Managed funds popular in investment choice stakes

A MAJOR decision when investing is whether to accept the responsibility of making the choices or to invest in a managed fund where a professional decides what to buy and sell.

Managed investments are both powerful and popular wealth building instruments.

They pool the money of thousands of people to form an investment fund. Specialist managers then put the cash to work on behalf of investors.

Managed investments can include superannuation funds, allocated pensions, unit trusts and investment bonds.

Managed funds aim to reduce risk by spreading investments across a range of options. The funds also employ full-time money managers to monitor performance of the investments and make adjustments here necessary.

Well-chosen funds should achieve strong, long term returns, also the exact return will depend on the fund selected and the mix of investments the fund undertakes.