A. If the Fed raises the rates, bond investors have reasons to worry because bond prices will fall. However, there are some consumers will welcome the higher rates:
1. Annuity shoppers
Annuity shoppers should welcome the higher rates which will lead to higher payouts on fixed annuities. Since the rate rising will not happen just once, an effective strategy is to implement an annuity ladder - divide the money for an annuity into several pots and stagger your purchases over several years.
2. Money savers
It doesn't matter if you are saving your money in a bank or a money market fund, if the Fed raises the rates, you should expect higher rates. If you don't see it from your current institutions, shop around, here are a few sites to use:
- Bankrate.com
- Depositaccounts.com
- Moneyrates.com
While it's typical the stock market goes down right after the Fed raises the rates, historical data indicates the stock market most likely will go higher a year after the rate is raised.