Most Mutual Funds Are Ripping You Off, Says IFA’s Mark Hebner

Source.

I am generally very cautious when it comes to offering any specific advice on investments and have almost never done so on here.  That said, I will give a thumbs up to Hebner's comments.  Anyone interested in the subject is encouraged to do a little research or just read any of the works by Jack Bogle.  Yes, there are a VERY few exceptions, but in general I don't like managed mutual funds, especially when it comes to stocks.  Low cost index funds are almost always your best long term investment for stocks.

They give you instant diversification (a broad based index), added security (individual companies could go belly up, whereas an index might take a hit but you will never lose all your money in one), and the costs are much lower than managed funds.  Fees and expenses matter.  They cut into your long term profits big time because they detract from your compound returns. And then again you come back to a mountain of data and studies going back decades that show index funds outperforming actively managed mutual funds or privately managed portfolios.