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MFARX - MFS AR Municipal Bond A

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MFS AR Municipal Bond A (MFARX)
Expense Ratio: 0.72%
Expected Lifetime Fees: $22,073.95


The MFS AR Municipal Bond A fund (MFARX) is a Muni Single State Long fund started on 02/3/1992 and has $228.50 million in assets under management. The current manager has been running MFS AR Municipal Bond A since 01/24/1999. The fund is rated by Morningstar. In addition to trading fees and broker commissions, this fund has 12b-1 fees of 0.25%

MarketRiders Prefers The Following ETF

iShares S&P National Municipal Bond (MUB)
Expense Ratio: 0.25%
Expected Lifetime Fees: $8,051.41


The iShares S&P National Municipal Bond (MUB) is an Exchange Traded Fund. It is a "basket" of securities that index the Muni Single State Long investment strategy and is an alternative to a Muni Single State Long mutual fund. Fees are very low compared to a comparable mutual fund like MFS AR Municipal Bond A because computers automatically manage the stocks.




The Following Muni Single State Long Funds Have Lower Fees Than MFS AR Municipal Bond A (MFARX). Why are these metrics important?
Mutual Fund Name Ticker Symbol Turnover Assets (M) Annual Fees
Fidelity Arizona Municipal Income FSAZX 10.0% 175 0.55%
Franklin AL Tax-Free Income A FRACZ 5.4% 317 0.71%
Franklin AL Tax-Free Income A FRALX 5.4% 317 0.71%
Franklin Arizona Tax-Free Income Fund Advisor Class FAZZX 13.2% 1,100 0.52%
Franklin AZ Tax-Free Income A FARCZ 13.2% 1,100 0.62%
Franklin AZ Tax-Free Income A FTAZX 13.2% 1,100 0.62%
Franklin CO Tax-Free Income A FRCCZ 8.1% 770 0.65%
Franklin CO Tax-Free Income A FRCOX 8.1% 770 0.65%
Franklin CT Tax-Free Income A FXCCZ 13.9% 536 0.66%
Franklin CT Tax-Free Income A FXCTX 13.9% 536 0.66%
Franklin FL Tax-Free Income A FRFCZ 6.5% 1,200 0.62%
Franklin FL Tax-Free Income A FRFLX 6.5% 1,200 0.62%
Franklin GA Tax-Free Income A FTGAX 7.2% 575 0.67%
Franklin GA Tax-Free Income A FTGCZ 7.2% 575 0.67%
Franklin LA Tax-Free Income A FKLAX 7.1% 476 0.68%
Franklin LA Tax-Free Income A FKLCZ 7.1% 476 0.68%
Franklin MD Tax-Free Income A FMDCZ 11.6% 700 0.65%
Franklin MD Tax-Free Income A FMDTX 11.6% 700 0.65%
Franklin MI Tax-Free Inc A FTTCZ 0.9% 1,500 0.63%
Franklin MI Tax-Free Inc A FTTMX 0.9% 1,500 0.63%
Franklin Missouri Tax Free Income Fund Advisor Class FRMZX 13.1% 1,300 0.54%
Franklin MO Tax-Free Income A FMOCZ 13.1% 1,300 0.64%
Franklin MO Tax-Free Income A FRMOX 13.1% 1,300 0.64%
Franklin NC Tax-Free Income A FXNCX 6.1% 1,400 0.63%
Franklin NC Tax-Free Income A FXNCZ 6.1% 1,400 0.63%
Franklin North Carolina Tax-Free Income Fund Advisor Class FNCZX 6.1% 1,400 0.53%
Franklin OR Tax-Free Income A FROCZ 12.5% 1,400 0.63%
Franklin OR Tax-Free Income A FRORX 12.5% 1,400 0.63%
Franklin Oregon Tax Free Income Fund Advisor Class FOFZX 12.5% 1,400 0.53%
Franklin TN Municipal Bond A FRTIX 14.3% 313 0.70%
Franklin VA Tax-Free Income A FRV1Z 11.6% 916 0.64%
Franklin VA Tax-Free Income A FRVAX 11.6% 916 0.64%
Legg Mason Inv Counsel MD Tx-Free Inc A LMMDX 4.0% 208 0.70%
Northern AZ Tax-Exempt NOAZX 50.5% 115 0.45%
Nuveen CO Municipal Bond I FCORX 14.0% 118 0.71%
Nuveen MD Municipal Bond I NMMDX 9.0% 189 0.64%
Nuveen MI Municipal Bond I NMMIX 6.0% 207 0.64%
Nuveen MO Municipal Bond I FMMRX 6.0% 454 0.62%
Nuveen NC Municipal Bond I FCNRX 5.0% 438 0.59%
Nuveen TN Municipal Bond I FTNRX 19.0% 457 0.61%
Nuveen VA Municipal Bond I NMVAX 8.0% 426 0.61%
T. Rowe Price GA Tax-Free Bond GTFBX 13.4% 216 0.55%
T. Rowe Price MD Tax-Free Bond MDXBX 12.5% 2,000 0.46%
T. Rowe Price VA Tax-Free Bond PRVAX 12.6% 949 0.48%
Tax-Free Trust of OR Y ORTYX 15.0% 519 0.61%
Vanguard FL Focused L/T Tax-Exempt Adm VFLRX 30.0% 949 0.12%
Vanguard FL Focused L/T Tax-Exempt Inv VFLTX 30.0% 949 0.20%
Wells Fargo Advantage CO Tax-Free Adm NCOTX 22.0% 100 0.60%
Wells Fargo Advantage NC Tax-Free I ENCYX 44.0% 142 0.54%



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Why Are These Metrics Important?


Turnover
Turnover represents how much of a mutual fund's holdings are changed over the course of a year through buying and selling. Active mutual funds have an average turnover rate of about 85%, meaning that funds are turning over nearly all of their holdings every year. A high turnover means you could make lower returns because: 1) buying and selling stocks costs money through commissions and spreads and 2) the fund will distribute yearly capital gains which increases your taxes. Look for funds with turnover rates below 50%. For comparison, ETF turnover rates average around 10% or lower.

Assets
Generally, smaller funds do better than larger ones. The more assets in a mutual fund, the lower the chance that it will beat its index. Managers outperform an index by choosing stocks that are undervalued. In order to find these undervalued stocks, the manager has to know more than his competitors to develop an "edge." There are only a finite number of stocks a mutual fund manager can reasonably analyze and actively track to gain such a competitive edge. When the fund has more assets, the manager must analyze large companies because he needs to take larger positions. Large companies are more efficiently priced in the market and it becomes increasingly difficult to get an edge.