Mutual Funds

The easiest way to getting a start in your investment portfolio is by going with mutual funds. Index funds will return you what the market is making, usually coming out ahead of most brokers. Mutual funds are a good way to get consistently high returns over the long run.

What a Mutual Fund is

A mutual fund is simply a group of stocks that are bought and sold together. They can focus on many different areas of the stock market, like large cap companies, divident paying companies, health care compaines, etc.

Fund Managers

When you purchase shares of a mutual fund you pay for someone to manage those funds. This "expense ratio" is usually 1-4% and pays someone to make sure that the stocks in your fund are making money.

Links

• Morningstar.com - Offers investment research. Covers stocks, funds and college savings plans.
• Wikipedia.com - Everything you ever wanted to know about mutual funds.
• CNN - Fund advice and articles about how to pick and manage mutual funds.