So you're thinking about investing your HSA. Good call.
Your HSA investment account is self-directed. Here's the honest guide to getting started on the right foot.
Picking funds. Finding information. Getting started.
Before you invest1 a single dollar, it helps to know what you’re choosing between, where to find the details, and what questions to ask. You’re in the right place.
Think of the Fund Performance Dashboard as your menu. It lists every available mutual fund along with its historical performance, category, and gross expense ratio. Each fund also links out to its prospectus, fact sheet, and Morningstar®2 page — so you can dig into the details before you commit to anything.
To get there, visit the Fund Performance Dashboard.
Honestly? Not directly. Your HSA investment account is self-directed, which means the choices are yours. LMCU doesn’t guide your fund selections or make recommendations.
What we can do is point you to the right resources. The Tools and Education page and the Fund Performance Dashboard both give you performance history, expense ratios, and fund materials like prospectuses and fact sheets. Those are the tools a knowledgeable friend would tell you to read before you start.
If you’d still like a second opinion, consider speaking with a personal investment advisor.
Every fund on the HSA fund performance Dashboard has a Resource Links section. That’s where you’ll find each fund’s prospectus, fact sheet, and Morningstar® page. You can also go straight to the mutual fund company’s website if you prefer.
It’s worth reading. A prospectus tells you what a fund actually does, what it costs to own, and what risks come with it.
Your HSA investment account includes a Tools and Education page with research tools, decision support resources, and educational content to help you make informed choices. Think of it as the reading room before you make any moves.
Use it. The more you understand about the funds you’re choosing, the better positioned you’ll be.
No. This is important to understand before you get started: mutual funds are not insured by the NCUA or guaranteed by your HSA provider. That means they may lose value. Investing involves risk, and your balance isn’t protected the way your regular HSA savings are.
Read the fund materials carefully, and consider working with a personal investment advisor if you have questions about whether HSA investing is right for your situation.
No minimums per fund. Once your HSA balance is over $1,000,3 you can put whatever amount you choose into the available HSA mutual funds. There’s no floor on individual fund purchases.
Fees, loads, and trading policies. Less scary than they sound.
The funds in your HSA investment account come with their own cost, fees,4 and trading structures. Here’s what to look for before you commit to anything.
The gross expense ratio for every available fund is listed right on the Fund Performance Dashboard. If you want the full story on what a particular fund charges, the Resource Links on the dashboard also connect you to each fund’s prospectus.
Expense ratios matter. Even a small difference compounds over time, so it’s worth a look before you invest HSA funds.
No. The funds available through your HSA investment account are load-waived or no-load. You won’t pay a commission or sales charge to buy or sell them.
LMCU doesn’t charge a transaction fee for requests you make through your HSA investment account. There is a $30 annual HSA Investment fee. Some individual funds may apply short-term redemption fees or trading blocks to discourage rapid buying and selling.
To find out whether a specific fund has these policies, check its prospectus using the Resource Links on the Fund Performance Dashboard.
When you’re realigning your account or transferring between investments, keep an eye out for an alert icon next to a fund’s name. Hover over it and you’ll see that fund’s specific trading policy. For the full details, the fund’s prospectus — available through the Resource Links on the Fund Performance Dashboard — has everything you need.
Checking in. Moving money. Staying on track.
Once you’re invested, you’ll want to know how to review what you own, make changes, and move money from your HSA to your investments. It’s all here.
Since HSA investments are self-directed, we don’t have access to move funds on behalf of members. To move the funds from HSA to HSA investment, you can access the HSA investment portal from the transfer tab in online banking, then input how much you would like to move.
Your balance updates nightly on any day the New York Stock Exchange is open. So while markets are moving in real time, what you see in your account reflects the previous day’s closing values.
You can adjust your HSA investments as often as you’d like. Just know that some funds may charge short-term redemption fees or limit how frequently you trade. Check the fund’s prospectus before making frequent moves.
Your Account Summary page gives you a snapshot of recent activity at a glance. For a more complete view:
- Transaction History (under the Activity menu) shows all transactions within a date range you choose.
- Pending Activity (also under the Activity menu) lets you review or cancel anything that hasn’t processed yet.
Statements live in the Activity menu. Two options:
- Quarterly Statements for your standard period-by-period summaries.
- Statements On Demand if you need a statement for a custom date range.
Future investment elections tell the system where to put new money when it’s moved from your HSA into your HSA investment account. Once you set them, transfers are invested automatically according to the funds and percentages you chose.
Skip this step, and new money will sit in the money market fund until you manually realign or transfer it to other funds. It won’t go anywhere on its own.
To set your future elections, go to Invest > Set Future Investment Elections. You may want to consult a financial professional before making your selections.
One thing to keep in mind: future investment elections only affect new money coming into your HSA investment account. To change how your existing balance is invested, use Realign Investment Percentages or Transfer Between Investments under Invest > Manage Portfolio.
Realignment is how you change the way your current balance is split among funds. It moves your existing HSA investments into the funds and percentages you select — think of it as rebalancing your portfolio.
A few things worth knowing:
- To realign your current balance: Invest > Manage Portfolio > Realign Investment Percentages.
- To change where future transfers are invested: Invest > Set Future Investment Elections.
- To move money directly between specific funds: Invest > Manage Portfolio > Transfer Between Investments.
- You may want to consult a financial professional before making changes.
Go to Invest > Manage Portfolio > Transfer Between Investments. From there:
- Choose whether to transfer by dollars or percentages. (If you’re moving more than 90% out of a fund, percentages are the safer way to go.)
- Select the source fund(s) and the amount or percentage to move, then click Continue.
- Select the destination fund(s) and the amount or percentage to receive, then click Continue.
- Review your request and click Complete Transfer.
Need money back in your HSA? Here's how to move it.
Your HSA investment account isn’t a one-way door. You can move money back to your base HSA anytime a healthcare expense comes up — and closing the account is just a phone call.
Go to the Invest menu and select Move Money. Enter the dollar amount you want to transfer back to your base HSA, then click Submit Request.
Your HSA investments will be liquidated on a pro-rata basis across your funds to generate the cash. One technical note: requests that result in the liquidation of 90% or more of a mutual fund will be processed based on the number of units calculated using the previous market day’s net asset value (NAV).
The money will be back in your HSA and available for healthcare expenses once the transfer processes. This may take up to 4 market days.
When you access your HSA investment portal, select the “liquidate and close” option to begin closing your account.
Disclosures
Information on this page is provided for educational purposes only and should not be considered investment, tax, or legal advice. Lake Michigan Credit Union does not provide tax or legal advice. Please consult your tax advisor or attorney before making any decisions or taking any action based on this information. Investing involves risk. Carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of any mutual fund before investing. Review the prospectus before making investment decisions.
Investments are not federally insured, are not guaranteed, and may lose value. LMCU does not select investments for members. Users are responsible for investment decisions. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Morningstar is a registered trademark of Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.
A minimum HSA cash balance of $1,000 is required before investment services become available. Requirements are subject to change.
Fees are subject to change. Refer to the current HSA Fee Schedule for complete details.
