By Debra Kennedy


When it comes to investing, it often pays to be cautious. Otherwise, individuals can lose everything, sometimes on the same day. As such, it often pays to know which investments are riskier than others. With that being said, most all investments have at least a small associated risk including mutual funds.

These type investments are are often considered a safer investment than others. One reason being that most of these entities have portfolio managers which work with clients on a one-on-one basis. Whereas, others may only host a service center which serves multiple clients. While there is no actual definition for the term, these type investments are based on specific investment vehicles and open-end investment companies.

When it comes to this type investing, portfolio managers generally pool money from different investors, then purchase a variety of securities. If those securities see a profit, then the investors will see a shared return on investments. Otherwise, the value of each fund can either drop or fall in accordance with market trends.

All investments of this size and scope must be registered with the United States securities and exchange commission. After which, all investment portfolios must be managed by a registered advisor and overseen by a board of trustees. In most cases, these funds are tax-free. To assure this is the case, investors need to comply with all related Internal Revenue code requirements as set out in the Investment Company Code Act in 1940.

Regardless of these requirements and associated risks, most employers love stocking 401K retirement accounts with these type funds. While this is the case, there are both advantages and disadvantages to employees. For, an employee could work for twenty years, place a great deal of money into a retirement account, then lose everything if a company were to go bankrupt.

In looking at these type investments, there are basically three different options. These are open-ended, exchange-traded and non-exchange traded funds. Each of which, save for the first, has its own set of limitations. For example, while an open-ended fund can be bought, sold and traded in and outside the exchange, exchange-traded must be bought and sold during the times the exchange is open. Whereas, non-exchange traded funds must be bought, sold and traded outside the exchange.

The four main categories of the stock market include equity or stock, fixed income or bonds, market and hybrid funds. In addition, funds can either be listed as actively or passively managed based on the age and content of each portfolio. While stocks and bonds are notably the most risky of all investments, mutual and other funds also hold some risk.

One of the biggest drawbacks of these type investments is that the investor must pay any expenses incurred by the fund. As a result, the fund can often lose a great deal in the way of returns and performance. To avoid this issue, investors need keep a close eye on these and other fees which are often posted on quarterly, bi-annual or annual reports. Otherwise, it is easy for a fund to become upside down due to maintenance costs rather than showing a profit to investors.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment

Powered by Blogger.

Popular Posts

Blog Archive