I understand your points well. But look,Quote from Bigpipn:
Mutual funds are the biggest scams(aside from the Madoffs) in the world.
I cannot fathom, for the life of me, why a decent trader like yourself would advocate your dad to keep his funds in a mutual fund. You know the games they play throughout the day, the outrageous fees, how it is possible to pay capital gains on a loss etc....They are the scum of the earth.
1) These are semi-passive funds. They are meant to generate income, not returns.
2) The fees are minimal. The first year it is something like 1% of assets. After that, there is ZERO cost!