Despite a wide range of improprieties uncovered at a number of investment companies in the recent past, mutual funds are more popular than ever. U.S. investors have close to $9 trillion dollars in mutual funds. That’s almost $2 trillion more than just a few years ago.
It’s not hard to understand why investors choose mutual funds when you consider some of their advantages:
Mutual funds can help you diversify your portfolio, by spreading your money among a wide range of investments to meet different goals.
Mutual funds can be affordable, since many funds will let you make an initial investment of $1,000 or even les
Mutual fund shares are liquid,
which means you can redeem them almost immediately at the current net asset value (NAV) — minus any fees the fund may charge at redemption.
Actively managed funds have a professional manager who determines the fund strategy and makes key buy and sell decisions.
As Congress, the SEC, FINRA,
and investment companies work together to safeguard investors’ interests and enforce compliance, mutual fund practices are in the process of becoming fairer and more transparent than ever. In fact, mutual funds are subject to some of the strictest oversight in the financial industry.
