Donk:
I have 2 doctors and a few friends, that either have no time for the market or just have
no interest. For them, I put them in a S&P Index fund. The S&P is 500 large companies
that trade on the NYSE or the NASDAQ. If you feel America is successful and going to get
better, then your investment in this kind of fund is justifiable. It is a bet on America.
I advise Fidelity's 500 Index fund (FXAIX). Their charge per year to manage is 0.015%---virtually nothing. You get the dividends which you can elect to be reinvested. Vanguard also has a S&P Index Fund (VFIAX) which is very good. I have had both and just very slightly like the Fidelity better.
The yearly net return for FXAIX are:
2017.....21.81%
2018.....-4.40
2019.....31.47
2020.....18.40
2021.....23.47 YTD thru 12-2
On a compound basis (dividends reinvested)
$100 invested 1-1-2017 goes to $223.81 as of 12-2-21.
this was a great time period and resulted in above average returns.
From 1-1-13 to 12-31-16 (4 years) $100 went to $170.79.
The majority of investors and the majority of mutual funds, over time, do not
keep up with the S&P 500 index.
Maybe FXAIX will allow for more golf and less heartache over trial and error learning.
