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Adobe Stock June 06, 2022 Karen Bennett is a consumer banking reporter at Bankrate. She uses her finance writing background to help readers learn more about savings and checking accounts, CDs, and other financial matters. Miranda Marquit is a contributing writer for Bankrate. Miranda writes about topics related to investing, saving and homebuying. David Schepp is a wealth editor for Bankrate, focusing on deposits and consumer banking content. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
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You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money. Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. One of the safest investments available is the Series EE savings bond, issued by the U.S. government. “This is the most common type of bond and they are purchased at a discount and accrue interest monthly,” says Paul Sundin, CPA and financial advisor with Emparion. “The bonds mature after 20 years, at which point the U.S. Treasury will guarantee that investors have doubled their money.” Though have a low rate of return, there are few investments that guarantee to double your money — but it does take 20 years. In general, you can usually expect to earn more in interest with a Series EE savings bond than with a , yet the money in the savings account is more accessible. If you have a Series EE savings bond, it pays to know the current value before deciding to cash it in, since in some cases waiting longer can earn you more interest. Check the current value of your savings bond
Paper savings bonds
The U.S. Treasury stopped issuing most paper savings bonds in 2012, but they never expire and there’s no deadline to redeem them. They do stop earning interest upon maturity. The value of a paper savings bond can be checked by using the on the TreasuryDirect website and entering this information found on bond: Issue date Bond series Denomination Once you enter this information, the calculator can let you know what your paper bond is worth if you cash it in today. You can also use the calculator to determine the worth of the bond if you it on some other date. The TreasuryDirect website also allows you to enter information from multiple bonds to create a list and determine the total value, as well as save the list for reference. Electronic savings bonds
Most savings bonds can only be purchased in electronic format nowadays. If you have electronic bonds, you can log into your TreasuryDirect account — which was used to purchase the bonds in the first place — and see the value in your account information under the current holdings tab. How do I cash in my savings bonds
If you decide to cash in your Series EE savings bond, the process is fairly straightforward. Electronic savings bonds: If you purchased bonds through TreasuryDirect, you can cash them in on that website. Once you log into your account, you can find information on redeeming your bonds. The money will be directly deposited in a checking or savings account within two business days. Paper savings bonds: If your bank cashes paper savings bonds, you can bring yours to a branch to redeem them. You can also cash in paper bonds by sending them to Treasury Retail Securities Services along with . Cashing in bonds early
Series EE savings bonds can be redeemed a year from purchase, but you won’t see the same level of returns if you cash in your bond before it matures in 20 years. Bond holders only receive the guaranteed double of the face value if you . “The Treasury only waives the one-year rule if you experience a disaster and need to tap your cash sooner,” financial adviser Sundin says. Additionally, if bonds are redeemed before the fifth year, the last three months of interest are forfeited, which can significantly reduce the total value of your savings bond. For that reason, Sundin cautions against purchasing savings bonds unless there’s a specific purpose for them in your portfolio. Another feature of the Series EE savings bond is that you can also keep the bond beyond its maturity date. Bond holders continue to earn interest for up to 30 years, making the bond even more valuable the longer it is kept. SHARE: Karen Bennett is a consumer banking reporter at Bankrate. She uses her finance writing background to help readers learn more about savings and checking accounts, CDs, and other financial matters. Miranda Marquit is a contributing writer for Bankrate. Miranda writes about topics related to investing, saving and homebuying. David Schepp is a wealth editor for Bankrate, focusing on deposits and consumer banking content. Related Articles