CDs aren’t sexy, but maybe that’s just what you need right now.
Say you have $50k in a trading account or in your Apple position, to use a round number for the sake of argument. And you have a bad day in the market, and it’s not your first bad day, and don’t have the stomach for this. It’s causing anxiety and it’s difficult to focus on the long term as you’re supposed to. Maybe you’re not cut out to be in the market, at least right now. The feeling may not last, but perhaps a breather is in order.
Let’s say you lost 1% today: That’s $500.
You can make today’s loss disappear—and maybe yesterday’s, too—by moving that $50k into a 12-month CD at 3%, and in a year you’ll have earned $1,500. Of course, this is for funds that you don’t need to live on, and you must review carefully the penalties for early withdrawal.
You may have heard of Marcus by Goldman Sachs. They’re offering high rates on savings accounts and CDs. It wouldn’t be your major bank—it offers no checking accounts or bill paying or that kind of service. It’s about parking your money and investing.
A bank like Bank of America is offering virtually nothing for savings accounts and CDs. It’s a waste.
But Marcus is offering 2.15% for savings accounts and 3% for 12-month CDs. With interest rates climbing, these rates may climb as well. Last month, their CD rate was just 2.7%.
That might be just the start of your search. Nerdwallet and other sites list the best returns on CDs. Synchrony (online only; no checking accounts) and CapitalOne (brick-and-mortar branches available, as well as checking) are currently offering 12-month CD rates that are even higher than Marcus’s.
Disclosure: I own no stock in Goldman Sachs or any of the other entities mentioned. I own some Marcus CDs and continue to shop around.
