Editor’s Word: This story initially appeared on The Penny Hoarder.
You may suppose a treasure hunt means diving within the ocean to search out sunken ships or exploring historical ruins in faraway international locations on the lookout for hidden chambers stuffed with gold and jewels.
However thankfully, you may as well turn out to be a treasure hunter in and round your individual home, beginning with nothing or maybe a small funding in a steel detector.
Most of us don’t imagine there’s something worthwhile hidden in the home, however after you hear these tales, don’t be shocked in case you begin flattening a wall or two.
Finest Locations To Search for Hidden Cash
Earlier than launching into tales of historical treasure unearthed in odd locations, it’s value discussing the place owners sometimes conceal valuables. Should you’ve not too long ago taken possession of a house, test the next hiding spots to see if somebody left their stash of money behind.
- Taped to the again of a drawer
- Within the air return
- Taped behind a clock, image or massive portray
- In an previous or counterfeit meals container
- Tucked right into a drop ceiling
One other widespread hiding place in case you’re keen to courageous the gross issue is in a plastic bag secured inside the bathroom tank.
Listed here are locations to search out hidden treasure at residence. You by no means know what worthwhile gadgets — and even money — could also be hiding in your house.
1. Contained in the Partitions
It isn’t simple to look in your partitions, however there could be worthwhile issues there.
For instance, a hidden mural made in 1979 by well-known pop artist Keith Haring was revealed behind some paint and AC tools throughout the transform of a loft in Tribeca. Maintain that in thoughts the following time you concentrate on increasing your bed room.
Should you’re cautious, you may be capable to peek inside some partitions.
Flip the ability off, take away the plastic covers from switches and electrical shops, and shine a lightweight in wherever there may be a gap that you would be able to see by.
2. Crawl Areas
Demise is probably the largest motive that there are millions of hidden treasures to be discovered. And one place the place older people with older houses may conceal issues is in a crawl area.
If a crawl area could be accessed from inside (or a gap within the basement), it’s extra prone to have been used as a hiding place due to the privateness.
And it isn’t simply buried gadgets that is perhaps there. In a crawl area I discovered a chest within the nook with cash and foreign money from Vietnam, together with paperwork and different issues.
I knew the earlier proprietor so I returned these finds, but when he had died within the meantime I may need thought-about them honest sport.
You need to use a steel detector to search for buried objects or you possibly can simply search for clues, like a dip within the floor or a patch of dust that appears completely different. Dig gently; there shouldn’t be wiring buried there, however water strains and drain pipes are widespread.
3. Attics
Tales of hidden valuables in an attic are nearly cliche, however that’s as a result of these discoveries are so widespread. I as soon as demolished an previous home and located a glass piggy financial institution stuffed with pennies underneath the insulation within the attic.
In 2020, a not too long ago bought residence in northeastern New York with an attic condominium that hadn’t been occupied in 30 years yielded a treasure trove of priceless historic artifacts.
Should you plan to poke round underneath fiberglass insulation, you need to put on protecting gear (disposable garments, a face masks and security glasses).
Some attics can have issues saved in bins and trunks. These are particularly promising if a few of them had been there earlier than you moved in. Verify on-line for assist figuring out in case your finds have worth.
4. Behind the Washing Machine
Many washing machines have water strains and drain strains that come by the wall about midway up. Generally these openings will not be sealed, which is why I used to be in a position to stash a pouch full of money there in a home I owned years in the past.
I hung it on a string anchored inside the outlet so it could be down contained in the wall by the ground.
I’m not making an attempt to be morbid, however I ought to remind you once more that folks typically die with out revealing all of their hiding locations.
Take a peek if in case you have a gap into the wall on your washer drain line.
5. Closets
If your private home was inherited or for different causes got here with issues already in it, search by these closets.
In 2012, Michael Rorrer discovered comedian books value greater than $3 million whereas cleansing out a closet within the residence of his deceased great-aunt in Martinsville, Virginia. He discovered 375 traditional previous comics, together with the primary subject of “Batman.”
Even in case you thought the closet cabinets had been empty while you moved in, typically there are issues on the again that may’t be simply seen. And poke round for secret hiding locations.
6. Basements
In 2016, a Reddit consumer chronicled his epic journey of discovering $23,000 in money throughout a basement renovation. Lots of the bins finally unearthed within the ceiling of the consumer’s Cleveland cellar had been hidden because the Nineteen Fifties.
Aside from being a pure assortment level for all kinds of forgotten gadgets, basements even have many hiding locations.
Go searching and take into consideration the place you’ll put one thing in case you wished to cover it very well.
If the basement wall is made from concrete blocks and the highest row is accessible, there could possibly be issues hidden contained in the blocks there. Use a mirror and flashlight to have a look.
7. Beneath Carpet
Whereas taking the carpet out of an previous home my mother and father had purchased, I found that newspapers lined your complete flooring. An old-timer advised me this was as soon as a typical type of low-cost carpet padding.
What didn’t happen to me on the time was that these newspapers had been sufficiently old to have some worth to collectors. I simply browsed the previous headlines and threw all of them away.
Cash is typically hidden underneath carpeting. That is commonest in locations the place a nook could be pulled up with out loosening the entire carpet.
Verify for unattached corners within the backs of closets and underneath stairs, and take a peek.
8. Outdated Furnishings
A Scottish man restoring an vintage Victorian desk in his loft found medals from the Crimean Battle hidden in a secret compartment. The medals had been estimated to be value 2,000 kilos (or about $2,300).
Some items of furnishings have secret compartments, significantly vintage desks. Look beneath to see if there may be enclosed area that doesn’t appear to be accessed from the same old drawers.
There may additionally be drawers that don’t open all the way in which however seem to take action due to a false again.
Should you discover cash or payments and even previous postcards, you need to use on-line sources to find out in the event that they’re value something.
9. Books
As you pull aside your private home within the title of treasure looking, you may discover some worthwhile previous books. You possibly can promote them on eBay. However don’t discard the nugatory ones too shortly.
My mom advised me about an uncle who stashed foreign money in books. After he died his household found hundreds of {dollars} whereas leafing by the pages.
Apparently hiding cash in books was widespread for many who lived by financial institution failures throughout the Nice Despair.
Extra not too long ago, a guide donated to a Pennsylvania library turned up a severe haul of hidden money.
The cash, which was a mixture of U.S. and international foreign money, was stuffed between the unassuming pages of “Diary of a Wimpy Child.”
10. Beneath Floorboards
Once we had been youngsters we used to throw pennies right into a gap within the kitchen flooring. We by no means did know why there was a quarter-sized gap by the linoleum and wooden.
We additionally by no means retrieved any of the cash. They is perhaps there at the moment, nearly 40 years later.
Talking of cash underneath the ground, in 2022 a stash of Seventeenth- and 18th-century gold cash value almost $300,000 was discovered squirreled away underneath the floorboards of an English home.
Until you’re renovating you most likely don’t need to tear open your flooring. However you may discover a free board that may be eliminated, and also you may discover entry from the ground beneath.
Within the case of our kitchen gap it could most likely have been so simple as popping open a ceiling tile within the basement. That brings us to our subsequent potential treasure location…
11. Ceilings
Talking of burning by cash on residence renovations, have we acquired a sizzling story for you.
Whereas battling a blaze in 2020, Brooklyn firefighters discovered it was actually raining cash from the house’s ceiling. Estimates point out as a lot as 1,000,000 {dollars} nearly went up in smoke.
Once more, you possibly can’t tear open a ceiling only for the small probability that there’s one thing worthwhile in there, however you possibly can search for clues. Possibly a part of the ceiling has already been eliminated and could be eliminated safely once more.
A drop ceiling may need tiles which might be simply lifted, so you possibly can have a look. An attic can present entry to a ceiling as nicely.
12. The Yard
Final however positively not least, the yard generally is a good place to begin digging for treasure.
A Staten Island couple found a protected full of money after they went to dig holes for brand new bushes. Inside was $52,000 in valuables that had been stolen from their neighbors nearly a decade in the past.
However earlier than you begin digging trenches in your yard, ensure you contact 811. That’s the nationwide hotline to name earlier than you dig so that you don’t get caught unearthing vital (or harmful) stuff like fuel strains or different utilities.
Different Methods To Discover Cash at Dwelling
Even when your home doesn’t comprise treasure hidden in its partitions, there may be loads of worth to be unearthed in each room.
From promoting stuff in closets and storage to mining the cabinets for forgotten reward playing cards, there’s a assured payoff someplace in your home.
If your whole arduous work scouring the home for valuables doesn’t get you something, no less than you possibly can spherical up the misplaced change within the sofa and recliner for a minor treasure looking success.