Do I hide my money under my mattress?

Hard to believe it's been just short of a hundred years since the Great Depression with its run on the banks. Great-grandma hid her money under the mattress rather than exposing it to a rapidly collapsing economy. I do not think this is an issue today, but a better question would be do I put my money in the Stock Market or in a bank with its current high interest rates. A good argument could be made for either strategy.

A lot of investors are suggesting now is the time to invest long-term in the market. Some planners are figuring with certain stocks readjusting their prices, this may be an excellent time to pick up some values depending upon the sector and your confidence level in it.

Many advisors are taking a different approach. Some feel with this much volatility in the market a more cautious approach may be advisable. The advantage here is with high interest rates you can park your savings in a money market at over 4% and wait to see what the future holds.

Either way, the safety of our banking system is not really an issue. Your money is insured by the FDIC for $250,000 and the Feds have made it clear if a bank is too big to fail, they will support account holders over the $250,000 limit. The thinking is to prevent the domino theory of one bank leading to another to another failing. Our system is strong enough to make sure this does not happen.

So, while great-grandma's idea of stashing your money under your mattress might have some merit in certain situations, with interest rates high on savings and inflation where it is, there are other safe places to put your money.

Marty Pay is a contributing writer for The Loop newspaper. He can be reached at Marty Pay Farmers Insurance (661) 822-3737.