problem with savings bonds and my grandma ...any suggestions?

Question

the situation-
my grandma is a very stubborn, old-fashioned person. She thinks the best way to invest your money is through savings bonds, so ever since i was born 16 years ago shes bought me a $50 dollars savings bond every year for my birthday, she also bought me a few extra when i was little...the thing is by the time i need the money for college in about 2 years...ill have about $1,100 dollars in bonds which is absolutely nothing, but my grandma basically thinks shes paying for my whole college tuition...to be short, i need about $400 for a physical training program that is well worth the money, and this seems to be my only option...my parents said i can use the bonds as long as my grandma says its okay...but how i do i ask an old-fasioned, stubborn lady who grew up thinking bonds are the best way to go even though today they are depreciating by .67% a year... im only gonna lose money by holding these bonds, but how i do i ask my grandma permission for this without hurting her?

my parents will not let me do it and not tell her...they said its okay with them as long as my grandma says its okay...and when i said they are depreciating at .67% a year i didnt mean in value i meant compared to inflation...
i know they were a gift and i should respect my grandma but shouldn't i also be smart with the money given to me?

Answer 1

They are losing .67% a year??? How much will they be worth if you keep dipping into them for different things???

Be glad that your grandmother was kind enough to think of you and your education every year, and use it as intended, for your education.
It doesn't matter if it won't pay for much, don't destroy her feelings about you by belittling her efforts.

Answer 2

You didn't earn this money. It is a gift. You should abide bby the terms of the giver. You are very lucky she thinks well enough of you to assist with your future.

Lets be brutally honest here. Your grandmother would likely NEVER invest in anything risky like stocks. So she would have picked another secure investment instrument, be it CD's, savings accounts, and so on. A principal of $1,100 with the commensurate safe interest will never cover an average tuition anyway.

It will likely cover you books and other similar educational related expenses. So think about that while you are working to pay your education bills. This gift might free up some weekend overtime you won't have to work because of her generosity.

Answer 3

I work in a bank so I'll try to help you here. First of all, you can cash in these bonds without anyone's permission as long as your name and SS number are the only ones listed as owner. If your grandmother is a co-owner then you need her permission and signature. If there is someone listed as beneficiary, you can do it without permission as that only kicks in if you are no longer alive. Savings bonds make nice gifts for young kids but they take about 13 years to mature to the face value. They are secure in that they can never lose value, but they don't earn much either. Last week someone cashed in bonds that were almost 40 years old and yes, they were worth much more than their face value, but let's face it - 40 years??? You should talk to your grandmother about special savings and investment accounts geared toward education - the rate of return is much better. Good luck.

Answer 4

someplace on-line you could bypass and examine on how a lot a bond is worth or you could call a economic corporation/ you merely want to entice close the year it replaced into issued. The interest is further onto the bond at the same time as you money it and then you get to pay taxes on it too. It takes about 20 years to get the completed fee of a bond plus interest. A $500 bond, purely expenditures 1/2 that. in the experience that you money it early, you purely get 1/2. merely carry onto your bonds and examine out to ignore about them for the subsequent 20 years or so and then seem into cashing them.

Answer 5

Ask your parent to talk to her. I too bought bonds for my grandsons, what a waste, they don't pay any interet to say so. Not worth it. So I gave them to the boys and they cashed them in. No problems. If you have the bonds and your SS number is on them, you should be able to cash them with out her permission and just don't tell her.

Answer 6

I am actually going through the same things atm...
what i did was search yahoo for savings bonds claims, if it is just your name on the bonds and your grandma will not give them to you you can quite possibly claim them stolen and/or lost. my grandmother is witholding mine also, and it is only like 800 but for being divorced and starting over it is huge! i would have you and your parents sit down and look through the searches you can get through yahoo... or maybe you can try explaining to your grandmother, but if she is anything like mine you will have no luck:(