Thank you for your kind words, Chris. I'm still learning how to write in non -wall-street language. The HD style guide and numerous editing tips from late Jonathan have been immensely helpful.
Thanks, Andrew. I completely understand where you're coming form. For annual reserve, I avoid going longer than 1 year duration. My most favorite for slightly longer-term cash is VTIP. Recently, I'm trying out a non-Treasury offering (VUSB), but haven't formed any opinion yet one way or the other. If your brokerage has simple steps for Treasury auction participation and auto-roll on maturity, that might be a good thing to try. I've used that for quite some time, and it had almost no maintenance headache. I stopped using it simply because of the churn on my overall holdings, but it wasn't a big deal either.
Hello Jeff, I use VTIP quite a bit. Other than that, I've tried several 0-3 months and 1-year funds (both Vanguard and iShare versions), I haven't seen much difference in the offerings (e.g. SGOV/VBIL or SHV). Since last year, I've been curious about VUSB though it's not treasury and using it. So far, there hasn't been any surprise with it. I use more than one fund to avoid the wash sale annoyance (i.e. sell ones bought more than a month ago). Frankly, I haven't spent a lot of time to find "the best" short-term fund. I simply use the good-enough funds.
Thanks, Cammer. I completely agree with you that "keeping things simple" often outweighs "marginally better interest rate". That was my guiding principle too, until I actually tried out an alternative and see if there's any increased overhead at all. I found it practically the same. As such, I recently started using a cash-management account of my brokerage account and liking it so far. To me, it's like a checking account for all practical purposes, with the cash sitting in Govt money-market fund (a one-time choice during account setup which can be changed later if needed).
You are absolutely right, Lis. I didn't get into all the nuances to keep things simple. The point being, there IS an insurance limit however high, whereas the insurance doesn't apply to US Government debt (hence practically unlimited).
Comments
Thank you, Andrew. We plan to add some more easy-to-use tools late this year on the site to make it more useful.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Thank you for your kind words, Chris. I'm still learning how to write in non -wall-street language. The HD style guide and numerous editing tips from late Jonathan have been immensely helpful.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
That's an excellent point. Since we don't have a State tax, it isn't much a benefit for me (yet) but for those who do, this is an extra sweetener.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Thank you so much, Dan. Much appreciated!
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Oh yes. Thanks, Randy. Funny how many different "MAGI" calculations are there :).
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Thanks, Randy. I also feel that the "loss due to high duration" gets compensated over time through higher dividends.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Thanks, Andrew. I completely understand where you're coming form. For annual reserve, I avoid going longer than 1 year duration. My most favorite for slightly longer-term cash is VTIP. Recently, I'm trying out a non-Treasury offering (VUSB), but haven't formed any opinion yet one way or the other. If your brokerage has simple steps for Treasury auction participation and auto-roll on maturity, that might be a good thing to try. I've used that for quite some time, and it had almost no maintenance headache. I stopped using it simply because of the churn on my overall holdings, but it wasn't a big deal either.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Hello Jeff, I use VTIP quite a bit. Other than that, I've tried several 0-3 months and 1-year funds (both Vanguard and iShare versions), I haven't seen much difference in the offerings (e.g. SGOV/VBIL or SHV). Since last year, I've been curious about VUSB though it's not treasury and using it. So far, there hasn't been any surprise with it. I use more than one fund to avoid the wash sale annoyance (i.e. sell ones bought more than a month ago). Frankly, I haven't spent a lot of time to find "the best" short-term fund. I simply use the good-enough funds.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 14, 2026
Thanks, Cammer. I completely agree with you that "keeping things simple" often outweighs "marginally better interest rate". That was my guiding principle too, until I actually tried out an alternative and see if there's any increased overhead at all. I found it practically the same. As such, I recently started using a cash-management account of my brokerage account and liking it so far. To me, it's like a checking account for all practical purposes, with the cash sitting in Govt money-market fund (a one-time choice during account setup which can be changed later if needed).
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 13, 2026
You are absolutely right, Lis. I didn't get into all the nuances to keep things simple. The point being, there IS an insurance limit however high, whereas the insurance doesn't apply to US Government debt (hence practically unlimited).
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from June 13, 2026