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Rating the money market funds
By
Laura Bruce • Bankrate.com
Money market mutual funds have
become a fixed income staple in many portfolios. They're no longer
viewed as simply a place to "park some cash" while waiting
for a better investment opportunity to come along.
To assist those who make the funds part of their investment
plans, Bankrate.com's newest feature is a daily survey of the 10
highest-yielding nontaxable money market funds and the 10
highest-yielding taxable money market funds.
There are hundreds of money market funds, but the
majority aren't suitable for most individual investors. We developed
criteria to narrow the selection to funds that are reasonably accessible
to the largest number of investors.
We began with a universe of 1,400
funds and eliminated:
- Institutional funds (not available to individuals).
- Relationship funds (require some other account
with the institution, such as a brokerage account).
- Funds requiring a deposit of more than $10,000
to open.
The result is that our daily survey
currently is comprised of 121 nontaxable funds and 156 taxable funds.
You'll be able to come to Bankrate.com
and see the following information posted fresh daily for the top
10 taxable and the top 10 nontaxable money market funds:
- 7-day effective yield
- Name of institution
- Web link
- Telephone number
- Symbol
- Minimum investment
- Additional investment minimum into a regular
account
- Minimum IRA investment
- Additional IRA investment
- Minimum check dollar amount
The following information will be provided daily but
updated quarterly or annually, depending on the institution.
- Total assets
- Expense ratio
- Average maturity
We think this information will help you research money
market funds and quickly find the right fund for your needs.
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