The Market's Down: Where To Invest Your Money Now

There are many options available for those looking to invest their money. Here are some of the best investment options for 2024:

- High-yield savings accounts

- Long-term certificates of deposit

- Long-term corporate bond funds

- Dividend stock funds

- Value stock funds

- Small-cap stock funds

- Real estate investment trusts (REITs)

- S&P 500 index funds

- Nasdaq-100 index funds

- Rental housing

- Spotify Technology

- Alphabet, Inc.

- Intuitive Surgical, Inc.

- Tapestry, Inc.

- TopBuild Corp.

- The Kraft Heinz Company

- Fidelity National Information Services, Inc.

High-yield savings accounts

• High-yield savings accounts often pay much higher interest than conventional savings accounts.
• They are a good option for those who need to access cash in the near future.
• They are also a good option for risk-averse investors who want to avoid the possibility of losing their money.
• Many of the banks that offer these accounts are FDIC-insured, so you won't have to worry about losing your deposits.
• You can typically earn much higher interest rates at online banks than at traditional brick-and-mortar banks.
• High-yield savings accounts can be a useful part of a broader investment strategy because they offer a way to keep a portion of your money accessible while still earning a return.
• They can be used alongside other investments, such as retirement accounts, college savings funds, stocks and bonds.
• They can help to lower the impact of inflation on your deposits.
• They often don't have monthly maintenance fees or minimum balance requirements.
• SoFi High-Yield Savings Account: This account offers a competitive APY, fast transfers, and free budgeting tools. However, it doesn't support Zelle for bank-to-bank transfers.
• Bask Bank Interest Savings Account: Bask Bank offers a simple account opening process and a high APY, but transfers can take up to five business days to complete.
• Discover High-Yield Savings Account: Discover offers no monthly fees, no minimum opening deposit or balance requirements, and 24/7 customer service. However, there is a 48-hour hold on deposited funds before they become available for use.
• UFB Direct Secure Savings: UFB Direct offers a high APY, no monthly fees, and easy access to your money at approximately 91,000 ATM locations across the country. However, there is only one physical branch, located in San Diego.
• Milli High-Yield Savings Account: Milli offers a "Jars" feature that allows you to earmark your money for up to five financial goals, as well as detailed spending insights. However, it is app-only and does not offer check deposits.
• Zynlo Bank Tomorrow Savings: Zynlo Bank offers a streamlined account opening process, savings goals feature, and automatic rounding of debit card purchases to the next dollar for savings. However, the website can be slow and clunky, and there is no chat support.
• Synchrony Bank High-Yield Savings: Synchrony Bank has a smooth account opening process, efficient account integration, and a debit card that can be used out of network with up to $5 of ATM fees reimbursed per statement cycle. However, it can be challenging to find the customer service phone number on the website, and wire transfers can only be completed by phone.
• EverBank High-Yield Savings: EverBank offers swift deposit speeds and robust budgeting tools, but the website can be clunky and it can be frustrating to get through the account application process without errors.
• Upgrade High-Yield Savings: Upgrade offers a quick and streamlined application process, with minimal steps and personal information required. However, there is a $1,000 minimum balance required to earn interest, and there are no cash deposits or ATM access.

Long-term certificates of deposit

CDs are considered a safe investment option, but they do carry reinvestment risk. This means that when interest rates fall, investors will earn less when they reinvest their principal and interest in new CDs with lower rates, as seen in 2020 and 2021. On the other hand, if interest rates rise, investors who have already locked their money into a long-term CD may not be able to take advantage of the higher rates.

When considering a long-term CD, it's important to note the potential impact of inflation and taxes on the purchasing power of your investment. Additionally, there may be early withdrawal penalties if you need to access your money before the CD matures.

• Quontic Bank offers competitive rates on five CD terms ranging from three months to five years, with a minimum deposit of $500.
• Vio Bank provides an extensive variety of CD terms ranging from six months to ten years, with a low minimum deposit of $500.
• America First Credit Union offers a wide range of CD terms between three and 60 months, with highly competitive rates and low minimum opening deposits.
• Popular Direct, a subsidiary of Popular Inc., offers CDs in eight terms ranging from three months to five years, with a minimum deposit of $10,000.
• Sallie Mae Bank provides 11 CD terms, a savings account, and money market account, with competitive yields.
• Synchrony Bank offers a variety of regular CDs, no-penalty CDs, and bump-up CDs, with no minimum opening deposit.
• Marcus by Goldman Sachs offers competitive yields on its CDs, with terms ranging from six months to six years, and a $500 minimum deposit.
• Barclays Bank provides CDs with terms ranging from six months to five years and does not require a minimum opening deposit.
• Capital One offers CDs with terms as short as six months or as long as five years, with no minimum opening deposit and competitive yields.

Dividend stock funds

When choosing dividend stocks, look for companies with a solid history of dividend increases rather than those with the highest current yield, as this could be a sign of impending trouble. Even well-regarded companies can be hit by a crisis, so a good reputation is not always a protection against a company slashing or eliminating its dividend.

Dividends are a very important source of return for equities. Dividends are generally paid quarterly, with the amount decided by the board of directors based on the company's most recent earnings. Dividends may be paid in cash or additional shares. When a company announces a dividend, it will also announce the payment date on which the dividend will be paid into the shareholders' accounts.

Dividend-paying companies tend to be larger, established companies with predictable profits. Companies in the healthcare and pharmaceuticals sectors, as well as those structured as master limited partnerships (MLPs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs), are required to make specified distributions to their shareholders.

Value stock funds

Many value stock funds also pay dividends, which is an additional attraction for many investors.

There are two major types of value stock funds: ETFs and mutual funds. ETFs are usually available commission-free and without a minimum purchase requirement at most major online brokers. On the other hand, mutual funds may require a minimum purchase, and online brokers may charge a commission to trade them.

• Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Value Idx I
• LSV Small Cap Value Institutional
• Vanguard Small Cap Value Index Admiral
• Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index Admiral
• American Funds American Mutual AMRMX
• Diamond Hill Large Cap DHLYX
• Dodge & Cox Stock DODGX
• Harbor Mid Cap Value HAMVX
• John Hancock Disciplined Value Mid Cap JVMIX
• JPMorgan Equity Income OIEJX
• LSV Small Cap Value LSVQX
• MFS Mid Cap Value MCVRX
• Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF SCHD
• Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index/ETF VHYAX VYM
• Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index/ETF VMVAX VOE
• Vanguard Russell 1000 Value Index VRVIX
• Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Value Index VMFVX
• Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Value Index VSMVX
• Vanguard Small-Cap Value Index/ETF VSIAX VBR
• Vanguard Value Index/ETF VVIAX VTV
• Victory Sycamore Established Value VEVRX
• Victory Sycamore Small Company VSORX

Robo-advisor portfolio

Robo-advisors are a low-cost, online investing platform that employs software algorithms to create and manage investment portfolios. They are ideal for those who want to be largely hands-off with their investments and don't require the services of a traditional financial advisor.

Robo-advisors manage your investment account for a fraction of the cost of a financial advisor. They automate investment management by using computer algorithms to build and manage an investment portfolio for you, based on your goals and your tolerance for risk.

Betterment

Betterment is one of the pioneers of the robo-advisor approach to investing. It offers a powerful combination of goal-based tools, affordable management fees and no account minimum. It has a wide range of investments, including socially responsible and crypto portfolios, and offers paid access to financial advisors and excellent tax strategy. However, its emergency fund portfolio could hold too many stocks, which may be too risky for some.

SoFi Automated Investing

SoFi Automated Investing is a great choice if you're primarily focused on limiting fees. There's no annual advisory fee, and your portfolio is stocked with ETFs that generally charge low expense ratios. You also get access to real-life professionals. The only downside is that SoFi is a very young investment firm with a limited track record.

Vanguard Digital Advisor

Vanguard Digital Advisor is ideal if you're just starting out in your career or you want a simple tool without lots of bells and whistles. It offers basic services such as retirement savings and automatic rebalancing for a low annual net advisory fee of no more than 0.20% of your managed account balance. Your portfolio is made up of low-cost Vanguard ETFs, which typically charge among the lowest expense ratios on the market. The major downside is the £3,000 minimum balance requirement.

Vanguard Personal Advisor Services

If you need a robo-advisor to manage a relatively large chunk of cash and want access to human financial advisors, Vanguard Personal Advisor Services is a good option. It offers access to Vanguard professionals, many of whom are certified financial planners, for a competitive account minimum of $50,000 and a low advisory fee of 0.30%.

Wealthfront

Wealthfront is ideal if you want sophisticated financial planning tools. It offers two tools to help you manage your financial life: Path, which creates a 360-degree view of your finances, and Autopilot, which automatically distributes your paycheck to different financial accounts. It also offers a sophisticated saving and investing platform with relatively low fees. However, the sheer amount of features can be overwhelming.

Frequently asked questions