Hold Those Shares-Or Else

摘要

Many Mutual-Fund shareholders and 401(k) investors are getting surprising news in the mail: Hold on to your fund shares once-you buy them, or you'll be hit with fees of up to 2% when you sell. Since the start of last year, fund-watcher Lipper says, 1,140 mutual funds have added such redemption fees, imposed when investors sell shares they've bought within the last 5, 30, or even 90 days. In some cases, shareholders will be charged even if they sell within a year―a long time to be locked in to an investment. Funds are taking their cue from the Securities & Exchange Commission, which views redemption fees as one way to clean up trading abuses exposed in the mutual-fund scandals. The SEC is mulling a rule that would require most funds to charge a 2% fee on shares sold within five days of purchase. That would combat market timing, the legal―but abusive―practice of moving rapidly in and out of a fund to take advantage of outdated prices on foreign or thinly traded small-company stocks.