So Many Funds . . .

The idea behind mutual funds was to make investing simple for people who weren’t comfortable picking stocks but still wanted to be in the market. But choosing the right mutual fund has become like trying to pluck a tiny glass bead from a handful of sand.

The number of mutual funds has soared to 7,512--six times the number 10 years ago, according to Chicago-based Morningstar Inc., which tracks the mutual fund industry.

“It is a very confusing game,” says Jim Raker, a research analyst with Morningstar. “People ask me all of the time, ‘What should I invest in?’ You get so inundated with information.”

So far this year, more than 300 funds have opened shop.

The growth has meant that the average experience level of fund managers is dropping, notes Robert G. Mewshaw, an investment counselor with Van Sant & Mewshaw Inc. The average manager has run a fund for 3.3 years.