Let's be honest: Very few investors are as geeky as Morningstar mutual fund analysts. Most people don't have time to fly around the country attending investment conferences and they don't waste their time swapping fund industry gossip. Furthermore, most investors have better things to do than to monitor dozens of funds. Finally, people starting out in investing probably don't have the money to buy more than one fund anyway.

So here's our advice for those searching for their first—and perhaps only—mutual fund.

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