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Investment Company Rates

That definitely is a significant difference.
Do you know if they will sit down with you and work through the options for your specific situation? Do you have experience with either of them?
 
I think 5% is too high. 80% of managed funds fail to beat even the S&P 500 index over the long-term. I would either invest in an index fund or a low-cost managed fund. Chances are the fund w/ the 5% fee won't even beat the S&P 500.
 
There's no good reason to pay 5%. Go with Vanguard or Fidelity.

Now, if you feel you need guidance and advice to invest wisely, then pay a financial advisor to work up a plan for you. That might cost a couple hundred bucks, but after that you follow the plan, invest with a low-cost company like Vanguard or Fidelity, and save that 5% on all your investments.

An advisor will ask you a bunch of questions like this:
- What is your investing goal and when will you want to use the money?
You might be saving for retirement, for a college fund for kids, for a second home, etc.
- What is your risk tolerance?
Let's say on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is burying your money in the backyard, and 10 is going to Vegas and putting everything on one spin of the roulette wheel. Can you handle it if your investments go down 20% in a year, even if some years they might go up 40%? Some people can't stomach any losses (not a wise position) and insist everything be put in a super-safe investment like savings bonds or money market funds.

You get the idea - they need to know what your goal is, and how much risk you can tolerate. Those answers are factored into the plan.
 
There are all sorts of potential fees associated with mutual funds, make sure you understand all of them before you buy anything. Some are charged by the broker when you buy and/or sell, some are charged by the company that manages the fund when you buy and/or sell, and some are taken straight from the fund's assets by the company that manages the fee (so those would already be factored in when you look at 1/3/5 year returns)

Here is some good info on loads:
http://mutualfunds.about.com/od/noload/
 
5% and they offer LOADED mutual funds with a ~5% sales fee and high expense ratios! Run away. Visit the Vanguard Diehard forum at the Morningstar.com site, read the threads, ask questions, and search for their recommended reading list of books. If nothing else buy Eric Tyson's Mutual Funds for Dummies for under $15 at Amazon.com.

Avoid LOADED mutual fund companies as ~5% of your money is going directly to someone's pocket as a sales commision. Their fund names say Class A, Class B et al. Consider the previously mentioned Fidelity, Vanguard and also T. Rowe Price.
 
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