100 Top Mutual Funds

With thousands of possible mutual funds to choose from, it takes knowledge to try to select the best of the best. For the average person, finding the top 100 mutual funds can be a challenge. Fortunately, you probably have all the tools you need to find the top 100 mutual funds, at your fingertips. If you have access to the internet and know how to use search engines, you are well are on your way.

How much money do you have to invest? How long can you invest it? These are two questions you need to answer before searching for the best investment vehicle for you. Now you should check out the World Wide Web. When you open up search engines such as Google, or Yahoo, input the words "the top 100 mutual funds." When sifting through the results, try to select sites without any professional tie to a certain mutual fund. Once you have selected some web sites to investigate, you can start to cross-reference the results. When a mutual fund consistently appears on more than one site, take note. Then choose several mutual funds that are on each list.

Has the fund been under the same management during that time? This is important because you want your fund to continue to perform as it has in the past. Many mutual fund rating services will list the minimum required investment so you can find one in your financial range. You also need to take note of the overall risk rating. Many rating services will compare the volatility of funds in similar categories. The more volatile a fund is, the more apt you will be to want to sell when it hits lows in the cycle.

When you fund the funds that meet your criteria, you will want to investage your choices further. There are certain things you will need to know about each of these funds. Many financial experts suggest you look for no load funds. How has it been performing over the past five years? You will find returns for a calendar year with performance reports. You will want to compare your funds three and five year returns to a standard index such as the S&P 500. Disqualify any fund that doesn't outperform the index by more than five per cent in the 3 and five year categories.

jay said:

he more volatile a fund is, the more apt you will be to want to sell when it hits lows in the cycle. - i dont get that..why would one want to sell it in lows? if iam investing in for long term i could wait right?