So, my wife and I do a pretty good job of budgeting and saving for things, which means we have a lot of cash laying around. Between a $15k emergency fund, savings for car replacement and repairs, appliance replacement and repairs, vacations, etc., we currently have north of $35k just sitting in the bank. We've moved a lot of it into a money market savings account, which is at least generating a 1% return (far better than the .07% or whatever on the checking account).
Unfortunately, this feels a bit like throwing money away. If inflation is above 1% (and, thankfully, it's been low lately), we'd be losing hundreds a year.
Are there higher return places to put all that excess cash, while still keeping it pretty liquid? I've used I bonds in the past for this purpose, where you at least get the security of knowing your money will keep pace with inflation.
Is there a better alternative than an I bond to earn a higher return and still remain liquid without a significant increase in risk?
