Mutual Funds

Six tips for choosing mutual funds

1. Buy only from registered advisers: You can check someone’s registration by contacting your provincial securities regulator. In Ontario, this is the Ontario Securities Commission.
2. Ask about fees: There are fees involved with all mutual funds. Some have more fees than others.
3. Make sure your investments fit your financial plan: You can lose money on mutual funds just as you can with any other investment. Choose funds based on your goals, how much risk you want to take, and the length of time you plan to invest.
4. Research the risks: Make sure you know the risks when you buy a fund. Don’t assume that a fund that did well in the past, will do well in the future. Some mutual funds are much riskier than others.
5. Avoid hot tips: Any fund that may grow a lot in value, can also drop a lot in value. The risks could be quite high. Be very careful about picking a fund that someone says will make you a lot of money quickly.
6. Look past the advertising: You may see ads for a mutual fund company, and get to know their name really well. When you want to buy a mutual fund, you may decide to buy their funds without thinking much about it, just because you know the name. However, some of their funds can be doing quite poorly, while others are doing very well.

Remember: There are lots of mutual funds to choose from
If you’re not sure which one is right for you, get some advice from a professional adviser. It is important to make sure that your mutual fund investments are a good match for you.