How do most U.S. households purchase mutual funds?
In 2008, 68 percent of mutual fund–owning households owned funds through employer-sponsored retirement plans. Seventy-three percent of mutual fund–owning households owned mutual funds purchased outside employer-sponsored retirement plans. Among these households, 56 percent owned mutual funds purchased from the sales force channel, which includes full-service brokers, independent financial planners, bank or savings institution representatives, insurance agents, and accountants; and 35 percent owned fund shares purchased from the direct market channel, which consists of purchases made directly from fund companies and through discount brokers. Fifty-one percent of mutual fund–owning households considered employer-sponsored retirement plans to be their primary source for purchasing mutual funds. Thirty-six percent reported the sales force channel to be their primary source for purchasing funds, and 13 percent cited the direct market channel.
