GFAFX

ConfidenceParking148

5.75% front‑load means each $200 turns into about $188 invested; that alone erodes the 7‑10% gross you were promised. Once the load fades the expense ratio takes over, but a 0.6% fee over time still hurts. If you’re okay swapping providers, just open a Roth at Schwab or Fidelity and transfer the balance – use the same CGGO or GFAFX share class that has no commission and a 0.2‑0.3% expense. That will turn the “down‑11%” you saw into a realistic return and you keep all the tax‑advantaged growth.

harrison_wintergreen

there are a few thing here so let's separate them: - the 5.75% fee is something to avoid. this is a sales commission to whoever sold you these products. - American Funds has some very good investment options, if you can get the lower-fee versions. ignore the haters, they literally don't know what they're saying. if American Growth Fund means AGTHX, it is actually a fantastic fund with a very good long-term history. the fee is high on your version, but the underlying fund is good. you were not sold garbage. - however, you can open your own Roth IRA and buy the ETF equivalent CGGO without the sales charge, and a lower expense ratio. you could buy GFAFX, the version sold to retail investors without a front-load fee. > said that even with the fee, the funds are getting 7 - 10% returns each year. I checked my roth balance for the first time today, and see I am DOWN almost 11% since I have been contributing. - being down 11% over a short period of time doesn't mean it's a disaster. averages can describe a very long period of time. if an investment averages 14%/year for one decade and 3% a year for the next decade, that means it had an 8.5% average for the entire 20 year period. > Part of my investment strategy is VOO and chill I'm old enough to remember when the S&P 500 went flat for 12 years 2000 to 2012, and small cap US, bonds and international stocks stomped the S&P 500. so "VOO and chill" makes my skin crawl, and I recommend small cap and international diversification of some type in addition to VOO.

Apost8Joe

Of course it has, because they're not even remotely the same thing, despite the rating agencies forcing GFAFX into large growth style box it doesn't manage around. SCHG is 50% tech, while GFAFX has tech it also holds other sectors, even some international. It's comparable to the SP500, which it's beat over every rolling 10 year period for 30 years. Rolling periods are important through all market conditions, because a few of us on Reddit have been at this through the 2000 tech wreck and 2008 collapse, and we're watching in amusement at the clown show on display today. IMHO and real world experience, too many investors today have absolutely no clue what a real bear market is like or had no actual money/net worth in play at the time, and why would they since the Fed has been accommodating pump daddy for 20 years already. All that matters is what you keep, and some of y'all gonna be real surprised with how that math turns out.

PashasMom

Only if you can buy at Schwab without a transaction fee or load: NEWFX, TRIGX, TRGVX, AFIFX, GFAFX, KTCAX, GWPFX.

FomBBK

Mutual funds with the dividend set to reinvest. I've been in GFAFX since '09 with my paper route earnings and it has done well for me over the decades. You could do straight ETF like VTI, but the dividend payout is significantly less.\~1% vs \~8%.

Camdozer

Depends on your goals and risk tolerance. If you're young, go for some where growth is the point in your retirement accounts. PRWCX and GFAFX are two I'm invested in for my retirement accounts. In accounts that have nearer term goals, like down payments for a house or something, go for ones where capital retention is the point and pepper in some bonds. WSHFX, BALFX, ANBEX