One roller coaster-like cart ride later and Harry was standing in front of his trust vault. Griphook opened the door and Harry saw piles upon piles of gold, silver and bronze coins stacked inside the vault. Griphook pointed out a money pouch hanging in the vault and told Harry to use it to collect his withdrawal. Scooping in a large amount of all three types of coins, after having Griphook explain what each one was, Harry was confident that he'd have enough money to buy his school supplies and any other books or items that caught his interest. While on the cart ride back up Harry mentally reminded himself of the Wizarding currency, Gold Galleons, Silver Sickles, and Bronze Knuts. Twenty nine Knuts to a Sickle, seventeen Sickles to a Galleon. When they got back to the surface Griphook once again set a brisk pace as he led Harry to see his Account Overseer. Arriving at a door with a gold plaque that simply said Margok, Griphook knocked three times and a call of 'Enter.' was heard from within.
"Thank you for your help Griphook." Harry thanked the goblin for leading him with a nod. Griphook simply turned and walked away without another word and Harry entered the office.
"I must admit that I am rather surprised that you would want to speak to me already, Mr. Potter." Margok stated as soon as his office door closed behind Harry. "Since you cannot touch any of the Potter finances aside from what is in your trust vault until you are of age, something that I am sure you were already informed of by the teller." Harry felt that Margok was really asking 'Why are you here wasting my time?'
"I was simply curious about the state of my family's finances." Harry replied as he moved over to the plain chairs that sat in front of Margok's desk. "I would like an accounting of the Potter family assets." Harry was thankful that he'd learned these terms from listening to Vernon over the years as his uncle managed the Dursley family's bank accounts.
"Very well." Margok grumbled, taking some documents out of a drawer on his side of the desk. "The Potter family liquid assets amount to ten thousand galleons with another five thousand in your trust vault. The main vault also holds assorted heirlooms and other items acquired over the years."
"Is there an inventory of these items?" Harry questioned eagerly, his mind on what might be in there in regards to his family and their history.
"No. Gringotts merely stores the items of our vault holders. We do not care what they are, unless the item is goblin-made in which case our treaty with your Ministry allows us to reclaim ownership of said item." Margok informed the young wizard.
"I see." Harry disappointedly replied. He was hoping that there might be a family history or some mementos from his parents.
Margok paid him no mind as he continued. "The only land the Potter's still own is where Potter Manor once stood. It was destroyed by the Death Eaters shortly after the deaths of your paternal grandparents."
Harry was sad to learn that his family's home had also been destroyed. He'd learned about what had happened to his parents from Hagrid on their trip to London. Something was bothering him about all this though. The money to own a large manor and estate couldn't be coming from nowhere, there had to be some sort of business bringing a profit into the Potter vault.
"Does the Potter family own some kind of business?" Harry asked.
"Not anymore." Margok bluntly replied. "A small scale potion-making company called Sleekeazy's belonged to your grandfather, Fleamont Potter. But he sold the company upon his retirement. It did quadruple the Potter family's wealth but most of that was spent on the war effort against the Death Eaters."
"What'll happen to the lands if I have no money? Will they be seized because of taxes?" Harry asked having heard of repossession on the television before and having the basic premise explained by Vernon and Petunia.
"Not as such." Margok grunted. "The taxes on ancestral lands are fairly low, around a hundred Galleons a year for a property the size of the Potter estate."
"I see." Harry replied relieved, before frowning. He would have to find out some way to get some money coming into his family's vault. "I can do whatever I want with the money in my trust vault, is that correct?"
"It is." Margok stated clearly bored.
"Is the amount of gold in my trust vault a fixed amount or does it get periodically replenished?" Harry questioned trying to see if he could get to the money in the Potter family vault and use some of it to invest.
"The former, the trust vault is only refilled if its balance becomes zero." Margok informed.
"Could I move the contents of my trust vault to a new one, and repeat this until I have an appropriate amount of funds?" Harry asked his mind working to try and figure out his family's financial problem and fix it.
Margok sighed, while it wasn't all that hard to figure out this type of scheme, branch members of wealthy families thought of it often enough, it did show that the boy was trying to make plans for that money.
"There is a rather substantial fee applied to such services." Margok stated with a fanged smile.
"How much of a fee?" Harry asked suddenly suspicious.
"Twenty percent per transaction." Margok informed greed practically dripping from his tone.
"That's practically theft!" Harry gaped at the goblin.
"You could always wait until you are of age." Margok offered; smirking at the glare the young wizard was aiming at him. He may have been willing to go lower, but the young Potter seemed desperate enough for the money to agree to that exorbitant fee and Gringotts didn't do charity, especially not for wizards.