You don't have to be rich to get rich returns

— -- Q: What brokers and financial institutions will take a customer who is only able to invest $50 a month?

A: While many banks, brokerages and fund companies have become inhospitable to smaller accounts because it costs the same to service them as it does large accounts, there are still plenty of brokers and other financial institutions willing to take on smaller investors.

If you're just looking for a place to park a little bit of money, and don't want to get the pitiful rates banks pay on savings accounts, you can consider a high-yield online savings account. ING Direct and HSBC both offer compelling online savings account rates and don't require minimum balances.

If you're looking to buy stock and can't invest much right now, there are online brokerages with no minimum balance requirements. They include Tradeking, Zecco.com and Sharebuilder.com, which is now owned by ING. Others, like Scottrade, require a relatively low $500 initial deposit.

Matt Krantz is a financial markets reporter at USA TODAY and author of Investing Online for Dummies. He answers a different reader question every weekday in his Ask Matt column at money.usatoday.com. To submit a question, e-mail Matt at mkrantz@usatoday.com. Click here to see previous Ask Matt columns.