Personal Finances
When saving money for a home, stick with safe options
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Brafton
In a recent column from the Los Angeles Times, a reader asked Liz Pulliam Weston what the best way would be to make their $30,000 goal for saving money for a down payment on a home. The reader wondered if there were investments out there that would give a better return than savings accounts.
Pulliam Weston noted that consumers need to be more concerned with their money still being there, rather than getting more through higher rates. Higher rates mean the investor would be taking a more of a risk of losing their money.
"That means keeping the money relatively safe in a savings account, money market mutual fund or certificates of deposit," Pulliam Weston said.
According to Bureau of Economic Analysis, personal savings accounted for 4.2 percent of disposable income in July, which is down from June. In July, personal savings amounted to $458.5 billion, compared to June when it was $486.8 billion.
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