Don't trust Safe Deposit Boxes
I still use a safe deposit box at the bank but I no longer trust it. It has its place and it provides a secure location for items that are insurable. One of the best methods of preserving wealth is to buy tangible goods that you can insure like coins and watches put them in a safe deposit box and then insure them. Property is also a great store of value but there is maintenance. Savings accounts and checking accounts are not nearly as safe as you think. My current wife was robbed out of our checking account when someone did a fake counter transaction. We were not able to get the money back and we tried for a year.
Here is why I don't trust Safety Deposit Boxes as much as most people.
After my first wife left me, I immediately changed the locks on my condo and cleared out my Safety Deposit Box. It was just instinct. I went with my sister in law to the bank and I cleared the few odds and ends that I had. It was back in 2008 so it would have been a gold bracelet from my grandma and a gold necklace from my grandparents and a Tag S/EL watch worth about $600. Not a lot of value.
The one thing I had in there that was valuable to my Ex wife was a set of rings from her grandmother. They were given to me to use towards the purchase of my ex wife's engagement ring. I thought it was stupid to trade heirlooms toward the purchase of a ring so I just kept them. I figured I would give them to our kids someday.
As soon as I served my exwife papers, her Dad filed a motion (he was a lawyer) to prevent me from accessing my safety deposit box. It was a simple as that. All it took was one motion from a lawyer and I couldn't access my stuff. My safe deposit box had a big sticker on it. It was kind of embarrassing.
That is why I don't trust my box anymore. I still use the same bank 13 years later and have the same box. It still has a mark where there was a big sticker telling everyone that my box was sealed.
The irony is that since I cleared out the box, there was literally nothing in it when I was banned from using it.
Now I am comfortable keeping things in there that I don't need right away. I store documents and certificates and a few coins but that is about it.
When it comes to storing value and keeping it out of your ex wife's hands and keeping it safe from frivolous lawsuits, crypto is the only way to go. If you want to keep it safe from hackers and thieves, you need to keep it in cold storage.