As the title says I am trying to see where people stand on this. Obviously this is all personal preference. But that is what I am after.
After depleting our savings when buying our apartment 2 years ago, we’re about to cross 6 months liquid savings in just plain old savings account with ability to immediately withdraw money.
(To clarify that is 6 month assuming 0 income, which is very unlikely given the social system of our country - so realistically we have even more in savings.)
As you can imagine, the interest in this account is not great, so I want to set a limit as to when we stop dumping every spare penny into the savings account and begin doing other things (likely try to invest).
Personally, as a rule of thumb, I don’t think you can have enough in savings.
Our society is built upon going into debt… and I’d rather pay up front for things like a replacement vehicle or heater/pump or what have you, which means having enough to survive on—as you are inferring—and enough to survive Murphy making an unannounced and unwelcome visit.
The point of the question is how much money does one need in a liquid form as opposed to less liquid investments.
A fair point.
Personally, I use ‘savings’ as a catch-all for any form of money you have no intention of spending frivolously. Be that in savings, stocks, or other forms of investment.
I’ve got a relative who saw anything beyond the 6 month mark as spending money. I don’t know what form his investments manifested in, but it clearly didn’t work as he’s in financial do-do, and it’s an unpleasant topic amongst the family.
6 months is the usual rule, but you should assess your likelihood for extended unemployment. Do you live in a states with low unemployment payout? Is your career in a niche industry? Do you live in an area with fewer jobs overall? All those factors would make me consider pushing to a year+ of liquidity.
We both work in very precarious fields, so we aim at 12 months of expenses plus cash on hand equal to the single largest machine/system in the house (maybe it’s the heat pump, air conditioner, etc for you). I’m happier when we have 18 months in reserve.
I personally keep like 4 weeks cash in a checking account, some traditionally invested that I don’t plan to touch for many years, and everything else (12+ months at this point) in an investment account at the same bank as my checking, but exclusively invested in a money market fund with same day liquidity. MMFs are earning around 4+% while fed interest rates are so high, and being able to sell and transfer to my checking in a single day feels like it’s basically liquid already.
Since that’s the case, I don’t want any more than necessary sitting in an account earning 1% or less, just doesn’t feel like that much of a difference between investments that can be liquid in 2 hours vs. savings, but my bank is great about quick investment selling and transferring.
I’m not sure I follow your reasoning.
I mean, 1% interest is admittedly criminal, but it’s still better than the 0% in checking. And a month’s wages feels like a lot—to me—to leave entirely idle.
Everything else though sounds like you’re well and ahead of the game though! Kudos for balancing your portfolio. 👍
A big part of that decision is honestly that we live in a very old house, and a few times we have needed to buy new appliances or pay $10k+ in a ≤24hr. emergency, so we try to keep roughly that amount as liquid as possible. Since that’s earning zero and the MMF is nearly as liquid as savings, we just keep all the rest in the higher-interest options, and none at all in a traditional savings account. It’s just been the most convenient and highest yield, lowest risk, most easily liquidated option, with the ease of liquidity cutting minimally into returns while MMF rates are so high.
I personally have ~1 years worth of cash savings. I have it as an emergency fund plus slush fund for any big purchases so I won’t have to sell my stocks. For instance, I was able to purchase a new HVAC for my house without having to move any money around or sell any investments. I’ve just been slowly replenishing my savings alongside investing since that purchase.
If I was you, I would definitely make sure I have at least 6 months savings and then maybe split investments/continued savings until I was at a point I was comfortable with in terms of savings (whatever it is that you decide that value is). Also, you say your savings account pays low interest. I would look to see if there are any High Yield Savings Accounts available in your country. Here in the US you can find accounts paying ~5% which is great for an efund.
