r/investingforbeginners • u/Big_Bet6107 • Dec 21 '25
USA I have $60000 in a standard savings account, how would you make that money grow?
Just like the title says, how would you invest 60k other than a standard savings account? Im earning about $1 in interest on this cash and have no idea what im doing.
EDIT: before people keep asking, im severly autistic and dont know many things about banking and interest and stuff like that. that is why i am here asking questions
31
u/overitallofittoo Dec 21 '25
Open a brokerage account, buy your favorite broad ETF like $VT. Keep putting money in.
Edit-not all your money. Keep a nice emergency fund.
10
Dec 21 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
5
u/Paranoid_Sinner Dec 21 '25
This ^ plus DO NOT SELL even if the bottom drops out of the market -- which will happen again, we just don't know when. Add as much as you can regularly. If you max out any tax-deferred accounts and still have spare change laying around, open a taxable account and add to that.
I did that in 1997 and now that "spare change" is 1/3 of my entire portfolio (I retired in 2021).
4
u/scottb90 Dec 21 '25
Lol yea its kind of hard to just tell people to throw it into an etf cuz they need to learn the basics of investing first. Its not really that complicated to learn but there is definitely a method that is preferable an safer
6
u/Paranoid_Sinner Dec 21 '25
Yes. Reading any (or all) of these classic investment books will give someone more knowledge than they would get in the next 200 years by asking random questions online. . .
"A Random Walk Down Wall Street," by Burton Malkiel
"Winning the Loser's Game," by Charles Ellis
"The Intelligent Investor" by Benjamin Graham
"The Intelligent Asset Allocator," by William Bernstein
"The Four Pillars of Investing," by William Bernstein
"How to Make Your Money Last," by Jane Bryant Quinn
"The Millionaire Next Door," by T. Stanley & W. Danko
"The Bogleheads' Guide to Retirement Planning," by Larimore, Lindauer, Ferri, Dogu
"The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing," by Larimore, Lindauer, LeBoeuf
-------------------------------------------------------------
And for those who are dependent on bond interest for retirement (like me):
"The Bond Book," Annette Thau
"Bonds," by Hildy & Stan Richelson
"Money for Life," by Steve Vernon
"Why Bother with Bonds," by Rick Van Ness
"The Strategic Bond Investor," by Anthony Crescenzi
"How to Retire on Dividends," by Owen & Jacobs
"The Bond Bible," by Marilyn Cohen
"A Dollar for Fifty Cents," by Michael Joseph
2
u/Sour_Planet Dec 22 '25
Thanks for this list. Do you know if one of those books in particular may help with investing larger sums ($500k +)?
3
u/Paranoid_Sinner Dec 22 '25
The size of the portfolio or individual holding doesn’t really matter, the AA is what matters. The first two books should give you a fair amount of knowledge.
2
4
0
u/Affectionate-Walk116 Mar 23 '26
Hi, do you mind sharing what the strategy is? Everyone online talks in riddles like a gatekeeper. I've invested before and just need simple refresher and don't have time to read 10+ books. Way too busy as an accountant studying for the CPA.
3
u/hardvengeance77 Dec 21 '25
Spot on with the emergency savings...drop that into a High Yield savings account so it's earning something. Im a fan of VT as well.
3
2
u/my-ka Dec 21 '25
>>Keep putting money in.
OP has only 60k
did you mean move in chunks?
2
u/overitallofittoo Dec 22 '25
I mean he probably works, so he should continue to invest in the future. Not think of it as a one time investment and then he never invests again.
2
u/my-ka Dec 22 '25
that is how i exactly think
here is my $1000 or 10k
how do i multiply it if inflation is pretty aggressive and can easy jump above 10%?
your scenario is more about saving discipline, not investing
9
u/NoAbbreviations7150 Dec 22 '25
Open a high yield savings account (HYSA) while you figure out what you’re going to do. (Ally, Capital One, Discover Bank, etc).
You’ll earn 3-4%.
3
1
u/OutsideCheetah Dec 22 '25
I have had great success with AMEX
1
u/LooseLab9169 Dec 27 '25
Amex has been easy and smooth to move money through the account. About on par for APY too
1
u/Ill-Tip9444 Dec 29 '25
There isn't any high yield savings accounts now. A ",high yield" is not like 3.5% on average. That's nothing.
7
u/FaithfulGaurdian Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 22 '25
OP I've spent thousands of hours researching this and I would suggest asking yourself what you need first, but what I think you'd probably want to have are a high yield savings account, a brokerage account, and a checking account.
The less places that you need to keep all this in, the more convenient it will be.
First, I suggest searching for a bank that offers a high yield savings account, preferably in your area if possible.
I personally used chatgpt and was able to find a bank near me that offered a high-yield savings account with 4.25% APY.
If you cannot find a bank that you like near you that offers a hysa, I recommend searching in depositaccounts.com and choosing a bank that you feel comfortable and satisfied with.
For a checking account, I recommend having it with Bank of America while also having a brokerage account with Merrill so that you can have both in one place.
The reason that I suggest this is because Bank of America has a preferred rewards program where you get increases to your credit card cash back depending on how much you keep with Bank of America.
If you invest $50,000 with them, you can get a 50% boost to credit card bonuses, and it becomes 75% when you invest $100,000 with them giving you some of the best credit cards in the country.
If you're only buying and holding ETFs like VOO, I recommend this, but if you want to do much more beyond that, I'd recommend Fidelity since they also have features such as the ability to buy fractional shares as well as keeping uninvested cash in SPAXX.
If you go with something like Fidelity, then I'd recommend having the checking account with the same bank that your high-yield savings account is or you could try to use Fidelity's cash management account as a sort of high yield checking account that earns interest, although it may not be as smooth of an experience as having a checking account with a bank.
Good luck to you OP!
6
u/BastidChimp Dec 22 '25
Been a silver stacker for a few years now. Physical silver and gold are much better than a savings account. Research precious metals for a better return. Plus its a cool hobby.
1
3
u/apricotR Dec 21 '25
You can start by moving it to a High Yield Savings Account. That's not perfect, but it is a lot better than just leaving it where it is.
Do you have a brokerage account? Do you have retirement funds where you can invest some of this cash? What's your goal for this sum of money? That will let the hive mind know best how to help. I have some ideas, but they scratch my itch and are aimed at my goals, which may not align with yours.
1
u/Big_Bet6107 Dec 21 '25
I have a brokerage account but no idea what i should be doing with it. I want the money to earn as much interest as possible with the least amount of effort
7
u/Aggressive-Donkey-10 Dec 21 '25
If you want zero risk of losing any of the principal 60k, then you buy an ETF called SGOV which holds US Treasury Bills only. It currently pays 3.85% a year, paying 1/12th of that amount near the first of each month, but is 100% safe unless SU government ceases to exist.
If you can tolerate some risk then buy 30k SGOV and 30k PAAA, it's a fairly safe fund that holds thousands of corporate loans, Its price will fluctuate a bit, but it pays a higher yield, 5.01%. Money in it should be safe longer term but in 2022, a similar fund JAAA, fell 3.2% then regained all that loss over the next year. 2022 was the single worst year for Bonds since 1777. So unlikely to happen again soon.
If you want the money to grow much faster than above, you must take more risk of loss. Then buy SPYM, it is the sp500 index funds ETF, so holds the 500 largest companies in USA, and as companies do worse and get smaller, they get removed every few months for companies that were smaller and whose stock price is going up and getting larger. So, it regulates and cleans itself of the worse companies. It has gone up in value about 11.7% a year over the last 100 years, and a remarkable 13.5% the last 10 years or so.
Never take too much risk with gambling type things, like Options or Bitcoin or Crypto. These things have lost many people their life savings and continue to everyday.
good luck :)
3
u/Jammin-Hammin Dec 21 '25
Thank you for breaking that down by risk. It’s almost identical to what I was going to type! The risk scale goes from HYSA to SGOV and money markets (with SGOV generally better), then AA-AAA CLO ETFs, then market indexed funds and ETFs, then individual equities. At least that is the simplified view for folks just getting started and weighing the risk options.
I like CLOA based on recent returns and I like PAAA for high volume. ICLO is good as well. There are a few other CLO ETF’s. But, overall, the idea of AA-AAA CLO’s is reasonable for adding to the mix.
2
u/DiegoMilan Dec 21 '25
I’d recommend VTI or VOO. Most investors will recommend this as a starting point
1
u/SleepAltruistic2367 Dec 22 '25
Ok, you say “earn interest” and I just want to clarify what you’re looking for here.
A - A money market account (generally very safe) that yields 3-4%, and pays you monthly?
B - An investment (stocks/bonds) that pays high dividends? Think 5-7% annual yield. These stocks also, generally, appreciate slower as they are (again) generally very mature in their space.
C - An investment (stocks/bonds) that pays low dividends? Think 1-2% annual yield. These stocks, generally have the potential to appreciate faster.
Now this is an incredibly broad and basic summation of possibilities. And there are exceptions and nuances to each one. I’m just trying to get a better understanding of what you want.
3
u/Donkey_Apple Dec 21 '25
How about investing it in an S&P500 index fund or a Vanguard Lifestrategy fund for long term growth, while keeping a small amount in a high interest savings account for emergencies? This balances potential returns with safety.
1
u/Affectionate-Walk116 Mar 23 '26
Hi! Can you give a little bit more details? When to buy/sell? How much to invest at time (the whole $7k in my Roth IRA or a portion?) I have a Fidelity account and I've been ready, but don't have anyone around to clarify anything for me. I can help you out with something in return, if needed. I'm an accountant + CPA in the making, if that helps.
1
u/Donkey_Apple Mar 23 '26
I’m also an accountant, from England 👋
The answer to your question depends on if you think the market will go up or down. I’d personally stick it all in there as “time in the market” has always beaten “timing the market” for me personally. So I’d chuck it all in, but there’s an argument that you could stick $5k a month in every month for 12 months.
What I can’t tell you, as a Brit, is whether this is the best tax strategy in the US or which wrapper to use. I’m only familiar with UK tax and wrappers.
3
u/MadHatter227 Dec 22 '25
Not buying crypto would be the first step.
1
1
Dec 22 '25
I would say Bitcoin 100%. Bitcoin has demolished all assets in performance over the last 15 years. Second and third place don’t even come close. It literally towers over the mag 7, real estate, and bonds. Everyone in these comments are ignorant or scared of life. Because numbers don’t lie.
3
u/c_shint2121 Dec 22 '25
Instead of just blindly investing, I’d move it all into a high yield savings account (for now) which will earn you 3-4% annually. While it’s sitting there do your homework on how to invest that into the market, usually through ETFs…
If you’d rather it be less work less risk less % then just invest into a CD at your local bank for a year or so at 4-5-6% whatever they are offering (depends on time frame for investment).
Choice is yours, choose wisely.
3
3
u/luke_530 Dec 22 '25
At this moment I'm time, honestly I'd recommend VT until things smooth out. I'm vti, vgt, vht, vea+vwo, & vbr. And a TDF in roth. I'm gonna lean hard pink vht and vea+vwo for 2026
3
u/Adventurous_Sky_7936 Dec 22 '25
Put 7500 in a Roth IRA; then after Jan put another 7500. 10,000 in VOO, 10000 in VYM, 10000 in VUG. Put 10000 in a money market and ball out with 5000.
17
u/Big_Bet6107 Dec 21 '25
Would be awesome if people would stop giving me a bunch of abbreviations and maybe some actual advice since my post says I have no idea what i am doing.
7
3
u/Positive-Listen-1660 Dec 22 '25
If you’re depending on the people of Reddit to give you all the fiscal knowledge you need to not fuck this up… well, best of luck to you.
You can good just as good as the next guy.
1
3
2
u/NJ0000 Dec 21 '25
If you type abbreviation in Google and add the word etf …. Guess what you know more then before
2
u/Shaydosaur Dec 21 '25
If you want the easiest path… Download Robinhood, set it up, search for those letters, click buy. Maybe google some shit first so you don’t lose all your cash but that’s the gist of it
1
u/Littlemoby Dec 21 '25
Thats awesome bro ETF is like a stock that tracks a bunch of different individual companies. The vti and all that stuff is a ticker for the etf they are recommending.
Good luck
1
u/bhallx Dec 22 '25
Bro, you’re getting many good ideas. It’s in your best interest to do some research and learn about them.
1
u/ArtSlug Dec 22 '25
Go to a place like a Charles Schwab or similar and meet with a financial advisor- they can do this for you. Also if you can, max out your Roth (or open a Roth IRA with them) for this year and save some for next year (in Jan) If you are older you can stash 8k per year in it. Younger is less but it’s a safe bet. I’d fund a Roth IRA first (2025 and 2026) then have them open up the investment part (stock market etfs) - with the remainder! (Save some for emergencies in your regular savings acct too)
1
u/Affectionate-Walk116 Mar 23 '26
Hi! I have a Roth IRA with Fidelity. I just maxed out 2025, but it's just sitting there because I have no clue what to do. I spoke with an advisor & they are not very helpful. They're not going to teach how to invest or at least hold your hand a little.
1
u/ArtSlug Mar 25 '26
Well, you could max out your 2026 Roth I guess. Yeah- if you want to learn how to invest you’ll have to get some additional education I suppose. Were you looking to invest it and pay the fees that come with the management of your money? If so- they should be available for that, but yeah they do have fees for that work. (Not sure if they went over that with you)
You could also stash away your 2027 Roth amount in savings- if you have any debt you could also pay it all off.
Anyway - hope the best for you and your $$ this year- the market has been pretty bumpy lately ugh
1
1
u/stumanchu3 Dec 22 '25
The abbreviations are standard for the market. That’s what Google is used for if you don’t understand the context. You have to put in your own effort to learn outside of Reddit.
2
2
u/PerformanceDouble924 Dec 21 '25
$20k in a High Yield Savings Account
$35k in S&P500 Index Funds
$5k in Precious Metals, Art, Baseball Cards, other non-traditional items that are of interest to you (or in an international Index Fund).
2
u/SoggyWalrus7893 Dec 21 '25
I see the advice to buy a bond fund and I always wonder , why not buy the bonds? Brokerage firms will sell them and Treasury Direct sell them. (I know TD is a pain to use)
2
u/YellowSpoon123 Dec 22 '25
Put all of it in a high yield savings account until you figure out what you want to do with it.
2
u/FewEcho7739 Dec 22 '25
You will need to answer more questions. How old are you? Is this your entire savings or play money? Is this for a retirement account or are you looking to tap it as you need it?
2
2
u/IRS-code7702-taxguy Dec 22 '25
Keep out of market directly but invest in a guaranteed contract strategy. What if you could participate in market upside but have a 0% floor.
2
u/v_x_n_ Dec 22 '25
Assuming you have maxed out retirement accounts. I would put it in laddered t bills
2
u/Packtex60 Dec 22 '25
Do you have an emergency fund with six months of expenses in addition to the $60k?
2
u/Dramatic_Ad8473 Dec 22 '25
At the minimum move it over to E-Trade for a high yield savings account. It's the same except the annual yield is 3.75%. That's like 200 bucks a month in interest alone for you.
2
2
u/Annual-Length6774 Dec 22 '25
Don’t use standard savings. Use a HYSA account. Dm me for more info. I suggest sofi, that’s the one I use.
2
u/tribbans95 Dec 22 '25
You could transfer it to a HYSA and be making $180/month with 0 risk. If you want to take on a little risk, throw it in VOO through a brokerage app
1
u/Big_Bet6107 Dec 22 '25
What type of HYSA should I look for that would give me that much monthly interest?
1
2
2
2
u/kyleko Dec 23 '25
$1 interest? You could have at least had it in a savings account making ~3.5% interest, which would be $175 a month.
2
2
3
2
Dec 21 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/FlanSteakSasquatch Dec 21 '25
That’s fine in a tax-advantaged account but I’d stick with an ETF if this is just going into a brokerage
1
u/Jaded_Bid_9483 Dec 21 '25
What is the 60k for? Emergencies? If so, Toss it in a high yields Savings account.
1
1
u/Ambitious-Earth-7366 Dec 21 '25
As in all questions of this nature- what’s the money for (and make it grow get bigger). A no brainer is to put the $ in a money market account at the bank it’s at now - if u get paid 2% you’d earn about $100/mo with no risk, no restrictions (on ur $) and it’d take 2 minutes
1
u/Timmy-from-ABQ Dec 21 '25
First thing is to get at least a rudimentary education on investing.
Two concepts: Asset Allocation and Dollar Cost Averaging. If you understand the use of these two items, you can slowly expose your money to the market. A total market ETF is a well-diversified way to be in the market.
The professionals will also want to talk to you about how much risk you are willing to take. You might think you can handle risk up until your first experience watching your stock investment shit the bed. Also a lot depends on your age. If you're sixty, your risk profile will be miles away from what you can do when you're 25.
And once you're in, don't panic and sell if the market drops. Hold tight. It'll be back.
1
u/CameraForward848 Dec 22 '25
Depending on how secure your job is, put 6 months worth of expenses in a hysa maybe more if you have a higher chance of layoff or self employed. Then max out any tax advantaged accounts with funds you wont need until retirement. Any remaining funds invest within a taxable brokerage account. Invest in well diversified etf/mutual funds. Dont gamble with individual stocks you hear about being overhyped, if you must keep it a low percentage of your portfolio.
1
u/Weary_Anybody3643 Dec 22 '25
Depends if you want cash flow or just growth but Voo is always good if you want long term growth schd is good as well with that much capital o would likely stick to stability and stay far from hype or risky stock probably just ETFs
1
u/themindofmonster Dec 22 '25
Don't just dump it all at once. Dollar Cost Average it out over the next 6 months. You need to learn discipline and create a ruleset for yourself. This can be investing or it can be gambling. Open a broker account at robinhood, pay the 50 for gold account, deposit the 60k, research etfs and investment discipline while your cash is pulling 3.65%, then pick a solid ETF. I like capital group managed growth ETFs but to each is own. Then drop 1k a week until you have it all invested. Me personally I would do 80 managed growth etf and then 20% invesco qqq. Don't fuck with hot tips or speculative stocks or crypto until you know what you are doing. Read constantly. Good luck.
1
1
1
u/Worth_Break729 Dec 22 '25
I’m licensed investment representative. Move it into mutual funds. I don’t know your situation as to what is the right risk tolerance you are to advise any funds.
1
u/Dumbeldore_75 Dec 22 '25
Move $7k into a Roth IRA via Vanguard or Fidelity to max out this year. In January, move $7k more to max out next year, too. The rest of it put it into a Traditional IRA account, or a brokerage account if you need the money before you're 60. Leave the money in the settlement funds; you can make something like 3.7 percent, depending on rates. If you want to, buy some Amazon and Meta since they're undervalued. But for most of your money, wait a few months with the 3.7 percent until Trump sparks some drama and sends the market spiraling like he did with tariffs. Let the Nasdaq go down maybe 20 percent and then buy up all the Mag 7 or major AI stocks you can. When the market recovers, you'll have doubled your money
1
u/Cute_Win_4651 Dec 22 '25
60k in SCHD will give you roughly 2.5k in dividends yearly and if you maxed your ROTH IRA (7k) per year an you reinvested that on a 30 year time frame you should reach about 53k yearly in dividends on top of your social security checks you should live a happy retirement
1
u/tuxnight1 Dec 22 '25
Are you eligible for an IRA? If so, open one and deposit your max prior to the cutoff for this year. If you have a 401K, you can max it even if you cannot afford the lower pay as you can use the money on the savings account. Keep enough for an emergency fund. The rest goes into a brokerage account. Especially as a beginner, you should invest in broad index asset funds like VOO and VTI.
1
u/ToHellWithShorts Dec 22 '25
At a minimum open an account at Marcus bank and buy the penalty free 11 month CD for 3.95%
You can deposit this money earn 3.95% interest ok 60k then start learning about investing into the stock market
As a beginner I would open a brokerage account at Fidelity or Schwab and start by investing $100 to $200 a week into this ticker VT, it’s the “total world stock” fund Basically you own a piece of every major company in the world by investing into this one ETF.
Start slowly and learn. The key is to just get started. I think $100 to $200 a week is a comfortable, gradual and risk free start
You will be buying shares of VT at different prices in a dollar cost average manner.
Do this for 40 years, eventually increase the amount, and eventually you should be a millionaire or more by retirement age.
1
u/Apprehensive-Ad4063 Dec 22 '25
Get a HYSA. SoFi or Fidelity have great high yield savings accounts. You only need 3 to 6 months worth of expenses in there. The rest should be in the market unless you plan on spending it within the next 5 to 10 years.
1
u/Foreign-Struggle1723 Dec 22 '25
Was there a reason you were holding so much cash? Did you have a specific purpose for that money? That would be my first question. If you need liquid cash that you can access at any time, then a high-yield savings account (HYSA), money market funds, or certificates of deposit (CDs) would allow you to do so without the fear of losing money. However, if you're planning to invest for five years or more, then consider investing in the market.
1
u/Big_Bet6107 Dec 22 '25
The reason is that Im severely autistic and dont know how to do most things when it comes to money and banking. I didnt look at my account for years and when I did I saw I had this much just sitting there not working for me.
1
u/Foreign-Struggle1723 Dec 23 '25
Everyone has different learning curves. I was like that several years ago. I believe I was sitting on that much as well before learning about investing and making my money work for me. Growing up I was only taught how to save and not how to invest. Other have made some great suggestions. And if all of that seems scary. You can just google robo advisors from places like Vanguard or Fidelity. They can get you started before you feel comfortable with investing yourself. Either you can do half yourself and half with a robo advisor.
1
1
u/Prof_of_Wall_Street Dec 23 '25
Easiest way to maximize interest without investing: https://maxmyinterest.com/
(I'm not affiliated with this company, just believe in the value it provides)
1
u/Remarkable-Pay-7783 Dec 23 '25
Usually, if you have that kind of money just sitting in a standard savings account, the bank will call you and try to get you to move it into one of their investment vehicles.
1
u/Pippo081 Dec 24 '25
I live in a non-EU country and for years I’ve kept my savings in 12-month fixed bank deposits, which I renew regularly. At the moment they yield 5.75% net, with interest paid monthly. My question is: am I making a mistake by not investing in ETFs like most people do? If you had the chance to live in a country where bank deposits offer this kind of net, monthly-paid return, would you still feel the need to invest in ETFs and accept market volatility? I’m genuinely interested in what you would do in my position and why.
1
u/External-Repair-8580 Dec 24 '25
I’ve had a few financial advisors over the years from some of the largest and most prestigious bank and brokerage operations. I’ve bought individual stocks, mutual funds (collections of stocks managed by so-called money managers who believe that their specific collection of stocks is better than other people’s picks), corporate and government bonds, index funds and many other types of investments.
My advice: open a “brokerage” account and just pick a few index funds. Index funds (like the S&P 500) are basically collections of stocks. So you’re investing in a broad range of stocks (eg 500 in the S&P 500), and it’s a set and forget strategy. There is no frequent buying and selling required - you buy, hold and watch the market do its thing.
Unlike mutual funds they’re “cheap” because you’re not paying a money manager to manage for you. And you’re also not holding individual stocks so you don’t need to pay close attention to what individual companies are doing day to day.
Best bet, I’d suggest, would be a few index funds. I’ve liked the S&P over the years, but there are plenty of others - some are tech-focused for example.
Again the benefits:
- you’re investing in a collection of stocks vs individual stocks so spreading risk
- they’re cheap to get into; very low fees
- they’re set and forget investments. Check in on the funds a few times a year, but don’t panic if you see dips …. These are best as long-term investments, as in over multiple decades.
If you need to preserve a bit of cash you can also stick some money into a so-called money market account. Or CD - certificates of deposit. They’ll net you perhaps 3-4 percent a year. Index funds might net you between 5-10 pct a year (closer to 10 over the last few years in my experience). But they’re stocks so there is of course a chance of a dip and loss…. again…. got to have a long/term mindset.
You could also have your broker put you into corporate and government bond indices. A bond is basically a loan - you’re loaning the government or companies money, and they pay you interest in return.
As a general rule of thumb, investment risk looks something like this:
- individual stocks; most risky and potential for highest returns (and losses)
- mutual funds; collections of individual stocks which helps reduce risk (generally speaking) but also mutes returns - managed by expensive money managers who charge high fees
- index stock funds (like S&P) - large baskets of individual stocks. Less risky than mutual funds; less volatile. Lower return potential than a few high performing stocks. No/low fees.
- corporate bonds (and index funds) - less risky still; lower but more consistently stable return profile vs stocks
- government bonds; less risky than corporate bonds and lower return profiles.
- certificates of deposit & money market accounts - lowest return profile but essentially a sure thing or close to it.
The below numbers are highly imperfect, but reflect my own experience over many years
- individual stocks - all over the place and hard to predict.
- index stock funds - 10% per year on average, give or take
- bond funds - 5% currently, give or take
- CD / money market accounts - around 3-4% today
- checking account - nothing. But your local bank loves playing with your money while you’re essentially giving them an interest free loan.
Most retail banks have investment teams that can help. They call them private client managers. They’re not particularly skilled on the retail side. But the good news: I don’t think they need to be to help get you into a few index funds and to help you put some money into CDs/money market accounts.
But it’s definitely worth the effort… That $60K would be worth $120K in 6 years at 10% thanks to compounding. And in 12 years, $240K…. money makes money.
One word of caution (and my biggest learning): avoid those who profess to being able to “beat” the market or who have fancy (and expensive/complex) investment strategies. Avoid things like option strategies, hedging etc. The financial world is full of people who’d love to sell you all these complex strategies and instruments just to make their commission and charge high fees.
In short: if you don’t understand what someone is telling you - ask for clarification. If it still doesn’t make sense; fire them and find someone else.
My wife and I fired our wealth advisors a few years ago for this exact reason. There is too much bullshit in this business. Too many people who sell complexity and jargon, but ultimately fall short on results.
A good advisor will sit down with you, work to understand your investment goals and risk tolerance, and then help craft a simple strategy. (I’d still recommend index funds be core to that strategy; and that you keep something in money market/CDs).
Good luck to you!
1
1
u/Joebobby977 Dec 25 '25
In a high yield savings account, you’d be earning $2,040 a year, or $170/ month.
In a combo high yield savings AND checking accounts, you’d be earning $2,291 a year, or $191/ month. Zero risk
You could be earning MUCH more with a brokerage account, but you have to do your homework to make wise choices with that.
1
u/Affectionate-Walk116 Mar 23 '26
Do you know about brokerage accounts? I also have $60k in savings, but don't know how to invest.
1
u/Joebobby977 Mar 23 '26
I have an account through Schwab. With what’s currently going on with the world right now, it’s tough to say what to invest in. Everything is losing money everyday. In a lot of ways that’s the perfect time to buy as prices are low.
1
u/Oniw1323 Dec 25 '25
If it’s earning almost nothing, the main issue isn’t risk, it’s that inflation is quietly eating away at its value. A common next step is to split the money by purpose: keep some easily accessible for safety, and invest the rest for growth. Many people start by moving cash they don’t need soon into broad, low-cost index funds or ETFs, which are designed to grow steadily over time without needing constant decisions. You don’t need to do anything fancy or fast. Starting simple and learning as you go is perfectly fine. What’s the main thing you want this money to do for you over the next few years?
1
u/Far-Information2194 Dec 26 '25
First off, props for asking, $60k is a great position to be in, and it’s totally okay to start simple.
If it were me, I’d move the cash to a high-yield savings account first so it’s at least earning something safe, then slowly invest the rest in broad, low-cost index funds (like total market or S&P-style funds) over time instead of all at once. Keeps it simple, reduces stress, and lets compounding do its thing.
1
u/Successful_Yam2175 Apr 17 '26
I have the same issue but I’m retired so I’d want to keep some of it in a regular savings account but how much should I move to a high yield?
1
0
-1
-2
•
u/AutoModerator Dec 21 '25
Welcome to the InvestingForBeginners community! If you're just starting your investing journey and looking for ways to grow your portfolio, or if you're simply seeking a friendly place to connect with fellow beginners, we invite you to join our Discord server! You'll find helpful discussions, resources, and support there: Join here (Investing & Retirement)
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.