Comments on: Fees Matter!

By: Tom in Austin

Tom in Austin — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 03:43:21 +0000

Fees are important, but charts like this mask the real issue and that is that most investors suck at investing. The Dalbar study shows this year after year. The average investor is lucky to beat inflation, much less the markets. They focus almost solely on finding the funds with the cheapest fees and then wonder why their investments are poor performers. Very few investors understand risk and what it really means to their portfolios.

By: Deltablues82

Deltablues82 — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:20:12 +0000

Jeremy spins the classic myth offered by the industry that siphons billions of dollars from the retirement savings accounts of hard working americans:
“But when it comes to managed funds, there is a lot more to be concerned about when selecting a fund than worrying about a few basis points.”
Believe this little tale at your peril. A few basis points my eye.

By: Link roundup: Interview edition at Mighty Bargain Hunter

Link roundup: Interview edition at Mighty Bargain Hunter — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:44:46 +0000

[...] All Financial Matters says that fees matter when it comes to investing. [...]

By: Ryan S.

Ryan S. — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 22:14:22 +0000

Thanks for backing everything up with raw data. I tell people all the time to watch their fees, and so many of them take in nonchalantly. Maybe this will help!

By: How Lower Fees and Expenses with Index Funds Could Mean 33% More to Spend in Retirement ∞ Get Rich Slowly

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 19:00:22 +0000

[...] All Financial Matters: Fees matter [...]

By: Gerry Born

Gerry Born — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 15:17:46 +0000

Great info. I try to relay this info to my co-workers as often as possible. If you want to see real fee abuse, take a look at the 403b marketplace. Abusive fees and surrender charges litter the market. To make matters worse, horrible annuity products are pushed by salesmen masquerading as objective fiduciaries! What a nightmare scenario. If you don’t believe do a little reading at http://www.403bwise.com

By: JLP

JLP — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 05:13:18 +0000

Single Ma,

That’s a good question.

According to my SmartMoney Mutual Fund Screener here’s the average expenses for mutual funds:

Small-Cap – 1.45%
Mid-Cap – 1.38%
Large-Cap – 1.21%
Multi-Cap – 1.25%
Global/International – 1.46%
Emerging Markets – 1.75%
Hybrid – 1.30%
Taxable Bond – 0.95%
Municipal Bond – 0.93%

Index funds should be a lot lower than these averages.

By: CiaranFromChance

CiaranFromChance — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 05:00:50 +0000

You want real world. Here’s an excellent calculator that shows you the effect fees will have on your mutual funds over any period of time. It digs down to a level you won’t find on the FINRA site or any other, it takes into consideration many of the hidden fees that are rarely quantified by these calculators. i.e. the cost of fund trading turnover, found only in the SAI

It’s free to use and a great way to see the dramatic effects of expenses and internal fees on your mutual funds.

Personalfund.com

By: Singel Ma

Singel Ma — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 02:39:29 +0000

I have an elementary question. What do you consider a “reasonable” fee?

By: The Dividend Guy

The Dividend Guy — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 02:25:36 +0000

This chart is incredible JLP. The impact of these fees is huge. In Canada, where the average MER is higher than in the US, this chart becomes even more important. The difference between a 0.0 and 1.0 is drastic.