First principle: money you'll need for a down payment in the near term shouldn't be exposed to market risk. Underwriters also need down-payment funds to be verified and documented. A large deposit without a clear source has to be paper-trailed, and if your cash sits in something that fluctuates, you'll be liquidating and documenting the trail before your loan documents can go out. Once you're close to buying, safe and accessible beats high return. For cash you want liquid and roughly keeping pace with inflation, the usual homes are high-yield savings, money market funds, and short-term Treasuries. Series I savings bonds are built specifically to track inflation, with two trade-offs to know: purchases are capped per person per year, and cashing out early forfeits some recent interest, so they suit money you can leave alone for a while. Rates and purchase limits change, so confirm the current terms before you commit. If your horizon is longer and you're genuinely undecided between real estate, stocks, and bonds, holding cash as optionality is a legitimate choice. Cash loses a little to inflation, but that can be an acceptable price for the flexibility to move when something genuinely attractive shows up, whether that's a property with less competition or equities after a pullback. Don't feel pressured to deploy it on someone else's timeline. One caveat: we're mortgage and real estate people, not investment advisors, so treat this as a framework, not a personalized recommendation. For anything tax-sensitive or portfolio-level, talk to a professional who handles that.