Fidelity Introduces Zero Expense Ratio Index Funds
Free overnight checks. Free cashier's checks. Free wire transfers (incoming <i>and</i> outgoing)...on top of what was already free. This is great!<p>For those of you comparing Fidelity and Schwab for cash management, two things:<p>1) Fidelity's debit card also reimburses ATM fees worldwide, but lists a 1% foreign transaction fee for purchases. This doesn't apply to ATM withdrawals, which don't count as purchases and are, in fact, 0%.<p>2) Schwab's interest rate on cash in their checking account is 0.25% last time I checked. Fidelity's is similar, but they count purchased money market funds as liquid, withdrawable cash, and automatically liquidate shares when needed without intervention by you. So the effective interest rate on cash is somewhere between 1.55% and 1.9%, depending on which money market fund you choose. Schwab also has money market funds, but they're not treated as liquid cash. You must manually sell shares, wait until settlement clears, and then transfer funds into your checking account, which is a pain in the ass.<p>3) Not directly related to cash management, but useful nonetheless: Fidelity advertises $4.95 brokerage trades. Every time I've called and asked, "Can you give me free trades?," they give me free trades (usually 10-20) as a "goodwill" perk. It's a 60 second phone call. Don't pay for trades!<p>EDIT: Perhaps notable for those who live in high tax states like NY or CA, interest income from Fidelity's "Treasury Only" money market funds is exempt from state taxes. Interest earned from a typical checking account or CD is state taxable. You can also purchase municipal money market funds which are exempt from state and federal taxes, but they have a lower yields.