the depositors monies?

[Paint Your Wagon]

The insured limits on accounts here are $100,000 but interest rates are 2.75% on short term accounts, lower for longer term accounts.  But if we have the bank failures that might result here from the fallout from the subprime crisis, I seriously wonder that the FDIC can cover all the depositors monies?

I do not understand all the American lending terms but I troll many investment forums
It seems the next bomb is Alt prime whatever that may be
After that it is of course the Trillions in Derivatives which are understand all too well .
Insurers and counter insurers leveraged at 30 to 1 meaning that if more then 3.3% of their clients go
under they and everybody else goes under too .

[scottishmoney]

I cannot even pay off my mortgage, the mortgage company makes it practically prohibitive, the reason... they would lose the interest over the rest of the term of the loan.

[Paint Your Wagon]

I cannot even pay off my mortgage, the mortgage company makes it practically prohibitive, the reason... they would lose the interest over the rest of the term of the loan.

I paid of the balance of my mortgage in 1996 since firing an engineer with 23 years anciennity costs the company a 27 months penalty in Belgium
( Complex formula accepted by court)
My contract with the Banklenders stipulated a 3 months penalty for early payback of the mortgage . I told them ok but then afterwards I will leave
with all my insurance coverages and all the rest and go to another bank . They offered to split the penalty in 2 , the local branch paying half to keep me
and I paying the other half .

[scottishmoney]

In the next few months I will be hashing this out with my bank.  They should be thankful they will get their principle with a little bit of interest, so many loans here they are getting nothing but a beat up house that if they can thence sell it will sell at a huge loss.

[Paint Your Wagon]

In the next few months I will be hashing this out with my bank.  They should be thankful they will get their principle with a little bit of interest, so many loans here they are getting nothing but a beat up house that if they can thence sell it will sell at a huge loss.

If you pay back that will drop the percentage of performing loans and will make their shareholders even more unhappy
You may have to use shocktactics like not paying for 2 months and telling them you got cashflow problems 
Then tell them you get money coming but are going to put it in London buying options on some high promise company
unless of course they offer you 90 cent on the dollar to pay back your loan instead of buying London options 

[scottishmoney]

What one person did was just paid it with the payment coupon, but of course the bank will apply it all to interest, and not principal.  They are crooks.

The bank we got the loan from is no longer in our community, they sold the branches to another bank, but kept our loan of course.  Because we have high credit rating, and no payment issues.

Two years ago I went and traded in two cars which we had for several years on a new vehicle more suitable for my family of five.  Negotiating the whole deal was easy, until it came to the payment for the rest after our used cars were valued and applied to the sale.  When you tell a car dealer you are paying cash for the rest you might as well tell them that...

There is no Easter Bunny
Santa is imaginary
Moses did not part the Red Sea
Jesus did not walk on water etc.

They scurry around, implying "you can't do that"  Uh huh, I know they make their bucks on the financing, not on the sale of the car.  They get a significant kickback from the lender, plus the salesman has a quota on auto financing. 

So just about a sale killer.

I told them, fine.  I will walk.

Needless to say they grudgingly accepted our cheque for the vehicle.

The problem is, too many people depend on financing for BS like TV's, cell phones, DVD players etc. So much so that we have to be expected to finance everything.  And pretty soon money is worthless, which is not a problem.  Because of that narsty noble aurum that I canna get enough of.

[Paint Your Wagon]

Two years ago they rearended and destroyed my 13 year old BMW
I had to buy another car
The garage refused to accept money because it is illigal because it is assumed to be money on which no taxes and levies and solidarity has been paid and it is assumed the garage owner is going to try and evade income taxes as well
So I had to get a certified bankcheck signed by the director and subdirector to  pay for my car .
With a certified check the bank takes your money directly into their bankaccount  and issue a check drafted against the bank which in theory is better then money since there are names and signatures on it

[scottishmoney]

Which is precisely why governments want to go cashless, because then all transactions are reported to the tax authorities.

[Paint Your Wagon]

You said you liked Marianne
I prefer the lucky Angel

There are at least three different Marianne types plus the essai coins and medals

http://multicollec.net/1-mo-h/1h15.php

I have an Essai set in gold silver and bronze made 9 years before the 200th anniversary
It never went into "production" as far as I know

It went sooo far below melt that I surprisingly ended up to be the owner of the only three metal set in a velvet box I have
A pity they put it in soft plastic ( hard to scan )
The test was commissioned by Jean Marc Laleta

[scottishmoney]

I like the Marianne on this one a bit better than the regular Marianne, lovely design.  BTW I hope to be an owner of one of the finest known examples of Netherlands 10 FL 1897 soon.  I am also looking for a very nice Danish West Indies 10 Daler of 1904, so beautiful and expensive.

[Paint Your Wagon]

Since you found 18% over melt expensive on Hello Kitty I shudder to think what you are going to pay for that last one
The first one is very iffy since 90% are not slabbed and I got one that is better then any coin I have seen
but Europe is not into slabbing and I am not going to pay a slabber and return trip to the US either

Whilst browsing thru my bankvaulted pictures I found I got another
Marianne ; which being austere is the one I like best . Showing so much character I lack 
It is a "production " coin though ; not an essai

[scottishmoney]

She has the wash and toss windblown hair look