Good Vanguard Mutual Funds

I recently wrote about some good American Fund Mutual Funds so I decided to research some other good mutual funds. I am now going to give some information about the Vanguard series of mutual funds. In my opinion, as you are looking at mutual funds, you should be looking at funds that have been around at least 10 years, have had growth in at least 70% of the years since the funds inception and has averaged 10-12% growth since.

Here are the top Vanguard funds that I found, I admit that I did not do in depth research so there could be some better funds available. Before you invest in any funds, you should do some research yourself and consult a professional. I am just listing these funds to give you some ideas.

Vanguard 500 Index (VFINX) began on August 31, 1976. Through December 31, 2008 this fund had growth in 25 years and losses in 7 years. That means 78% of the years since its inception, this fund has had years with growth. The average annual growth of this fund since inception is 9.30%.

Vanguard Wellesley Income (VWINX) began on July 1 ,1970. This fund has had growth in 32 years and losses in 6 years. That means 84% of the years since it's inception, this fund has had years with growth! The average annual growth of this fund is 9.69%.

Vanguard U.S. Growth (VWUSX) began on January 6, 1959. This fund has had growth in 36 years and losses in 13 years. That calculates to 73% of the years since its inception, this fund has had years with growth. The average annual growth of this fund since inception is 9.16%.

Vanguard Windsor (VWNDX) began on October 23, 1958. This fund has had growth in 40 years and losses in 10 years. That means 75% of the years since its inception, this fund has had years with growth. The average annual growth of this fund is 10.33%.

Vanguard Wellington (VWELX) began on July 1, 1929. That means this fund began BEFORE the stock market crash of 1929. It survived that crash, the depression, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, President Kennedy's assassination, President Nixon's resignation and many more incidents that affected the United States and the world. Just the fact that this fund survived is impressive to me. Through all of that turmoil, this fund still had 61 years with growth and only 18 years with losses. That means 77% of the years since the inception of this fund, it has had years with growth. The average annual rate of growth is 7.79%.

While only one of these funds falls in the category of 10-12% average growth over the life of the fund, these are still pretty good mutual funds. These funds have been around a long time and have weathered some difficult financial situations. They are certainly worth considering as you look into investing.