Index funds are an easily diversified, low-cost and hands-off way to invest in the stock market. They enable an investor to get access to a well-rounded selection of a variety of stocks in one package. It eliminates the process of individual stock purchase, helping you save on time and costs. Index funds hold all your investments in a given index hence lowering management costs, which result in higher returns for the given investor. They are also easy to buy. Index funds are becoming a popular investment option for a majority of people because they are easy to use, have high returns and have instant diversity.

How do you buy index funds?

• Decide where to buy your index fund. You can buy from a brokerage fund selection, a mutual fund company, or exchange-traded funds, which offer commission-free options and minimal trading costs.
• Pick an index from renowned indexes such as the Standard and Poor’s 500 that keeps track of large renowned 500 US companies or specific industries or types of companies.
• Establish the investment minimum, account minimum, expense ratio, tax-cost ratio and other costs that suits your budget.

What are the factors to consider before investing in an index fund?

• An ideal index fund mirrors the performance of its underlying index.

What are the benefits of using index funds?

• They have low turnover hence are tax-efficient.
• They have lower transaction costs in the funds making them less expensive to manage.
• They are extremely diversified hence you do not need to worry about the concentration risk of your investment.
• They have high long-term performance.

Which are the best Index funds for you to invest in?

• Vanguard 500 Index Fund Investor Shares provides you with investment results corresponding to the price and yield performance of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index’s benchmark index, with a high degree of positive correlation.
• Schwab S&P 500 Index Fund provides investment results corresponding to the total return of the S&P 500 Index while allocating the same weights to these stocks as the index.
• Fidelity Spartan 500 Index Investor Shares provides a low-cost exposure to the U.S. large-cap equities market, offering you the exposure to a basket of common stocks included in the S&P 500 Index.
• T. Rowe Price Equity Index 500 Fund matches the investment return of large-capitalization U.S. stocks with the performance of its benchmark index.

What are the best vanguard funds that track the top 500 companies?

• Vanguard 500 Index Fund Investor Shares invests all of its total net assets in the components of the index, implementing a full replication indexing strategy.
• Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares charges an annual expense ratio lower than the average annual expense ratio of large-cap no-load funds.
• Vanguard S&P 500 ETF provides investors with tax-efficient exposure to the S&P 500 Index.

What are the top index funds to buy in 2018?

• Total Stock Market charges the lowest fees since it tracks few smaller indexes enabling it to be largely automated.
• The Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares provides access to the best large-cap companies in the country.
• The Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund is a popular choice for investors as it a lifecycle fund that provides diversification while decreasing exposure to stocks and increasing exposure to bonds as the target retirement date approaches.
• REIT Index Fund Admiral Shares allows you to take rental profit and liquidity while diversifying in a rental property.
• Growth Index Fund provides a high-risk investment in high-growth companies that provide solid high returns.
• Strategic Equity Fund ideal for Investor Shares is a high-risk investment in smaller companies that have proven potentially higher growth and high returns.
• Total International Stock Index Fund ideal for Investor Shares focuses only on companies outside the US in both developed and emerging markets that have potential high growth and guaranteed high returns.
• Total Bond Market, which is less risky than stocks providing high returns in the medium and long-run.