Where to invest short term

[Dawn Novak]

I have about $36k to invest before we buy a duplex this winter. I hate to have it sitting in a CD earning barely any interest. Was looking at REITS but feel like the market is a little all over the place right now. Any recommendations? 

[Daniel Murphy]

A timeframe of less than 6 months is extremely difficult to plan for "investment" wise. Your best bet is to keep the money in CD's.  You can find 3-6 month cd's with a 5+% yield.  

"Investing" the money over this short period of time, especially with a goal of buying properties soon, would not be the best move.  

Let's say your best case scenario of investing is a 10% gain. So now you have ~$39,600, but owe income taxes on the ~$3,600. Does that dramatically change your purchase plans? 
Or the worst case scenario is going down 10%, does this knock you out of a purchase? 

Investing = long term

Saving = short term,   Keep saving the money, enjoy the predictability & use it to plan your purchase.