Easier Ways To Invest
Not everyone is comfortable with picking individual stocks; they don't want to spend time or energy developing a trading plan. There are a couple of good alternative ways to invest in the market that offer above average returns in the long run.
Indexed Mutual Funds
The Motley Fools have written on several occasions about Indexed Mutual Funds. These funds generally have very low costs and track the major indexes. The most famous of index funds is the Vanguard 500. You can see it's performance here. Click on that link, then click Personal Investors, then scroll down and click 500 Index Fund. This fund has averaged an amazing 12.39% since inception in 08/31/1976. It is stock symbol VFINX. Index funds generally outperform the vast majority of index funds in the long run.
Diamonds, Spiders, and Qubes
Diamonds, Spiders, and Qubes are unit investment trusts. These are traded just like stocks but act like mutual funds. They offer greater liquidity and less paperwork. You will pay stock based commission on trades which might be higher than the costs of mutual funds and so you need to do a little math and determine which is best for you. I personally like these vehicles more than funds since they trade much more like pure stocks. The symbols are DIA, SPY, and QQQ.
