Читать книгу Investing All-in-One For Dummies - Eric Tyson - Страница 19

Cash equivalents are any investments that you can quickly convert to cash without cost to you. With most bank checking accounts, for example, you can conduct online transactions to pay bills or do the old-fashioned writing of a check or withdraw cash through an ATM machine or from retailers like a grocery store that enable you to get cash back when making a purchase.

Money market mutual funds (more commonly known as money market funds) are another type of cash equivalent. Investors, both large and small, invest hundreds of billions of dollars in money market mutual funds because the best money market funds historically have produced higher yields than bank savings accounts. (Some online banks offer higher yields, but you must be careful to understand ancillary service fees that can wipe away any yield advantage.) The yield advantage of a money market fund over a savings account almost always widens when interest rates increase because banks move to raise savings account rates about as fast as molasses on a cold winter day.

Why shouldn’t you take advantage of a higher yield? Many bank savers sacrifice this yield because they think that money market funds are risky — but they’re not. Money market mutual funds generally invest in safe things such as short-term bank certificates of deposit, U.S. government–issued Treasury bills, and commercial paper (short-term bonds) that the most creditworthy corporations issue.

Another reason people keep too much money in traditional bank accounts is that the local bank branch office or online bank makes the cash seem more accessible. Money market mutual funds, however, offer many quick ways to get your cash. Most money market mutual funds can be accessed online, just like most bank accounts. You can also write a check (most funds stipulate the check must be for at least $250), or you can call the fund and request that it mail or electronically transfer your money.

Move extra money that’s dozing away in your bank savings account into a higher-yielding money market mutual fund. Even if you have just a few thousand dollars, the extra yield more than pays for the cost of this book. If you’re in a high tax bracket, you can also use tax-free money market funds. (See Chapter 4 in Book 2 to find out about money market funds.)