Questions tagged [interest]

for questions that relate to interest. Interest is a fee paid by a borrower of assets to the owner as a form of compensation for the use of the assets.

Interest is a fee paid by a borrower of assets to the owner as a form of compensation for the use of the assets. It is most commonly the price paid for the use of borrowed money,1 or money earned by deposited funds.

When money is borrowed, interest is typically paid to the lender as a percentage of the principal, the amount owed to the lender. The percentage of the principal that is paid as a fee over a certain period of time (typically one month or year) is called the interest rate. A bank deposit will earn interest because the bank is paying for the use of the deposited funds. Assets that are sometimes lent with interest include money, shares, consumer goods through hire purchase, major assets such as aircraft, and even entire factories in finance lease arrangements. The interest is calculated upon the value of the assets in the same manner as upon money.

Interest - From Wikipedia

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Where can I park my rainy-day / emergency fund? Savings accounts don't generate much interest

Savings accounts don't seem to generate much interest. What other options do I have for my emergency fund?
S. Chang
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How does a bank make money on an interest free secured loan?

I was having a discussion about the ethics of charging interest on a loan, and I was of the position that allowing the charging of interest encourages more loans to be given, and thus contributes to economic growth and prosperity. Therefore it is a…
Luke
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Why don't bond makers just get loans?

I was just looking at investment opportunities, and I found a number of places offering bonds paying up to 12% interest over two years. My first thought was, I can get a loan from my bank for 5% interest - so if I get a loan to use to buy the bond,…
Benubird
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Can I take out a loan and invest it at higher interest?

I noticed today that my bank is offering small loans of up to £15000 at 3.3% interest. Meanwhile, services like Zopa and RateSetter are offering over 6% interest on investments in their platforms. I feel like there must be some catch here, but what…
MHG
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Why would anyone buy U.S. Treasury Bills?

From the Treasury Direct website, I saw this Bills: U.S. Treasury Bills are a type of short-term security of one year or less, usually issued at a discount. The discount is the amount the security is lowered from its face value and is considered…
Wapiti
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Why do banks want you to pay off interest before principal?

When you take out a traditional mortgage the first payment you make to a bank pays off mostly interest and then later payments start paying off principal. What is the reason for this? Is it just a historical accounting/industry convention? Or is…
bernie2436
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What to do with $1,000,000.00 for 3&1/2 months?

We have 1 million dollars from the sale of a farm, which we want to use to pay down land debt. But we can't make a payment until the anniversary date of July 5. Right now it is in an interest bearing checking account earning 1.7 %.
user95070
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How does a bank lend your money while you have constant access to it?

How do banks / fintechs lend your money while you have constant access to it, ie. can withdraw at any moment? I assume there is some kind of liquidation pool, but how exactly is that managed with limited risk?
Anonona
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Why does my car loan interest go up despite making payments on-time?

In my first payment on 06-17-2016, the principal applied to my balance was $186.76 and the interest was $107.50. As I kept making the payment on-time, the second payment on 07-25-2016 was a bit of a shock to me as the principle went down to $93.97…
Tenzin
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Should I charge my children interest when they borrow money?

My children (both male, ages 25, soon to be married, & 32, married) have borrowed money from me and my wife on several occasions. They have yet to pay us back what they borrowed. We have never charged them interest on the money they borrow. I'm…
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Why is the fractional-reserve banking not a Ponzi scheme?

Operating a Ponzi scheme is a crime which I suppose has some sort of definition in the penal code or criminal law. It is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to separate investors from their own money or money paid by subsequent…
sibidiba
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Paying Off Principal of Home vs. Investing In Mutual Fund

I close on my first home October 21. I've locked in a 4.330% APR on a 30-year fixed conventional mortgage and my payment will be ~$800/month. I've put the required 20% down to avoid paying PMI. However, the $800/m isn't even 25% of my take-home…
Chuck Callebs
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Is asking to pay off principal first a placebo?

Some people say that in order to pay off a loan sooner, you should ask the lender to "apply your payment towards the principal", so that they won't "apply your payment towards the interest". From my understanding, most lenders don't separately track…
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Do I pay a zero % loan before another to clear both loans faster?

I have $11,000 to put toward one of my three loans. I think I should pay off the 0% car loan and then in two months it will be zero and I can apply that $635 to the 2.5 % car loan and pay it down faster. Does that make the best money sense? Balance…
AllenH
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Where should I park my rainy-day / emergency fund?

This is the US companion of the same question for Canadians Where can I park my rainy-day/ emergency fund?. Basically I want to know what options I have for my emergency fund?
Leigh Riffel
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