For individual investors, the easiest and least expensive way to buy Treasury bonds, notes, or bills is through the Treasury Direct program, where you can buy securities for as little as $1,000, with additional increments of $1,000. All commissions are eliminated when you buy from the federal government rather than through a broker, although you’ll pay an annual $25 fee if you have more than $100,000 in your Treasury Direct account.
In this program, you receive the same yields as institutional investors. Your Treasury securities are consolidated in one account, which you open with a one-page form. Subsequently, purchases are taken directly from a designated bank or brokerage account and payments are deposited automatically.
Although Treasury Direct accounts are primarily for investors who plan to hold until maturity, there is also a Sell Direct program that permits you to sell to the highest bidder, before maturity, for a $34 fee. For more information, visit the Treasury Direct Web site, http://www.treasurydirect.gov.
