Too many choices and too much information! That’s how to describe the problem with selecting mutual funds today. There are more than 20,000 mutual funds available today. It seems like there are just as many magazines, TV shows and newsletters touting their “12 Funds to Buy Today” or “15 Funds to Beat the Market”. Did you ever notice that they keep changing the list? That’s how they keep you buying magazines.

At Anderson & Strudwick, we advocate the objective process of “filtering” for mutual funds. Most people begin selecting a fund by reading or hearing about a fund. Then they look into it, and since most things in print are generally positive, they might decide to buy it. This is the exact opposite of how fund selection should be done.

The first step is helping you to decide what kind of fund you might need to add to your portfolio. It could be that you are missing any of a number of investment styles (Large Company Growth, Small Company Value, International, etc.). It doesn't make sense to buy a large cap growth fund if you already have three of them. The second step is to set the criteria for what you would like from a fund. The third step is to run the filter itself.

By tailoring each filter around you, we hope to provide you with good, solid investment ideas that complement, not duplicate, the other holdings in your portfolio. If you would like more information on mutual fund filters, please ask your Anderson & Strudwick Investment Professional. He/she can help construct a filter around your specific situation and risk tolerance.