Economic Data on the Go

This one’s for the data geeks out there.

Yesterday, someone mentioned that we should stop attaching the term “high-yield” to the savings accounts out there right now, because they are truly low-yield right now. In my very early 20s, I remember seeing a 9 percent interest rate attached to my savings account, and some friends confirmed that, yes, they also recall seeing similar rates. That rate dropped due to a number of reasons, mainly, the economy and the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates low. And here’s how that has affected interest rates for, say, a 5-year CD (certificate of deposit) in recent years:

You’ll notice that I found that data on my phone. It’s from this really terrific app called FRED economic data, which allows you to access updated economic data from your phone whenever you want. I think that’s pretty cool.

Here’s data showing record low interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, which comes in handy if you’re thinking about buying a home:

And what about buying a car? Yes, there’s data for that too:

Also: The sad state of interest-earning checking accounts:

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