Bottom line is in this environment or likely any other chasing a few basis points yield on cash is foolish. just keep your cash safe and focus on TRADING. When Rates go back up we will get that feeling of "earning something on cash" again. However inflation will likely be higher too so the return will be little more than a "feeling" we have to pay tax on.
u can't consider 5 or 10 year bonds near cash! That was his question. It does not matter what the economic climate is.
Nowdays 1.75 is not too shabby, my local bank pays .35 and i have to do something about it. I got a letter from Discover Bank about a week ago offering 2.0% for online savings and 2.3 on a 12 month cd, and 3.25 on 5 yr cd http://discoverbank.com i may try that 2.0 rate http://www.ratebrain.com/savings.php currently list http://www.bank2online.com/personal/checking/great-rate.html in the # 1 spot paying 5.1% on checking http://www.firstarkansasbank.com/personal/personal-checking/kasasa-cash.html is paying 4.44% and has a location within 70 miles of me, i may try that
Always read the fine print. To get that arkansas rate you need to do a whole bunch of things, including marrying your sister. The 5.01% is limited to Oklahoma residents.
It gets worse ... when i read ALL the fine print at my fine Arkansas banking institution it reads ... *Annual Percentage Yield (APY) accurate as of 04/13/09. Minimum to open account is $100. Rate tiers are as follows: 4.44% APY applies to balances of $0.01 - $50,000 and 1.01% APY applies to balances over $50,000 as long as qualifications are met each statement cycle. 0.05% APY applies to all balances if qualifications are not met. All balances will earn 1.01% APY - 4.44% APY on all balances as long as qualifications are met. Rates may change after the account is opened. Fees may reduce earnings. Meaning if i do meet the qualifications, i only earn the good rate on the first 50K and after that the rate falls off ... and if it wasn't for that, i would probably sign up