I'm not familiar with Lord Abbett in particular but most of the consumer level funds I've looked at were bought and sold in an identical manner to shares (ie buy 100units of BT XYZ Medium Risk Profile @ $X), with all the associated costs of purchasing and selling, is this not the case or are you talking about larger initial setup fees or other fees of some sort?

yes, it is a share system. capital gains and dividends are paid out, depending upon the fund's prospectus. even in a flat economy or a downward trend clients can see gains.

A share - fee paid upon purchase, no fee upon sale
B share - no fee on purchase, but variable fee upon sale (evil, i refuse to sell)
C share - no fee on purchase, higher operating costs deducted annually.

A shares are the most cost effective over the long haul. less than scrupulous advisors/brokers sell the others when they aren't as appropriate because it is easier to get the customer to swallow.

And losses in a bull ;)

you know it. pick your poison carefully.

there is a phrase i repeat everytime i make a sale. "the market is a beautiful thing, it is full of balance. as much as you want to buy this, there is someone out there who believes with the same conviction that today is the day to sell it."

I think just have a deep seated distrust of the aptitude of most fund managers.

i hear you on that. the funds i use most often are the ones where i have had the opportunity to meet with some of the big guys. i like Lord Abbett because they have remained a partnership. they don't pay there managers based on 1 year performance but on a 48 month average. they split control of each fund up amongst a team rather than having one person sitting on top, so there is less likelihood of the entire fund going left when it should go right.

american funds operates in the same manner except each fund is broken down further to portfolio managers. they each run their piece of the pie like an independent fund.

again, i don't look for lightning in a bottle. conservative, responsible, consistant performance = a quality fund IMO

Both sound like good solutions, there are maveriks that just have a streak of brilliance in doing the most oddball things (the look on someone's face when you tell them that X is buying gold or coffee futures can be priceless) but the number that can pull it off verses think they can is somewhere near statistically zero.

I know many of the big guys now have internal police forces that are like the damn gestapo, stamping on people's fingers over incomplete paperwork and half an hour late documentation.