[Series 65] 28, Mutual Fund Costs 12b-1 Fees and Expenses

[Series 65] 28, Mutual Fund Costs 12b-1 Fees and Expenses

From Open Exam Prep by Ran Chen, EA, CFP®

April 21, 2026 · 4 min

About this episode

This episode covers the costs associated with mutual funds, including 12b-1 fees and their impact on investor returns.

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The key components of a mutual fund's expense ratio, including management fees. - The purpose of 12b-1 fees and the specific rules that dictate whether a fund can be marketed as "no-load". - The differences between load funds (Class A, B, C shares) and no-load funds. - How to analyze the long-term impact of fees on an investor's total return, a critical concept for suitability questions. - A mnemonic to remember the primary ongoing costs associated with mutual funds. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

People in this episode

Host: Ran Chen

Topics covered

  • mutual fund costs
  • 12b-1 fees
  • expense ratio
  • load vs no-load funds
  • investor returns
  • exam preparation

Keywords

  • mutual fund
  • 12b-1 fees
  • expense ratio
  • load funds
  • no-load funds
  • investor returns
  • exam preparation

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Open Exam Prep, YouTube Channel

Products: mutual fund, 12b-1 fees, Class A shares, Class B shares, Class C shares, no-load funds, load funds

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