Need some advise from my fellow mustacians on where I should be putting my wife's salary for short term savings and then long term down the road. Here's some details of our situation.
Salaries: I make $50k and she makes $60K per year before taxes. We currently live off my salary with a little left over to throw into savings, I'm trying to get down to using half my income for expenses, but it's a work in progress. Her salary is pretty much free to invest now.
The Current House: 2200 sqr ft ranch with 2.5 acres about 20 miles from mine and my wife's work. Zestimate $213k but more like $250k with the renovations we have done to it. We owe $180k at 3.5%, payment is $942, but we pay $300 extra to the principle.
This is where my question lies. Our goal is to move to a smaller house next year, preferably within biking distance of both our jobs and in the $150k range at about 1200 sqr ft. So since we are planning on moving next year, to me it doesn't make sense to put that extra $300 every month into the principle, but take that and lump it into my wife's salary and invest that into a short term savings plan so we can build up our cash to buy this new house outright and get rid of this mortgage, am I right? Also is there anything out there that I can save her salary in, that will yield better than a .05% "savings" account at our bank for this short of period?
I currently have $14k in a LendingClub account (thanks to this sight) and $40k in that wimpy .05% "savings" account. So if there's a better way to make that money work for us while adding her salary to the 40k over 1 year to try and bolster our cash buying power on the next place, please show me the light!
Thanks