Know Your No-Load Mutual Funds No-Load Mutual Funds: Are There Any Free Lunches?
Should you invest in no-load mutual funds or funds with a load? Should you invest in no-load funds on your own or through an advisor? Before you make a decision, you should understand what a no-load mutual fund is and what a no-load mutual fund is not. What Is a Mutual Fund Load? A mutual fund load is a fee charged when an investor makes a transaction in fund shares. Loads may be charged upon purchase of fund shares (front-end load) or upon sale of fund shares (back-end loads). These loads are paid to the broker for selling the fund (or advising an investor to the buy the fund). Mutual funds that do not charge loads are known as no-load mutual funds. Some share classes of funds may easily be confused with no-load mutual funds. Typically, class B shares and class C shares do not charge a front-end load. In other words, on the surface, it appears that if you invest in a class B or C share fund you are investi
