Money in the Bank - What are your Best Options for Gaining Interest with your Money

Congratulations on making savings a priority!? Now that you have some money in the bank, it is time to figure out what kind of account will yield you the best benefits.? Do not leave your money sitting in checking where it does not accrue interest; this practice does nothing for you, and will not help you grow you money.? In fact, leaving your money in a checking account may actually tempt you to spend more than you intend, so watch out for your funds!

A basic savings account is a better option than your savings account, yielding you a small interest payment each month with little or no minimum balance required in the account.? If you need your money to be highly mobile and available at all times, then this is the perfect account for you, particularly if you tend to maintain a low balance at this point.?

If you have managed to save a few thousand dollars, on the other hand, a money market account might be the best thing for you.? This account has a much higher interest rate than a traditional savings account, but also has a much higher minimum balance, often of several thousand dollars.? If you feel comfortable having a few thousand dollars dedicated to the account at a time, then this might be the perfect option for you.? If you can’t afford not to have instant access to that money, however, you might want to stick to a more traditional savings account.?

If you really don’t mind having your money tied up for a long time, though, you can spend your money on a CD, which stands for Certificate of Deposit.? A CD is a special kind of account, which usually has an even higher rate of return than a money market account, but which ties the full balance up completely.? When you put your money into a CD, you commit the money for a certain amount of time.? You cannot deposit or withdraw to or from that account, and the money that you earn on it is often applied less frequently, sometimes annually.? This kind of account yields higher interest payments, but usually have a large penalty if you withdraw your money before the term is up.? If you can afford to have your money set aside for long periods of time, then a CD might be a good option for long term savings.?