 Things
to know about savings bonds
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 Dear
Dr. Don,
I cannot find a bank where I can buy Series I savings bonds. Where
are they?
-- Joyce Journey
 Dear
Joyce,
The Treasury doesn't maintain a list of financial institutions that
sell (physical) paper, Series I U.S. savings bonds, but you can
set up an account with Treasury
Direct that uses your current banking relationship to buy these
savings bonds and hold them in electronic form in your Treasury
Direct account.
If you want to hold the bonds in physical form and
can't find a bank in your area that sells them, I suggest that you
contact the Federal Reserve bank that services savings bonds for
your area of the country and ask about buying the bonds. This Bureau
of the Public Debt's Web
page will provide you with that contact information.
Dear
Dr. Don,
What options are available to anyone who has lost their savings
bonds?
-- Lost Lou
Dear
Lou,
Here's what the Bureau of the Public Debt has to say about lost
savings bonds:
Bonds that are lost, stolen, mutilated or destroyed can be replaced
free of charge as long as we (the Bureau of the Public Debt) can
establish that the bonds haven't been cashed. To assure that the
bonds can be traced, owners should keep records of bond serial
numbers, issue dates, registration and Social Security or taxpayer
identification numbers in a safe place separate from the bonds.
(The Savings
Bond Wizard is a great way to do this!)
To get your bond replaced, complete Form PDF
1048. On this form, provide the approximate issue date along
with the complete names, addresses, Social Security number that
appeared on the bond and the bond serial number. If you don't
know the serial number or denomination, just write "unknown"
in the space provided. If the bond owner is a minor, the form
should be signed by both parents and the minor's age and Social
Security number should be included. Mail the completed form to:
Bureau of the Public Debt, Parkersburg, WV 26106-7012. Replacement
bonds will still show the original issue date.
Lou's problem should serve as a reminder to keep a
notebook with a listing of your financial assets. That's tip No.
4 from last year's Dr. Don's top10
list.
Dr.
Don,
I have saving bonds that I wish to redeem. Is there an online financial
institute that will redeem savings bonds? We live in a rural area
and do our banking with a credit union that does not deal with savings
bonds. The few banks in our area want you to have an account with
them and will redeem only a few at a time.
Thanks,
-- Debbie Deposit
Dear
Debbie,
The limit on cashing in bonds stems from a government requirement
that you either have to have an account relationship with the financial
institution for the past six months or present documentary identification,
like your driver's license. If you use documentary identification
and don't have an account relationship, you're limited to redeeming
$1,000 worth of savings bonds at a time.
You can contact the Federal
Reserve bank that services your area and arrange to redeem the
bonds via mail. This option makes the most sense if you just want
to cash out all of your bonds.
Alternatively, you can open a Treasury Direct account and wait
for an invitation to convert your paper U.S. savings bonds to electronic
securities through Treasury Direct's Smart Exchange program. Converting
the securities would allow you to manage redemptions and have the
proceeds placed in your bank account. The FAQ page
that deals with the Smart Exchange program explains why you have
to wait to be invited to convert your bonds and other aspects of
that program. This option makes sense if you're not going to cash
out all of your savings bonds at one time, are not in a rush to
redeem the bonds, or might be buying additional savings bonds or
other U.S. government securities through Treasury Direct.
To ask a question of Dr. Don, go
to the "Ask the Experts"
page, and select one of these topics: "financing a home,"
"saving & investing" or "money."
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