What To Do With Spare Uninvested Cash

Not to get too much into gory details, but I mentioned before that I sold a house recently. That money is just sitting in my checking account, doing nothing.

Those guys at the bank are clever. Whenever I find myself with a bit of money sitting in my checking account, I usually get a call within a few days. They must have a report that gets printed off, “Easy sales report”.

“Hi there, I see you have a lot of money in your checking account, earning no interest.”

— The Bank

They always get me with that – “earning no interest.” Damn, it’s the sad truth… the bank is holding my money and not paying me anything on it. I am sure they are lending that money to people and collecting interest on their loans. So I am providing liquidity to the bank, which is never a good idea.

“We have a Cashable GIC that will pay you 1.65%, which is better than 0%. You can cash the GIC at any time and have the money in your account within one business day.”

— The Bank

Well, 1.65% isn’t great. But it’s infinitely better than 0%. OK, OK, you can invest my money in this product while I decide what to do.

“The rate has increased to 1.85%. Do you want me to move your money into that one instead?”

— The Bank, one month later

OK, OK. 1.85% is better than 1.65%. Worth the effort to move it.

“We are prepared to offer you 2.10%, but only if you’ll increase your deposit.”

— The Bank, a few days after the last call.

OK, OK.

Maybe I’m a sucker, but it’s still perhaps in my best interest. The money is not earning anything sitting in my checking account. I set a goal of August 2022 to invest most of it, but I don’t know what to do with it until then.

Are there better places to park money short term? 2.1% seems high for a deposit that is not locked in.