How should I invest the money in my US bank account when I'm abroad?

March 20, 2008 11:23 AM

Asking for a friend: How should I invest the money in my US bank account when I'm based abroad?

I have a sum of money (a few thousand) in a bank account in the States, that I built up while I was studying there. I'm now based in Singapore, and have no intention of returning to the US anytime in the near (and possibly far) future. I don't need the money in there either, so I'm thinking it would be good to put it in some long-term investment, say 10-20 years or so.

Since the exchange rate is pretty bad at the moment, I don't want to convert the money to Singapore Dollars. Is there a good way for me to put the money into some form of investment while keeping it in USD, given that I'm not a resident in the US anymore? I know about foreign currency fixed deposits, but I was hoping for something with higher returns (e.g. funds). Any suggestions as to what would be the best long-term investment given the current market would be cool too. Thanks!

posted by destrius to Work & Money (3 answers total)

Open a brokerage account, letting them know it's for a foreign person (there are probably extra forms), and throw it all in an index fund. Wait 20 years. The brokerage can handle all the nasty stuff. I know ThinkOrSwim can handle it, and they are very friendly and helpful.
posted by cschneid at 12:29 PM on March 20, 2008

Index tracker with low management fees like Vanguard. Open it then forget you've got it.
posted by TrashyRambo at 2:13 PM on March 20, 2008

I don't agree with TrashyRambo. Be sure you pay appropriate taxes, and keep track of it. If you "forget about it", it could be turned over to the state at some point as unclaimed money. Don't let that happen, just let the broker know your situation, and they'll tell you how they can handle it.
posted by cschneid at 9:05 PM on March 20, 2008