The Social Security Administration delivered a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2026, which will benefit approximately 75 million Americans receiving Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. This increase translates to an average monthly boost of about $56 for Social Security retirement beneficiaries starting in January 2026, with SSI recipients seeing their increased payments that began on December 31, 2025. The 2026 COLA of 2.8% represents a slight increase from the 2.5% adjustment in 2025, though it remains below the 3.1% average COLA over the past decade.
For conservative investors with even just a reasonable net worth, the puny increase will not do much. More importantly for high-net-worth Boomers, the question now is whether, with the stock market overbought after three years of double-digit gains in the S&P 500, does keeping a majority of investable funds in the market spell doom? One of the best places to keep money with a reasonable interest rate and total safety is certificates of deposit (CDs). Now, the highest-yielding five-year CD we could find pays 4%. However, there is a significant liquidity problem. If, for any reason, you need to sell before maturity, you will likely pay a hefty penalty. Plus, if rates rise during those five years, your 4% payout will remain the same. Lastly, most CDs pay quarterly.
We have three top investment avenues for conservative retirees, especially those with high net worth, who do not need to take undue risk but want to capture the highest yields possible and also enjoy the safety of guaranteed investments. Plus, all three pay shareholders monthly interest and offer daily liquidity, with no penalties when you sell. Plus, all pay more than the puny COLA increase.
Exchange-Traded Treasury Bill Funds
Unlike open-end mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) trade on major exchanges like stocks. They own financial assets, such as stocks, bonds, currencies, and debt, as well as commodities, such as gold bars. One significant advantage ETFs have is that they can be bought or sold at any time the markets are trading. In addition, there is a large market and strong investor demand for ETFs.
One of the funds we highly recommend at 24/7 Wall St. is the SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (NYSE: BIL | BIL Price Prediction). The fund invests substantially all, but at least 80%, of its total assets in the securities comprising the index and in securities that the Adviser determines to have economic characteristics substantially identical to the financial characteristics of the securities comprising the index. The index measures the performance of U.S. Treasury public obligations with a remaining maturity of 1 month or more but less than three months.
The State Street website describes the fund this way:
- The SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Bloomberg 1-3 Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index
- Seeks to provide exposure to publicly issued U.S. Treasury Bills that have a remaining maturity between 1 and 3 months
- Short-duration fixed income is less exposed to fluctuations in interest rates than longer-duration securities
- Rebalanced on the last business day of the month
The fund currently pays a 4.12% yield and a monthly dividend/interest payment of $0.28123. Investors need to know that the ETF’s price will drop by that amount when the dividend is paid. However, at $91.61 at the time of this writing, that is a tiny amount each month.
With a tiny 0.14% expense ratio and daily liquidity, it is perfect for those who cannot afford a considerable principal loss.
High-Yield Money Market Funds
A high-yield money market fund, or high-yield savings account (HYSA), is an investment that aims to generate income while keeping the principal relatively stable and liquid. It is considered a low-risk investment and can have higher interest rates than savings accounts. Money market funds invest in short-term securities, such as government securities, commercial paper, and corporate debt.
They are intended to be safe and not lose value. Best of all, you can withdraw cash from a money market fund without penalties. In addition, they pay interest monthly and are insured by the FDIC up to $250,000.
Here are the rates from some well-known companies that we recommend:
- American Express High Yield Savings: 3.30%
- OpenBank (Owned by Santander): 4.2%
- Synchrony Bank: 3.65%
- CIT Bank Platinum Savings: 3.75% on balances of $5,000 and more
Open-End Mutual Funds
An open-end mutual fund is a type of investment fund that allows investors to buy or sell shares at any time, based on the current net asset value (NAV) of the fund, essentially meaning new shares are created when investors want to buy in, and shares are redeemed when investors want to sell out, providing continuous liquidity compared to closed-end funds with fixed entry and exit points; this makes open-end funds highly accessible for investors to enter and exit as needed.
Both closed-end and open-end funds provide efficient investment options. Closed-end funds trade on exchanges throughout the day, while open-end funds are typically redeemed or bought at net asset value once daily.
We recommend the BlackRock Liquidity Funds – FedFund (BFCXX), which currently yields 3.68%. The fund maintains a $1 net asset value and can be bought and sold daily.
The BlackRock website says this when describing the fund:
FedFund invests at least 99.5% of its assets in cash, U.S. Treasury bills, notes, and other obligations issued or guaranteed as principal and interest by the U.S. Government, its agencies, or instrumentalities, and repurchase agreements secured by such obligations or cash. The Fund’s yield is not directly tied to the federal funds rate. The Fund invests in securities maturing in 397 days or less (with certain exceptions), and the portfolio will have a dollar-weighted average maturity of 60 days or less and a dollar-weighted average life of 120 days or less. The Fund may invest in variable- and floating-rate instruments and transact in securities on a when-issued, delayed-delivery, or forward commitment basis.
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