SPAXX

bizzybumblebee

what do you mean by paying a fee for SPAXX?

MitchCurry

I just keep my cash in SPAXX. Almost the same yield, no steps freeing up the funds when I need them.

d0gg75

The biggest thing while you’re figuring out what to do: don’t let that money just sit there doing nothing. Find a reputable bank and drop it into a high-yield savings account. Most of them are paying around 3.8–4% right now. On $15,500, that’s roughly $600 in the first year for literally just parking it there — way better than the 0.05% a standard checking account gives you. I’ve been nagging friends and family about this for years, and some of them have way more money than you sitting in regular accounts earning pennies. Drives me nuts. At least with an HYSA, your cash is safe, liquid, and quietly working for you while you figure out bigger moves. Another easy option is opening a brokerage account and keeping your cash in something like Fidelity’s SPAXX fund (basically a money market). It usually pays anywhere from \~4.1% to 5%, and the nice part is the money’s instantly available if you decide to start investing. It takes a little more setup than a savings account, but honestly not much. Neither of these is a huge return, but both are safe, simple, and put you ahead of most people your age. The key is just not leaving it in a dead account. Even if you’re not ready to invest yet, you can at least make your money do something in the meantime.

737northfield

Net expense ratio on SPAXX is 0.42% SPAXX APR is is 4.21%. It’s a wash. And for som reason my Individual account is sitting in FCASH and not SPAXX like my IRA. No idea why.

yourecoolyourecool

Just FYI, Fidelity automatically puts your cash in a money-market account that pays over 4%. (I think SPAXX, usually 4.1-4-5%) So, just know when Robinhood gives you 4%, they’re also putting your money in a money-market account, and keeping the extra interest.

ponziacs

I like Fidelity because you can put your money into SPAXX and not have to sell SPAXX before making trades.

behindgreeneyez

$2 in SPAXX really ties it all together

Fluffy_Historian9616

Well, a couple things. First off, as I just explained, it's not zero risk. It's 100% risk. Second, I will be honest I thought SPAXX was lower, since I have FDZXX as my core. That said, with 250k he could easily have gotten better returns with a couple clicks. So, yes, I will "dog him" for throwing 5 grand away for not spending 60 seconds on the website. This is a subreddit about investing.

rickochetl

SPAXX is a money market fund...

slow_bern

SPAXX is a money market fund.

Megaloman-_-

Excellent write up. I do wheel SPY only on an emergency fund, where I already get 4% (SPAXX), plus I sell relatively low delta CSP to milk some extra juice here and there. I definitely do not look forward to shift to CCs thou

Heyhayheigh

Why do you need support? Set auto buy. VOO or QQQM. You likely don’t know the rules of trading. Anyone who needs that much support is likely the issue. The only reason I prefer Fidelity is for budgeting tools and convenience of SPAXX. Both do fractionals. Both are fine. A serious trader uses a computer anyways. Serious traders mostly lose money or underperform sp500. Best of luck.

Heyhayheigh

Yea. SPAXX and it behaves as cash. You don’t have to sell out to make available. You can trade and withdraw with it. SGOV is better, especially if you live a state tax state. But the default money market is pretty killer. Fidelity allows fractional buys of stock and ETF’s, access to crypto ETF’s, great budgeting tools. Better website and UX. I love Vanguard, but there is no real reason to use them unless your favorite advisor manages your money there. Vanguard would prefer you buy VOO at Fidelity anyways. It’s all cost to service self directed accounts. The benefit is having possible managed account prospects.

Heyhayheigh

He’s referring to the default money market that behaves as cash. SPAXX

victorlazlow1

In Fidelity, the core position account is the account that lets me hold cash that I want to invest. While the cash sits in that account, it earns a high yield (currently around 4% maybe). When I’m ready to invest, the money from my core position account is used to buy my stocks (or ETF or whatever). The core position account is configurable, but for me it is a money market fund of SPAXX. In Schwab, they don’t have this. In Schwab, the account where my cash is held (core position) is a very low interest account (today, it’s around 0.5% or something like that) and I’m pretty sure it’s not something that is configurable (correct me if I’m wrong). From that low interest “core” account at Schwab, I can buy my stock or ETF or whatever. (Re: Requirement 2) For example, let’s say I have dividend stock that I don’t choose to re-invest back into more shares of the stock and I just want the dividend to pay out to me. If dividends are paid to me, the dividends are dumped into my SPAXX account at Fidelity every quarter, and that’s great because at least SPAXX gets a high yield and then I can let the money sit around and at least make some interest. At Schwab, the dividends are dumped into that low yield core account and they accrue next to no interest, so I need to work fast to get them invested into something good. That would mean constant monitoring. I hope I have expressed the functionality of Schwab accurately - this is all from videos and screenshots. I know Fidelity’s interface and capabilities quite well, so I wanted to see if I could find these figures at another brokerage site. Finally, at Fidelity, I can get a debit card and use it to withdraw money from my SPAXX account. This allows me to spend that dividend pay out using a Fidelity bank card. (Re: Requirement #2a)

xiongchiamiov

Start by separating the buckets of money. You have an emergency fund, which is 100% SPAXX. Then you have a retirement portfolio, which is the rest of the stuff and should have percentages calculated off of that. Typically most of your retirement funds would also be in tax-advantaged accounts, though it's not necessary. But if you're giving up tax advantages that's kinda silly. Do a goals assessment. What do you expect to spend in retirement? How much money will you need for that? If you haven't done that before, this might be eye-opening. Any plans will need to start with that.

Ok_Association9812

This is the whole thing. Some small in Retirement. This is the emergency fund in SPAXX. Retirement in 8-10 years..

Ok_Association9812

Im looking for some other funds that can provide some income, or growth. The current climate is making me nervous. I have about 30% - SPAXX/CASH , 23%/VOO, 18%/VTI, 9%/SCHD (which is not moving anywhere) 3%/VXUS and about 19% spread around some single equities (NVDA, AVGO etc) . I feel like im missing out on the cash growth/ but its a safety net.. Thoughts?

Desperate-Break6688

Well what i mean is transfer it to a fidelity invest account. Keep like 90% of it uninvested, which gets SPAXX, and then do like 10% into an index fund or something

Desperate-Break6688

Well what i mean is transfer it to a fidelity invest account. Keep like 90% of it uninvested, which gets SPAXX, and then do like 10% into an index fund or something

SirGlass

So just to note when people say "Invest in the market" they are usually talking about something like the S&P500 SPAXX is not really "In the market" its a money market fund, a very safe investment that basically acts as a HYSA Right now it returns about 4% a year, what is a bit higher then your HYSA. However just like HYSA its return is tied to interest rates if rates are cut the return will go down, however the same is true for HYSA So yea I would do it, why not get an extra 0.5% return

Desperate-Break6688

I am currently saving up for a house, I currently have approximately $7500 in my high yield savings getting around 3.5% interest. A friend of mine had recommend maybe moving it to a money market fund like SPAXX and investing it. Is this smart, since if I invest it in the market, I will likely get higher returns?

ArthurDent4200

Q1 do you know what your bank is paying on the ROTH IRA CD? It may be so low that the penalty to pull it now will be negligible. I just checked SPAXX at Fidelity is paying 3.96% and is what they put your cash in. Kind of like an interest paying checking account. There are also XX funds that will avoid state taxes which can be great if you are in a high tax state. Re self managing. You will have a lot of tickers thrown at you. My suggestion would be to note a handful of them then learn about what they are and how they have performed over the last few years. Look at 5, 10, 20 years - whatever interests you. Here is a link that compares two issues mentioned already. FXAIX and VT [https://totalrealreturns.com/n/FXAIX,VT](https://totalrealreturns.com/n/FXAIX,VT) I like looking at the total return of an issue because it combines price changes AND dividends. Personally I am a SP500 guy and my choice has been VOO because its a big fund and being an ETF trades in real time unlike a mutual fund. Good luck and have fun. Art

BrewerCollie

You won't have to pay taxes as long as you don't move the cash out of the account. So you will sell VOO, move to a cash position like Fidelity's SPAXX, and then buy SCHD. The money never left the brokerage/retirement account and, because it never hit your bank account, you owe no taxes.

ohyeahwell

Do I need to get out of SPAXX?

crazybutthole

It doesn't really take a lot of training. Step 1 (takes about 8-10 minutes) make a fidelity account - be sure in all your accounts you set your default position to SPAXX. (It's a money market account that pays about 4%(apr) every month around the last day of the month) Step 2 (takes another 8-10 minutes) decide if you want multiple accounts - I recommend to make 3 or even 4 A - taxable brokerage Account for savings money that you might need to pull out and spend and are not saving it for retirement. B - Roth IRA - retirement account to put in a max of $7000 per spouse each year until you retire. C - traditional IRA to fund if you are over the limit and cannot fund a Roth IRA. (Most basically - over $150k for single person or $236k for married couple) D - rollover IRA - to transfer any funds from old retirement accounts like TSP or 401k from former employers. Step 3 (takes anywhere from ten minutes to 2-3 days depending on your bank.) Set up to transfer money from your bank into the taxable brokerage account. If you haven't funded an IRA this year transfer as much as you can afford but not more than $7000 into an IRA (Roth preferred until your income is too high and you can't do Roth) Step 4 Buy index funds You can split it up or do hours or even weeks of research - but after studying for several weeks or months the conclusion you will eventually come to is - it is likely best to only have 3-4 index funds and keep them close to evenly split. Like a great mix would be: 25% VTI (best stocks in USA) 25% VOO (sp500) 25% QQQ (NASDAQ 100) 25% VXUS best stocks in world not from USA. Step 5 Turn off your computer and check in again every few weeks or every payday - whenever you can afford to add more money to the accounts. When you log in see whichever of your four funds have the least in there and add to that one. To get it closer to even to the rest. Repeat that every payday until you retire. Step 6 Ask questions and do more research along the way - but if you start with steps 1-5 you got a great, great start. You don't really need to pay a fiduciary or a financial advisor. Just start with a simple plan like this (or read the wiki and modify it to make your own plan. But this is a real good start)

Rosetta223

Fund 7-Day SEC Yield Expense Ratio Tax Exemption (State) VMFXX 4.21% 0.11% Partial SPAXX 5.20% 0.42% Partial VUSXX 4.20% 0.07% Full FDLXX 5.00% 0.42% Partial

SlfImpr

This is what I would do: (1) Open a Fidelity brokerage account (Free) and transfer my investable cash there (2) Choose either SPAXX or FZFXX as the option in my cash management account. This will provide > 3.9% interest on the cash (free money at current interest rates) while I wait to decide where to invest (3) Wait for any major market pull backs and only buy low expense ratio ETFs such as VOO and VGT when they drop > 5% from their all time highs. I would also buy in batches and keep at least half in cash for major market drop > 10% which will happen within 2 years (it usually does) and buy more then Any interest gains will be taxed. Taxes on stocks/ETF gains and losses only apply when you sell the stock/ETF. If you buy VOO and VGT, it is better to hold on to them for a long time. At the end of the year, Fidelity will issue the tax statement.

left-for-dead-9980

Put the 12 months of expenses in a HYSA or SPAXX at Fidelity in a CMA account as your emergency fund. If you can open a Roth IRA, do that with a limit of $7k and invest that in SPLG. The rest can go into either a taxable brokerage or the same CMA. Dollar Cost Average into SPLG, IXUS, and SGOV ETFs. Maybe $1k per month each. I would buy individual stocks but that might be too much since you have never done this before.

DeeDee_Z

> So, if I already have a Vanguard account with their money market Exactly. And if you're at Schwab, use SWVXX, and if you're at Fidelity, use SPAXX/SPRXX. This is one area where using the "house" funds can be worth it.

rpanony

Thank you for your suggestion. SMH looks to be good candidates and I have few hundred in holding too. I don’t want crazy income but should be better than SPAXX😂 Any particular criteria you use to pick exp date, price? What are the indicators you use to decide your trade? I’m completely new to options so want to learn but doesn’t mind holding SMH if lot is assigned in CSP. Please share your thoughts

One_Egg_9177

Same here, I’ve had my money sitting in SPAXX for almost a year. Just put 30% into LMT. We’re definitely crashing and going into 2nd Great Depression soon.

Big_Generator

Been using Fidelity for years now. I leave most of my account in SPAXX (earning about 4%) and sell CSPs and CCs against it. Very conservative but also very profitable.

BAD_AL_1

Fidelity does not really allow their users to trade options spreads (Credit spreads, Debit spreads, Poor Man's Covered Call, Calendar Spreads, Iron Condor ...) until they are deemed to have enough experience with options (it's an arbitrary qualification that no one really can explain how much is enough). Schwab gives out options spreads ability much easier. Schwab also gives their users 2 'Paper Money' Accounts to practice in; which is a great learning tool. The 1 thing better about Fidelity is that by default they give you \~4% APY on your cash (SPAXX). On Schwab, you need to manually move cash into the SWVXX.

Vessuvius

Looking forward to it.. sitting on all Cash in SPAXX to buy the dip when Trump completely blows up the Economy.

UziWitDaHighTops

As soon as you said you used Robinhood I knew you were fucked. You can park your cash in SPAXX core position at Fidelity for 4%+ and instead you chose the broker that absolutely fucked everyone during GME. You lost your ass on 0dte and decided to double, triple, quadruple down? Bruh.

bobdevnul

When you deposit money to a brokerage account it goes to the core/sweep/settlement holding of the account. At Fidelity the default is the SPAXX money market fund. The money sits in the core/sweep/settlement holding until you use the money to buy something else. Leaving a lot of money sitting in core of a Roth IRA is not a good plan. Buy something with expectations of higher long term return, like a S&P500 fund, or total market fund(s), or target date fund.

bobdevnul

SPAXX is a money market fund (at Fidelity). MMFs are a special class of mutual funds where the share price is held at exactly $1 all of the time. The the fund income from the holdings is paid out monthly based one the balance you have in the fund each day. MMFs are functionally equivalent to a HYSA and currently yield more than most HYSA. MMFs are very safe from loss, but do not have FDIC insurance. There have been no losses in MMFs since one badly managed one lost \~2% in 2008. Better regulation of them since then make the probability of loss even less.

No_Percentage_5649

Would keeping it in a SPAXX core position be like a HYSA. I’ve seen that while looking up the difference but I’m confused on it

charleswj

>Maybe a car repair, Credit card >unexpected layoffs, Credit card >medical bills, Credit card >roof repair, Credit card >plumbing problem, Credit card >anything can happen. Almost certainly credit card >You never know. But I do know almost everything can go on a credit card. Those that are too large or undesirable to go on an existing credit card can usually be financed, often for 0% for a year or more. >Also, you should not rely on your investments to cover for these rainy days since if the market is down, you’ll be selling at a loss or lower profit. So it doesn’t necessarily have to be a week either. It can be over months. This isn't the scenario being discussed. The comment said >Lmao I keep an emergency cash fund in case of unexpected personal expenses that couldn’t wait t+1 for trades to settle. I have never stopped investing the rest of my money. I'm saying there's no scenario where you can't wait a day to access actual *cash*. >Also, you should put your money in a high yield savings account which currently give out 3.5 - 4% fixed returns (unless fed changes rates ofcourse) and is also FDIC’s insured. So even though it might not be as good as the market, you can’t lose any money since it’s fdic insured upto $250,000 for most of them and can go upto 8 million for sofi and others. Totally agree, any money not invested should be in SPAXX SGOV or similar.

LucreziaBorgia210

Or even better. keep your cash in the SPAXX fidelity money market cuz you get 4.0%/year just parking your cash there.

Vessuvius

Nah, I bought and sold 15k at the April lows, and flipped it for a quick 15% profit soon after, post-facto Trump's Tweet that sent everything mooning. It's the second time I've day traded NVDA shares for a weekly gain over 10%. Currently sitting on 22k cash in SPAXX, waiting for everything to return to sanity, because this market is absolutely bonkers, and I'm comfortably enough in the green that it doesn't make sense not to just wait and see.

AgentK-BB

SGOV is close to 100 state-tax free. SPAXX was ~45% state tax-free last year. FDLXX is the SGOV equivalent. SGOV has better yield than FDLXX although FDLXX gives you the convenience of auto-liquidation.

evoboltzmann

If you don't know anything about investing (which seems to be the case based on this and your comments) and you're going to be investing a lot, you should currently park your money in a high yield money market (something like SPAXX in Fidelity) while you spend a few months learning about investing. Do not just do what people here tell you, there's all sorts of people here with different risk profiles, intelligence, risk factors, and level of knowledge. From complete idiots to savants. You will lose out on a few months of investment returns which is no big deal at all over 30 year horizon (hell you may get lucky and accidentally time the market), and you should invest when you find yourself confident in your plan and something you can stick to **for life**. If you just follow what some bozo on here says (good or bad) you're likely to change when shit hits the fan and make a huge error. Where to start? There's a million possible answers, depends on what format you like to consume information. Youtube? Books? Reading on your computer? I can't really help until you tell me how you learn. But just telling you what my portfolio is does nothing to help you identify if it fits your risk/timeline/personal needs.

eric5899

If I know I'll need cash for a large expense in the next year, I'll leave it in SPAXX/MM. We keep a HELOC open just in case there was ever an emergency. Everything else is 100% invested all the time with no delay. I would rather know I caught every run than hoping I catch a dip.

DoinIt4DaShorteez

1. You can set up a Fidelity brokerage account in a way that you would be able to write checks against your SPAXX balance. 2. If you are parking cash in anticipation of a dip to buy, You could sell SGOV at any point during the day and turn around an immediately buy something else with it. SPAXX being a mutual fund, it doesn't officially price until the close. So you'd have to put in an order to liquidate some SPAXX and then wait until the next day to deploy the cash to something else.

jason22983

Nothing really, you have to buy SGOV while your money is automatically depositing into SPAXX.

weeitsvi

What’s the difference between parking it there vs money market SPAXX

Sharp-Direction-6894

Nah. I know what you're feeling, but I dont think it's good to have too much money sitting on the side lines. Ive got too much in SPAXX and need to get it in the market, even at ATHs.

False_Comedian_6070

You’re better off putting your money into a money market fund like spaxx through fidelity than a CD. Same return but you have access to your money. I keep an emergency fund of 6 months of expenses in SPAXX and invest the rest as soon as the money comes in. I would start with something broad like VTI, VOO, or VT. You’d basically just be betting on whether or not the American economy or the global economy will go up over time and that’s a very safe bet. Managing your emotions is the most important part of investing so if you’re worried I would stick to one of those three funds. S&P 500, total US market or total world market.

monkeybitmycousin

Hello, I’m new to investing (22yo) and am looking to get some advice on my current weekly investments. With $400/week available to invest/save, I am currently putting it into: SPAXX (For savings): $115 SCHR: $55 SCHD: $55 FXAIX (Roth IRA): $65 SCHB (Roth IRA): $65 SPAXX, SCHR, & SCHD are investments/savings for money to use to buy a home within the next 4-5 years, and FXAIX & SCHB are my investments in my Roth IRA. What changes would you recommend I make if any?

Megaloman-_-

Yes. The logic is very sound. I do the very same on Fidelity with SPAXX (~4% annualized).

IronSkyRanger

SPAXX is returning around 4% still and it's fully liquid.

StrategistGG

I sold my UNH, doc, and ULTY. Couldn't find anything good to invest in now. Ill be earning $31 a day in SPAXX I guess. Hopefully the market crashes hardcore this week

Ugly0gre

Same. Been hoarding cash mostly since around beginning of COVID. Nibbling here and there but there’s nothing stopping this market. Aside from the lost gains, I’ve been mostly SPAXX which hasn’t even kept up with inflation and dollars value eroding, I am probably in the negatives. Been considering starting to go in and start DCAing.

HumidMind

SPAXX

IHadTacosYesterday

They can do all kinds of amazing things, but if they market thinks their Golden Goose has stage 4 cancer, it's not going to matter. That's the problem. So you're supposed to sit around and wait 4 years for the market to finally realize that the death of search was great exagerrated? At that point, it won't matter. You will have lost value to inflation. I bought a shit ton of GOOG in November 2021. Possible the worst timing imaginable. The stock has basically done absolutely nothing since then (when you factor in how much inflation has taken place since November 2021). I damn near would have been better off having all that money just sitting in SPAXX for 4 years.

quamikazee

Puts on SPAXX

bobdevnul

SPAXX and FDLXX are both better than HYSA. FDLXX dividends are exempt from state income tax which increases its taxable equivalent yield. SGOV or VBIL short term treasury bond funds are another option currently yielding \~4.22%, with dividends also state tax free. On $12K for six months the dollar difference in income would only be about $40.

Next-Ball-6019

Hello I am looking to move my money out of my Capital one HYSA bc it’s only paying 3.5%. I have $12,000 that I want to move around. I’d like the risk to be fairly low, and to be pretty liquid as well bc I want to max out my Roth IRA as well so I need $7,000 available. What should I put it in? I have fidelity and have considered options like SPAXX and FDLXX but I don’t rly understand the difference between all them. I’m looking to keep it in for about 6-8 months. Please help me maximize growth and move my money where it’ll be best

ohyeahwell

At what point do I need to worry about Fidelity SPAXX going negative?

SnowShoe86

Min buy in is 100K, not 10K. .2% better than SPAXX for yield

yottabit42

Holding cash for an expense in less than 1-2 years is best served in a HYSA or a Money Market Fund. You may like to check the MMF Yields tab of my [rebalance calculator](https://invest.mcawesome.org/). You can enter your tax rates at the top and it will calculate your after-tax yield. You will likely see a MMF that will beat your HYSA rate after taxes. How to do it? * Open a regular brokerage account at Fidelity, Vanguard, or Schwab * At Vanguard and Fidelity you can just transfer the money in and you're done if you like the default choice (VMFXX at Vanguard or SPAXX at Fidelity) * At Schwab, and if you want to use a non-default option at Vanguard or Fidelity, you buy into the fund; make sure you don't buy third-party mutual funds (i.e., any fund ending with XX should only be bought at the first-party brokerage) to avoid high transaction fees; the ETFs can be bought free at all of the brokerages * ETFs will not auto-liquidate at Fidelity (or anywhere else), so to use the cash you will need to sell and wait until it settles the next day before you can withdraw/transfer out My preference is Fidelity. When you use the default SPAXX money market fund for cash, or you buy into one of their other MMFs, they still auto-liquidate just like cash. You don't have to sell first. You can also enable cash features in the account to use it like a bank. Vanguard pays a little higher, but doesn't auto-liquidate except for the default VMFXX fund, doesn't have cash features, has worse customer service, and has a pretty terrible UI. Schwab has cash features and good customer service, but doesn't auto-liquidate MMFs and doesn't use one by default for cash (instead you get a very measley checking-like interest rate). If you are going to hold the cash for more than 1-2 years, but less than 5 years, you may be interested in target date bonds. These are listed in the Target Date Bonds tab of the same calculator listed above. These pay dividends every month or quarter (don't remember which), and they auto-liquidate back to cash at the end of the year for which the fund is named. For instance, if you wanted to use the cash in 2028, you would buy a 2027 target date fund, and at the end of 2027 it will auto-liquidate to cash. If you hold until maturity/liquidation, you will receive all of your principal back. If you sell before then, you could gain or lose principal, depending on the recent changes in the bond rates market. If you need the cash in over 5 years, especially if you're flexible on exactly when you want to use it, it's best to just invest it in broad market index funds like VT (or VTI+VXUS in a taxable account) to earn a long-term average of 10% per year.

Antares284

FZDXX is a tiny bit better than SPAXX, but the minimum buy-in is $10,000.00, whereas there's no minimum buy-in for SPAXX.

eerhtcm

Yep I meant SPAXX. Sorry been a minute since I messed with either

MindfulMoola

FXAIX is the S&P500. Maybe you mean SPAXX? Their money market fund?

yottabit42

Holding cash for an expense in less than 1-2 years is best served in a HYSA or a Money Market Fund. You may like to check the MMF Yields tab of my [rebalance calculator](https://invest.mcawesome.org/). You can enter your tax rates at the top and it will calculate your after-tax yield. You will likely see a MMF that will beat your HYSA rate after taxes. How to do it? * Open a regular brokerage account at Fidelity, Vanguard, or Schwab * At Vanguard and Fidelity you can just transfer the money in and you're done if you like the default choice (VMFXX at Vanguard or SPAXX at Fidelity) * At Schwab, and if you want to use a non-default option at Vanguard or Schwab, you buy into the fund; make sure you don't buy third-party mutual funds (i.e., any fund ending with XX should only be bought at the first-party brokerage) to avoid high transaction fees; the ETFs can be bought free at all of the brokerages My preference is Fidelity. When you use the default SPAXX money market fund for cash, or you buy into one of their other MMFs, they still auto-liquidate just like cash. You don't have to sell first. You can also enable cash features in the account to use it like a bank. Vanguard pays a little higher, but doesn't auto-liquidate except for the default VMFXX fund, doesn't have cash features, has worse customer service, and has a pretty terrible UI. Schwab has cash features and good customer service, but doesn't auto-liquidate MMFs and doesn't use one by default for cash (instead you get a very measley checking-like interest rate). If you are going to hold the cash for more than 1-2 years, but less than 5 years, you may be interested in target date bonds. These are listed in the Target Date Bonds tab of the same calculator listed above. These pay dividends every month or quarter (don't remember which), and they auto-liquidate back to cash at the end of the year for which the fund is named. For instance, if you wanted to use the cash in 2028, you would buy a 2027 target date fund, and at the end of 2027 it will auto-liquidate to cash. If you hold until maturity/liquidation, you will receive all of your principal back. If you sell before then, you could gain or lose principal, depending on the recent changes in the bond rates market. If you need the cash in over 5 years, especially if you're flexible on exactly when you want to use it, it's best to just invest it in broad market index funds like VT (or VTI+VXUS in a taxable account) to earn a long-term average of 10% per year.

Zags321

I’m in the same boat, going to sell some of my positions soon. Can anyone explain the difference between SGOV and a money market fund at Fidelity like SPAXX? Seems like there may be a small more interest with SGOV, but any other major differences to be aware of?

GrabembytheP1

I believe SPAXX has a debit card option

yottabit42

Hello, yes it's better yield than most HYSAs and the federal money market funds are payable by the same government that underwrites FDIC insurance, so it's just as safe. The default position at Vanguard is VMFXX, and the default position at Fidelity is SPAXX. These are used automatically by cash in the account and are both federal money market funds. Depending on your tax brackets, you may make more effectively after tax by investing specifically in different versions that have different tax treatments. See the MMF Yields tab of my [rebalance calculator](https://invest.mcawesome.org/). You can enter your tax brackets at the top and it will calculate the after tax yield for the most popular funds.

caprividog

Fidelity issues a 2% unlimited cash back Visa that you can set to auto-deposit into your investment account. No annual fee. No foreign exchange fees. That's all I need. Fidelity offers all the standard online bank features. I have all the bill paying, deposits, check writing to go to a single investment account which is auto-sweeped to SPAXX money market fund--so the interest rate is better than most bank checking account. I use this same investment account to fund stock and options trading (my main source of income). Fidelity has pretty good rates and fill execution for my options, and pretty easy to set up things like T-bill ladders when I feel like I want to stash some cash away.

bgarza18

Maybe hold it in SPAXX and then decide some investments from there? Total market funds or max your Roth IRA for this year 

Py_eater

High interest savings account is a good option, alternatively you can also put it in money market fund like Fidelity investments with a core SPAXX, you just put the money there and it will give you interest, very liquid, and lastly you can opt for short term treasuries like 1 month maturity with auto roll feature via Fidelity investment.

AtomixJL

Yeah this I completely agree with as CSP your capital is continually deployed and upside isn’t capped like it is with a covered call. Like you said, though I’d have to look into as it almost sounds too good to be true, receiving the SPAXX (if you use fidelity) interest during the term of the CSP is basically like double dipping return.

fuzz11

“I’m worried about the decay of western society” Brother stick it in SPAXX and get off the internet for a bit

Im_Still_Here12

> given the current situation in the US You mean the market being at ATH? > I’m just worried about SPAXX going below NAV of 1.00 because of the decay of western society Huh? Stop listening to crack pot media channels. Your money in SPAXX will be fine.

Really-bad-at-this

I think you’re way too concerned with politics. The true leaders of this world will not allow anything insane to happen. If shit really goes south for good, money doesn’t matter and ammo/water/non perishables are what you’re gonna wish you focused on. Putting all that money into SPAXX however, is not something I’d recommend unless you’re holding for a reason. If it’s just for expenses, personally ladder a year of CD’s. You can shop for the best rate and have monthly income for a year if you need it. Sure, might not net it if SPAXX goes up above your apr in a cd, but low risk and not volatile.

onepanto

VMFXX would be a better alternative. Nearly identical investments (government securities) but VMFXX earns a bit more because it charges lower fees. SPAXX is currently earning 3.95% with an expense ratio of 0.41%. VMFXX is earning 4.22% and only charging you 0.11%.

Dylanb993

That’s what I want to do since 4% is much better than 0.1%. My concern is with SPAXX and things going badly in the next few years.

BrichNorm

We have a mad king running the country. I wouldn't necessarily say never. Saying that, I use SPAXX as my cash holding area on Fidelity.

Aggressive_Finish798

Well, they did say it's an emergency fund. Having more growth potential adds more risk. If not SPAXX or a HYSA then what? Bonds, t-bills, or SGOV aren't much better.

left-for-dead-9980

Make your money work for you instead of working for money. Track the ETFs people are recommending and compare them for a 5-year duration. The one that has the best total return should be at the top of your list. You should hold in SPAXX until you know what you want and dollar cost average to get your foot in the door. The market is toppy and could correct whenever a Tariff issue or new war comes up, so I wouldn't go all in just yet.

Otherwise_Stand1178

That's what I do, extra cash I'm not investing sits in SPAXX.

sundubone

Yes if anything put in a Fidelity brokerage account until you figure it out as the uninvested cash will earn around 4% in SPAXX which will pay out dividends

Bob_the_peasant

SPAXX

McKnuckle_Brewery

SPAXX 7 day yield hasn't been in that range for well over a year. It's 3.95% at the moment.

pbemea

MMF is easiest. Fidelity's SPAXX currently pays 5%. With a little planning you can build a ladder for the quarterly tuition due dates so that the instrument you buy mature at the right time. This could provide a little protection from the interest rate risk that a MMF exposes you to. Interest rate risk is the risk that the interest you are earning will decrease. No big deal really. MMF and HYSA are subject to interest rate risk.

m0viestar

Fidelity auto sweeps into SPAXX. More convenient. 

BosSF82

yea but you can't also hold the money in an interest bearing MM fund at the same time, like you can with SPAXX at Fidelity

VelvetElvis2002

SGOV is ~4.69% with no state tax. SPAXX is ~3.89%.

doctor--whom

I guess this depends on your definition of what “cash” is and what you’d like your access to it to be. Like can you wait 24 hours after the next trading day for access for example. I would consider any money market fund to be functionally equivalent to cash and certain ETFs to be near enough as well. Yes theoretically the dollar could break but if that happens with a MMF made of treasuries well worse things are happening. The laziest way would be to set your “core position” at fidelity to SPAXX since it is the default place any cash transferred in goes and it auto-liquidates were you to say withdraw money from an ATM or pay a bill and requires no planning. Slightly more effort is to allocate money to a money market fund of your choice to either get better tax treatment or yield. Most treasury only MMFs are hovering just under 4.0% these days. These will auto-liquidate too but and cash you deposit will need to be used to buy these funds manually. The method that yields the most is to buy a short term treasury ETF like SGOV or USFR (which yield just under 4.5% today and is state tax exempt if that matters to you) and simply sell a certain amount when cash is needed. It just won’t be available to withdraw for a business day after the next market day. Is the last method literal cash? No, but I feel like it functionally is for how I keep my emergency fund. I never need tens of thousands of dollars in cash in less than 1 business day. And bottom line I’m not gonna pay some fintech company money to get a worse yield and pay state taxes. I never need literal cash on a moments notice (and most people don’t either).

StartupSage

Sounds like you're in a solid position overall, which is great. If you're looking to take on more risk with that $70k sitting in SPAXX, maybe try easing in gradually. You could: * Dollar-cost average into a few higher growth funds or sectors you're interested in * Consider allocating a portion to REITs, small caps, or thematic ETFs * Set aside a small % (even 5–10k) for more speculative plays or individual stocks if you're comfortable You don’t need to go all-in at once—just start moving some of that capital with a plan and adjust based on how it feels. You're already doing the hard part by saving and investing regularly.

Radiant-Decision-971

Thank you for the reply and insight. If I can ask some follow ups? 1. My 401k is through work. Can I just use my ADP app to make the change? Or is it more involved? Also won’t it make it riskier? 2. What’s the upside to changing from total market to Nasdaq 100? 3. I currently have 70k in SPAXX that I use as my emergency fund / where I pull my investment funds from. The majority of my paycheck gets transferred over at end of month once all bills are paid.

ServerTechie

If your massive SPAXX position is part of your emergency savings, then don’t invest it, everyone needs a decent savings before they think about more investing. You may wanna consider FDLXX instead of just SPAXX, it can save you on taxes. Your portfolio overall is actually pretty aggressive, only way it gets more dramatic is maybe some FSELX or SPMO.

Snail_OnA_Razorblade

Do you think you need immediate liquidity to the tune of 70k? Or could you go with something like 40k in SPAXX for immediate liquidity.

therealjerseytom

Your investments are 100% equities. That's *not at all conservative*, dude. That's as aggressive as it gets with conventional asset classes. With regards to how much $$ to have parked in a money market, that's a question of how much of a financial safety blanket makes sense for you. A lot of people (myself included) go with something like 6-12 months essential expenses. I also have some low-but-non-zero risk short-term investments as a bit more of a buffer. If you have more of a positive cash flow than you need and that SPAXX position keeps growing beyond your safe waterline, by all means increase your 401k contributions if you're not max there, or put a little more into your taxable account.

After-Imagination-96

Pretty sure Fidelity SPAXX is 4.5%

OurNewestMember

>Should everyone whose margin rate is above the risk free rate ...So everyone? Lol. Broker margin \*might\* sometimes be cheaper as a limited time offer only, but otherwise more expensive by quite a bit Maybe someone shouldn't do the box if they are likely to mess up the handling of it (eg, don't hit the bid, check for correct strikes and expirations, etc). Another case not to do a box is when the loan value is small relative to the cost and effort. Although, for active traders, it might still be more economical to sell a modest box and use something pretty small and fungible to redeposit the excess cash (eg, SGOV, BIL, SPAXX, etc) Even with weird interest rate volatility scenarios, it's there aren't obvious cases where it's more economical to do the broker margin loan. Maybe someone else can think of why the broker loan is better besides convenience (at 25% to 300% higher cost) or fear of messing up. And some of the most competitive advertised USD margin rates are still 50-60 bps above the treasury rate for large loans (eg, $50 million on RH Gold and $250 million on IBKR). I'd budget maybe 30 bps for even a modest-sized box (eg, $20k). So you also can't size your way out of broker overcharging. [RHF Fee Schedule](https://cdn.robinhood.com/assets/robinhood/legal/RHF+Fee+Schedule.pdf) [Margin Rates and Financing | Interactive Brokers LLC](https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/trading/margin-rates.php) I think they've had these rates for some time (with treasuries riding higher and lower)

left-for-dead-9980

For 40k and easy access, get SPAXX at Fidelity.

therealjerseytom

It can by a smidgen. SGOV 30-day yield 4.18%, SPAXX 3.96%