Mutual Funds Convenient Handling – ETF Low Costs
Until a few years ago, mutual funds were the simplest and most beginner-friendly solution for inexperienced investors to generate capital on the securities market: the customer exchanges wishes and ideas with his investment advisor, who then implements them.
However, after the so-called ETF (Exchange Traded Funds) became accessible to private investors, the tide turned. Since then, ETF have been considered a new solution for an uncomplicated investment – but is that really the case? We got to the bottom of this question in our guide on “mutual funds vs. ETF”.
- Mutual funds are managed by an experienced investment advisor
- ETF are bought and sold by customers themselves
- An ETF is an exact replica of an index fund
- An investment fund, on the other hand, usually consists of different products
1. What Are ETF? Advantages and Disadvantages in the Check
The abbreviation “ETF” stands for Exchange Traded Funds – in this country, however, the new financial products are primarily known as “index funds”. An ETF replicates the course of an indices 1 to 1 and thus enables the customer to participate in indices trading without having to buy or sell the actual product.
Instead, when trading an ETF, the investor basically only speculates on the price development of the underlying index. Due to this fact, the costs of trading indices are kept very low – and this is one of the most important advantages of dealing with ETF.
Because this is the manual administration of a fund by the investment adviser, the customer saves the management fees, which can amount to 1.50 percent per year or even more. Human errors, which can be attributed to the investment advisor, are also excluded when trading ETF.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Low Cost | Big Administrative Effort |
| High Spread of Risk | High Risks Due to Same-Day Settlement of Losses |
| Position As a Special Fund |
Then there is no experienced investment advisor who could save the customer from his predicament – in this case, this task is the responsibility of the investor himself. Accordingly, ETF are associated with lower fees – but the comfort of trading is very limited.
Since you always have to keep track of the price development of your own ETF, managing an ETF portfolio becomes a tedious daily task that the investor in this case puts on himself.
ETF are index funds that are designed to replicate the underlying index 1:1.
These index funds are managed by the investor themselves and are therefore much cheaper.
However, the customer must of course follow the price development of the products himself in order to be able to intervene in case of doubt and prevent high losses.
2. Mutual Funds and Their Benefits Under the Magnifying Glass
As we have already established, mutual funds are generally more convenient to use – the customer has to expect higher fees in return. When developing an investment fund, the investor himself does not have much to do: he only informs his investment advisor how high the risk in the capital investment can be and how much money he can or would like to invest in his investment fund.
The investment advisor himself will then put together a portfolio of various products and present it to the customer. If he agrees to the fund, all he has to do is watch his money grow.
In this case, however, the work continues behind the scenes: the investment advisor manages the client’s portfolio around the clock and always buys or sells the products in the portfolio at the most favorable time.
Due to the high effort involved in investing in an investment fund, the customer must of course also expect higher fees in this case. The customer has to give around 1.50 percent of his return to the investment advisor every year – but for the little effort that the customer has with his investment fund, this is basically a good deal.
| Per | Against |
| High Return Opportunities and Profits With Rising Shares Are Possible. | Losses Can Be High on Falling Stocks. |
| In the Long Term, Higher Returns Can Be Obtained Than With Other Forms of Investment. | There is No Fixed Rate of Return Like There is With Bonds. |
| Annual Dividend Payments Are a Benefit for Investors. | A Withholding Tax Must Be Paid. |
| There is a Wide Range of International Markets. |
Due to their uncomplicated handling, mutual funds are of course primarily suitable for rather inexperienced investors who do not (yet) trust themselves to get involved in the capital market. They can invest their money relatively safely in an investment fund and benefit from an attractive return. But be careful: Even the most experienced capital manager can never permanently beat the market!
In the long run, an index fund therefore proves to be more profitable for most investors than investing in a manually compiled selection of securities.
mutual funds are designed for inexperienced investors with large budgets who do not (yet) trust themselves to participate in securities trading. Since investing in an investment fund often proves to be more expensive than an ETF, customers must pay attention to the management fees.
All you have to do is approve the composition of the fund manager – nevertheless, even the most experienced fund manager will never be able to consistently beat the market.
3. Mutual Funds vs. ETF: Which is the Right Choice?
Whether you should opt for a mutual fund or to invest in ETF depends on your budget and your experience with securities trading. Since mutual funds are actively managed funds, there is less effort here and with just a few details, even inexperienced investors can put together a profitable portfolio that they ultimately do not have to worry about.
However, most modern investors often find two points particularly negative: First and foremost, investing in mutual funds is generally associated with higher fees and, moreover, with an actively managed fund it is basically not possible to permanently beat the market or “more intelligently”. to act as the underlying product.
| ETF | Mutual Funds |
| + Low Fees | + Less Effort |
| + Market Does Not Have to Be Beaten | + Management By a Professional |
| – High Effort | – High Fees |
| – Trade At Your Own Risk | – Market Cannot Be Beaten Permanently |
With an ETF, these two factors are not an issue: Since an ETF only maps the underlying index with all its associated securities, the customer does not have to try to beat the market – the price will always be exactly the same as that of the underlying index. The fees are also very limited and are generally much lower compared to mutual funds .
The big snag when investing in an ETF, however, is your own management: Since you do not entrust the management of your own portfolio to an expert, but instead are responsible for the sale and purchase of the products yourself, there is more freedom for individual decisions – however, these decisions can also include failures,
In conclusion, it can be said that although mutual funds are associated with high fees, the customer can benefit from a high degree of convenience, since the management of the portfolio is entrusted to an experienced manager.
However, this can by no means beat the market in the long run – however, this is not necessary when investing in an ETF. Instead, clients can manage their ETF themselves and make their own decisions. Although the risk of loss is correspondingly high if you lack experience, the fees are much lower compared to mutual funds.
4. How Can I Find Suitable ETF for My Investment?
After deciding whether to buy mutual funds or ETF, investors need to find the appropriate fund. It is important to pay attention to the composition and the risk classification. The fund’s past performance should also be examined.
Especially with ETF, it is not always easy for traders to make the right investment decision due to the large number of factors to be considered. An ETF fund finder can now help: thanks to numerous filter functions, investors can use this to quickly find the funds that match their risk profile.
The operation is very easy by hand. Preferences are specified with just a few mouse clicks, and the ETF fund finder then lists suitable ETF offered by the broker flatted. A detailed view allows for a well-founded analysis of the funds and supports traders in their investment decisions.
5. Conclusion: mutual funds Are Suitable for the Inexperienced
A mutual fund is an actively managed fund administered by experienced professionals. Nevertheless, the manager can never beat the market permanently – even though the management of an investment fund is associated with high fees.
However , with the right strategy and the necessary background knowledge and discipline , clients can try their luck trading ETF. The index funds are managed by the customers themselves and reflect the underlying index 1 to 1. The fees are lower than for mutual funds due to the fact that they are managed in-house.