Posted: 1/22/2005 6:03:46 AM EDT
|
I need some suggestions for some decent ones. Thanks! |
|
If you're not sure an indexed fund is probably your safest bet for fairly safe long term growth. I have been really happy with Fidelity and they have an incredible array of funds. You can even buy precious metals from them which they hold and transfer when you want to sell. If I were going to do what you are planning on right now I'd probably invest in an S&P 500 indexed fund. You need to know, however, that if you are investing in a fund for other than tax deffered retirement vehicles that you will be taxed on previous growth of the fund. IOW if you buy fund X and it is a 10 year old fund, and they sell Widget, Inc for profit shortly after you enter the fund you will have to pay capital gains on the sale even though you didn't benefit from the sale. Just an FYI as it is the main thing I tell people about mutuals. |
|
Don't think that you are getting professional management with most funds. You still have to pay attention and be willing to dump a loser. If you have say, a sector fund and that sector goes down the tubes, don't expect the fund managers to do much about it. For some reason they are barred from getting out of bad markets and into cash or whatever it is that would protect the principle. I had that happen with fidelity Select Electronics. Market took a dump, but the fund managers continued to buy and hold those crappy stocks. They never exited the market. As a result, the fund went from $120+/share down to <$20 at one point. |