Mutual Funds

In the United States alone, more than 55,000,000 households invest in mutual funds -- but most of those investors aren't achieving optimal returns because they don't fully understand their costs, their risks, or their alternatives. In Mutual Funds: Your Money, Your Choice, a leading investment researcher (and author of one of the world's leading investment textbooks) explains exactly what individual investors must know to make the most of every investment dollar.
Simply and clearly -- without complicated charts or equations -- Charles P. Jones reviews everything investors need to watch out for to achieve their objectives, including costs, tax issues, sector volatility, and other key issues. He also introduces and explains important new alternatives to mutual funds, such as folio investing comparing their advantages, risks, and potential yields.
This book provides a critical understanding of the mutual funds you're staking your future on and gives you an unvarnished look at both the positives and negatives. You'll learn what to ask, where to get the answers, and how to act on that information to minimize your risks and maximize your real returns.

• Part 1 Background
• 1 Evaluating Your Investment Situation
• 2 Direct versus Indirect Investing
• 3 Understanding Mutual Funds: the Nitty-Gritty Details
• 4 Mutual Funds Are Popular!
• 5 Why Do Investors Own Mutual Funds?
• 6 Why Should I Be Concerned About My Mutual Funds?

  Part 2 Why Investors Can Have Problems with Mutual Funds

• 7 Seduced by the Dark Side
• 8 Mutual Funds Are Sold, Not Bought
• 9 Name That Fund
• 10 Conflicts of Interest
• 11 The Devil Is in the Details, and Other Disconnects
• 12 Are You in Style?
• 13 The Watchdogs Are Cocker Spaniels, Not Dobermans

  Part 3 Your Choice: If Mutual Funds, Then...

• 14 Be Aware of the Important Issues
• 15 Think Carefully About Managed Bond Funds
• 16 Ask Yourself: Can My Equity Fund Manager Really Beat Your Equity Fund Manager?
• 17 Determine How You Will Know Who the Winner Is
• 18 You Should Be Concerned About the Costs of Owning Mutual Funds
• 19 Remember, the Tax Man Cometh

  Part 4 Your Choice: Alternatives to Mutual Funds

• 20 Decisions, Decisions: Alternatives to Mutual Funds
• 21 Exchange-Traded Funds
• 22 Comparing ETFs and Mutual Funds
• 23 Folios
• 24 Comparing Mutual Funds With Folios
• 25 Managed Accounts
• Investor Alternatives With Separately Managed Accounts
• 26 Comparing Mutual Funds With Separate Accounts

  Part 5 Building Wealth: Choosing the Right Asset

• 27 What Really Determines Your Long-term Investing Results?
• 28 Why Mutual Funds Can Be the Right Asset
• 29 How to Use Mutual Funds Effectively
• 30 If You Choose an Actively Managed Mutual Fund
• 31 When to Choose an Alternative to Mutual Funds
• 32 Lessons to Remember
• Glossary of Terms